Risk Factors Determined to Lead to Recidivism
These are known as criminogenic risk factors:
- History of antisocial behavior
- Antisocial personality pattern
- Antisocial cognition
- Antisocial associates
- Family and/or marital problems
- School and/or work problems
- Leisure and/or recreation problems
- Substance abuse
Validated Risk and Need Assessments assist Probation Departments by determining an individual’s level of risk for re-offending as a way to target resources to individuals assessed as higher-risk. When focusing on risk factors that have been identified as being linked to criminal behavior, rehabilitative efforts can be tailored to address the individual’s unique assessment profile. Assessments and re-assessments are competed by probation officers throughout the time an individual is under community supervision in an effort to continually assess the individual’s growth or continued areas of concern. The areas of strength (protective factors) specific to the individual are identified and used to encourage and increase these protective factors. Probation officers develop a case plan to focus on reducing risk and increasing the protective factors. The probation officer can determine if there is a change in risk factors as a result of the intervention by reassessing the individual. Probation Departments throughout the state use a variety of risk and need assessment instruments in their operations, depending on the population and the purpose.
For Pretrial Detain/Release decisions, common Pretrial Risk Assessments are: Ohio Risk Assessment Instrument (ORAS-PAT); Virginia Pretrial Risk Assessment (VPRAI); Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS); and, Public Safety Assessment (PAT)[1]
For Juvenile Detention Detain/Release decisions, a common risk assessment is the Detention Risk Assessment Instrument (DRAI).
For adults in the criminal justice system, common risk and need assessments instruments for the supervision model include the Static Risk Assessment-Offender Needs Guide (STRONG), Ohio Risk Assessment Instrument (ORAS), Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (LS-CMI), Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS), the Static Risk Needs Assessment (SRNA), and Correctional Assessment and Intervention System (CAIS) in the adult system.
For youth in the juvenile justice system, common risk and need assessment instruments for the supervision model include the Positive Achievement Change Tool (PACT), Juvenile Assessment and Intervention System (JAIS), Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS), Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (YLS/CMI) and Ohio Youth Assessment System (OYAS).
While validated actuarial assessments are not without criticism, they serve as the most advanced decision-making tools available to the field of community corrections. These formal assessments can be used alongside information gathered informally through routine interactions and observations to enhance case decisions and the working relationship between probation officers and the individuals they are serving.