Comparing sex offender risk assessment measures on a UK sample

Area of Science:

• Forensic Psychology
• Criminology
• Risk Assessment

Background:

• Accurate risk assessment is crucial for managing sex offender recidivism.
• Various actuarial and clinical risk assessment tools exist, but their comparative application requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the application of six risk assessment measures for sex offenders.
• To compare risk assessments performed by a Regional Secure Unit (RSU) and the Probation Service.
• To determine if risk assessment tools perform differently based on victim type (adult vs. child) and offender supervision setting.

Main Methods:

• The study involved 139 sex offenders.
• Six risk assessment tools were applied: Static-99, Structured Anchored Clinical Judgment Scale-Minimum (SACJ-Min), Rapid Risk Assessment for Sexual Offence Recidivism (RRASOR), Risk Matrix 2000-Sexual/Violent (RM2000/S), and Sexual Violence Risk-20 (SVR-20).
• Risk assessments from RSU and Probation Service were compared.

Main Results:

• Offenders with adult victims scored higher on RM2000/S and SACJ-Min, while those with child victims scored higher on RRASOR.
• Sex offenders assessed by RSU scored higher on RRASOR and RM2000/S compared to those supervised by the Probation Service.
• Risk assessment results varied between the RSU and Probation Service samples.

Conclusions:

• The effectiveness of risk assessment tools may differ based on offender characteristics and the assessment context.
• Current risk measures may benefit from assessing specific subcategories of sex offenders for improved accuracy.
• Further research is needed to refine risk assessment strategies for diverse sex offender populations.