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Personality Assessment in Legal Contexts: Introduction to the Special Issue
Tess M S Neal1, Martin Sellbom2, Corine de Ruiter3
1New College of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences, Arizona State University, Glendale, AZ, USA.
Journal of Personality Assessment
|March 2, 2022
Summary
This special issue reviews psychological assessment tools used in legal settings, evaluating their psychometric properties and legal standing. It aims to enhance knowledge for legal professionals and researchers regarding these forensic evaluation instruments.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Psychology
- Legal Psychology
- Psychological Assessment
Background:
- A significant gap exists in accessible, comprehensive reviews of psychological assessment tools used in forensic evaluations.
- There is a need to improve the quality and accessibility of knowledge regarding psychological assessments within legal contexts.
- Critical evaluation of forensic assessment tools is essential for advancing the field.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide credible reviews of the psychometric evidence and legal status of commonly used psychological and personality assessment measures in forensic evaluations.
- To inform psychologists, lawyers, judges, and researchers about the strengths and weaknesses of various assessment instruments.
- To encourage critical thinking and improvement in forensic assessment practices.
Main Methods:
- Comprehensive reviews of psychometric evidence and legal status of key assessment instruments.
- Inclusion of articles on specific tools such as Rorschach, R-PAS, MMPI-3, PCL-R, MCMI-IV, MACI-II, PAI, PAI-A, SIRS-2, HCR-20V3, TSI, TSI-2, MacCAT-CA, ECST-R, and CAST*MR.
- Assembly of author teams with diverse expertise, including adversarial collaborations, for fair and balanced reviews.
Main Results:
- Provides clarity on the strengths and weaknesses of numerous psychological assessment instruments used in forensic evaluations.
- Offers insights into the psychometric properties and legal admissibility of these tools.
- Serves as a valuable resource for preparing expert testimony, cross-examinations, and admissibility decisions.
Conclusions:
- The special issue addresses a critical need for accessible, expert-driven reviews of forensic assessment tools.
- The freely accessible articles will enhance understanding and application of psychological assessments in legal settings.
- This work is expected to be widely read and utilized by both psychology and legal practitioners and scholars.
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