The LSI-R and the Compas: Validation Data on Two Risk-Needs Tools

Over the past two decades, the role of risk-needs assessment in the criminal justice system has increased substantially. This study provides validation data on the Level of Service Inventory—Revised (LSI-R) and the Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS) using a...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Criminal justice and behavior 2008-09, Vol.35 (9), p.1095-1108
Main Authors: Fass, Tracy L., Heilbrun, Kirk, DeMatteo, David, Fretz, Ralph
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Criminal justice
Criminal justice system
Criminals
Minority & ethnic groups
Offenders
Prisons
Racial groups
Recidivism
Risk factors
Risks
Studies
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Over the past two decades, the role of risk-needs assessment in the criminal justice system has increased substantially. This study provides validation data on the Level of Service Inventory—Revised (LSI-R) and the Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS) using a large male cohort ( N = 975) with a substantial proportion of ethnic minority offenders. In comparing the predictive validity of these tools, the authors employed a retrospective, archival, known-groups design to study outcomes of offenders released into the community from New Jersey prisons between 1999 and 2002, with a postrelease outcome period of 12 months. The results indicate that both the LSI-R composite score and the COMPAS recidivism score have inconsistent validity when tested on different ethnic/racial populations. Furthermore, the results suggest that different ethnic/racial groups have varying risk and needs factors that predict recidivism.
ISSN:0093-8548
1552-3594
DOI:10.1177/0093854808320497