Handbook on Risk and Need Assessment: Theory and Practice

The Handbook on Risk and Need Assessment: Theory and Practice covers risk assessments for individuals being considered for parole or probation. Evidence-based approaches to such decisions help take the emotion and politics out of community corrections. As the United States begins to back away from ineffective, expensive policies of mass incarceration, this handbook will provide the resources needed to help ensure both public safety and the effective rehabilitation of offenders. The ASC Division on Corrections & Sentencing Handbook Series will publish volumes on topics ranging from violence risk assessment to specialty courts for drug users, veterans, or the mentally ill. Each thematic volume focuses on a single topical issue that intersects with corrections and sentencing research.

Table of Contents:
The Value and Importance of Risk and Need Assessment in Corrections & Sentencing: An Overview of the Handbook Faye S. Taxman, George Mason University Amy Dezember, George Mason University History of RNA Risk and Needs Assessment in Probation and Parole: The Persistent Gap Between Promise and Practice William D. Burrell The Research Director Perspective on the Design, Implementation, and Impact of Risk Assessment and Offender Classification Systems in USA Prisons: A National Survey James Byrne, University of Massachusetts, Lowell Amy Dezember, George Mason University Methodological Issues in Creating and Validating RNA Static Risk Factors and Criminal Recidivism Robert Brame, University of South Carolina Accuracy of Risk Assessment in Corrections Population Management: Where's the Value Added? James Hess, University of California, Irvine Susan Turner, University of California, Irvine Improving the Performance of Risk Assessments: A Case Study on the Prediction of Sexual Offending among Juvenile Offenders KiDeuk Kim, The Urban Institute Grant Duwe, Minnesota Department of Corrections Using Predictive Analytics and Machine Learning to Improve the Accuracy and Performance of Juvenile Justice Risk Assessment Instruments: The Florida Case Study Ira M. Schwartz, Consultant and Advisor to Algorhythm Peter York, Founder and CEO of Algorhythm Mark Greenwald, Director of Research, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice and Doctoral Student at Florida State University Ana Ramos-Hernandez, Data Manager, Algorhythm Lisa Feeley, Research Analyst, ICF International An Alternative Scientific Paradigm for Criminological Risk Assessment: Closed or Open Systems, or Both? Tim Brennan, Northpointe, Inc. Dynamic Risk Factors and Responsivity Toward Different Populations Risk, Need, and Responsivity in a Criminal Lifestyle Glenn D. Walters, Kutztown University Gender-Responsive Risk and Need Assessment: Implications for the Treatment of Justice-Involved Women Emily J. Salisbury, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Breanna Boppre, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Bridget Kelly, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Advancing Sexual Offender Risk Assessment: Standardized Risk Levels Based on Psychologically Meaningful Offender Characteristics R. Karl Hanson, Public Safety Canada Guy Bourgon, Public Safety Canada Incorporating Procedural Justice and Legitimacy into the RNR Model to Improve Risk-Need Assessment Katherine Ginsburg-Kempany, Arizona State University Kimberly A. Kaiser, Arizona State University Adoption of Risk Tools to Employment Context Garima Siwach, University at Albany (SUNY) Shawn D. Bushway, University at Albany (SUNY) Exploring How to Measure Criminogenic Needs: Five Instruments and No Real Answers Brittney Via, George Mason University Amy Dezember, George Mason University Faye Taxman, George Mason University RNA Implementation and Practice Customizing Criminal Justice Assessments Zachary Hamilton, Washington State University Elizabeth Thompson Tollefsbol, Washington State University Michael Campagna, Washington State University Jacqueline van Wormer, Washington State University Risk/Need Assessment Tools and the Criminal Justice Bureaucrat: Reconceptualizing the Frontline Practitioner Joel Miller, Rutgers University Sarah Trocchio, Rutgers University Risky Needs: Risk Entangled Needs in Probation Supervision Danielle S. Rudes, George Mason University Jill Viglione, University of Texas, San Antonio Kimberly S. Meyer, George Mason University Special Issues Regarding the Conceptualization for RNA Purpose and Context Matters: Creating a Space for Meaningful Dialogues about Risk and Need Kelly Hannah-Moffat, Director Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies, University of Toronto, Canadiana Gallery Human Rights and High Risk Offenders: The Right to Rehabilitation and the Right to Fairness Mary Rogan, Barrister-at-Law, Head of Law and Assistant Head of the School of Languages, Law and Social Sciences, Dublin Institute of Technology