Forensic Assessments: Violence Risk Assessment (VRA)
Dr. Prince offers comprehensive forensic evaluations, with a focus on
violence risk assessment (VRA). VRA is a multi-step process designed to assess an individual’s risk of general, violent, and sexual re-offending. The results help inform decisions about supervision, treatment, and safety planning in both institutional and community settings.
Violence Risk Assessment Process
Dr. Prince utilizes the following methods to form an integrated case conceptualization:
- Clinical interviews
- Empirically validated tools, such as the Violence Risk Scale, STABLE-2007, Level of Service Inventory-Revised, Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, and Structured Assessment of Protective Factors
- Collateral information, such as court-mandated pre-sentence reports and treatment summaries
- Additional psychological testing, if needed, including measures of psychopathology and personality, as well as cognitive testing
The case conceptualization is presented in a written report that summarizes findings, including background information, diagnostic impressions using the DSM-5-TR, if applicable, and responses to legal questions regarding an individual’s risk for future offending behaviour and the management of risk factors.
A VRA is guided by the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) Model, which is a well-established framework for the assessment and rehabilitation of justice-involved individuals. This model considers:
- Risk factors for re-offending, such as attitudes towards the offence and antisocial personality patterns
- Treatment and programming needs, such as psychological intervention to target mental health symptoms or conditions and education programming
- Responsivity factors, meaning factors that affect how treatment should be delivered, including ethnicity, gender, and mode of therapy
- Protective factors, meaning factors that reduce re-offending, mitigate re-offending, or promote positive treatment outcomes
Dr. Prince’s forensic practice abides by the Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists, including the Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology.