Question

Identify two psychological tests related to forensic psychology that are not discussed in the text. You can find this information through the cyberlibrary or an internet search. Please refer to the instructions on locating quality test reviews from  HYPERLINK "http://documents.saintleo.edu/docs/psy330/mmyb.pdf" \t "_blank" Mental Measurements Yearbooks (MMYB) for this assignment.

Briefly describe each test including the purpose of the test, the population it is normed on and any advantages or disadvantages to using the test. Also, for each test, indicate which of the three classifications it meets under forensic classification of assessment instruments.

Answer 1

1. Hare Psychopathy Checklist: The Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (2nd edition, PCL-R) is a 20-item rating scale for the measurement of the clinical construct of psychopathy. It uses a semistructured interview, case history information, and specific scoring criteria to rate each item on a 3-point scale (0, 1, 2). Total scores can vary from 0 to 40 and reflect the degree to which the individual matches the prototypical psychopath.

2. Violence Risk Assessment Instrument (HCR-20): The Historical, Clinical, Risk Management-20 (HCR-20) is an assessment tool that helps mental health professionals estimate a person's probability of violence. The results of the evaluation could be used to determine the person's future potential for violence, how the court should proceed, and which kind of facility the person might require.

Both of these tests are clinical assessment instruments.