It is extremely rare that we encounter a situation where the criminogenic need that is the driver does not score high or moderate according to a risk/needs assessment. Whatever research we can find on this subject is not specific enough to provide sufficient guidance in answering this question; however, what we do have is a few years of practitioners’ experience. So, please add your perspective here. We are always learning.

 

The following is what we can say based on our interactions with others:

  • The driver should always be among the five most influential criminogenic needs (antisocial cognition, antisocial personality/temperament, antisocial associates, family/marital, substance abuse), with one exception: those infrequent times in which a typically noncriminogenic need is at the root of behavior that leads to a person's involvement in the justice system. A good example of this is mental health (e.g., a major diagnosis, previous trauma, untreated sexual assault).
  • The driver does not necessarily need to coincide with a “high” score for that domain on the assessment; however, it should at least be in the “moderate” range.
  • If the driver is associated with a domain that is scored “low” on the assessment, there may be fidelity issues with either the assessment or driver, or they may be new information. We know, for example, that information is often identified after the assessment. A reassessment will correct this situation. 

 

As for what to do with case planning, we would recommend a practice of having the staff member talk with their supervisor to explore the reasons for the disconnect between assessment and driver results on a case-by-case basis. We assume that this will be an infrequent event. This practice will serve two purposes: 

  1. It will help you determine if there are some training issues that need to be dealt with.
  2. It will provide some direction for the staff member on what to do with the driver results. The bottom line is that if you miscalculate the driver, you will know pretty quickly as the driver will show up in violation behavior.