的无名英雄之一 threat assessment and 预防工作场所暴力 法医是临床心理学家吗. 在过去的几年里，我和很多人一起工作过, collectively, 他们赢得了我的尊重和欣赏. When someone’s actions or behaviors raise concerns that they may be on a path to violence, organizations can utilize forensic clinical psychologists and their unique skills to assess an individual’s risk potential.
法医临床心理学家如何支持TATs
While behavioral threat assessment team (TAT) members include representatives from across the organization – including human resources, security, 法律和行政管理——没有人有这个技能, 法医临床心理学家提供的经验或见解, 鉴于他们的知识和评估人类行为的能力. Forensic clinical psychologists can serve either as formal members of TATs or external professionals providing assessment and advisory services to TATs. 除了支持与个别组织一致的技术合作伙伴, 包括大型雇主, clinical psychologists commonly provide services to mental health facilities and the law enforcement and justice communities.
通过心理风险评估提供指导
Clinical psychologists perform psychological evaluations to help identify a subject’s level of violence risk potential. 他们使用结构化风险评估工具, 专业经验, 以及通过暴力风险教育和培训获得的专业知识. 心理风险评估采取以下形式之一:
- 间接威胁评估. These assessments address concerns related to current and former employees or non-employees, 比如家庭伴侣, customers, vendors or others. Examples might include an employee who has violated the 预防工作场所暴力 policy or a non-employee who poses a threat by showing disgruntled or potentially dangerous behavior. The psychologist does not meet directly with the individual but instead bases their assessment on records analysis, 开源和威胁情报发现, 以及与主管或其他人的面试.
- 直接暴力风险评估. These assessments involve in-person interviews with current employees who have violated the 预防工作场所暴力 policy or are exhibiting concerning or aggressive behaviors. 心理学家还依赖于记录分析, 开源和威胁情报, 还有其他人员的面试, 通常在正式评估方法(例如.g.、工作场所暴力风险评估; WAVR-21, 3rd Edition). This assessment often results in a clearer picture of violence risk because it captures direct subject input and supports a broader range of inquiry.
- 是否适合进行职务评估. These evaluations assess an employee’s ability to perform essential job requirements. Current employees are typically referred for a “fitness for duty” evaluation after supervisors or others raise concerns about them, 或者他们的表现有所下降, attendance or behavior.
与法医临床心理学家合作时要考虑的三件事
- 评估是基于结构化的方法，而不是主观意见. Forensic clinical psychologists are trained to assess an individual’s potential for violence using a systematic framework that guides the evaluator’s reasoning across a defined set of criteria. Criteria include factors with the greatest bearing on violence risk and are based on existing research. 作为结构化专业判断指南(spj)之一, WAVR-21框架包括工具(i.e., manual, worksheet, 还有入学和文件调查问卷, among other elements) that clinical psychologists use to evaluate 19 static and dynamic violence risk factors, one protective factor (the buffers countering any violence risk) and an organizational impact factor.
- 方法很重要，但也要考虑上下文. 临床心理学家不能简单地计算这些因素, arrive at a “score” and then render from that score a probability that violence will occur. 因为每个暴力风险因素都有其独特的背景, 任何给定的因素都可能在不同程度上促成风险的形成. The subject who exhibits only one of the factors listed may pose an extreme risk of violence if that one factor represents highly dangerous behavior – for example, brandishing a weapon in the hospital workplace while staring intently at her doctor.
- 减轻因素被考虑在内. A thorough threat assessment also considers any “good news” in relation to the subject (i.e.(减轻暴力风险的因素). For example, a disruptive employee with a strong desire and commitment to complete their governmental career and retire may present less risk of violence than another employee who has no ties to the organization or expectation of reaching retirement. A subject with strong family connections and no wish to disappoint others similarly may pose less of a risk. Sometimes strong religious convictions or social networks will mitigate the risk of violence. These and other possible mitigating factors are evaluated as part of a complete threat assessment by a clinical forensic psychologist while maintaining the subject’s privacy.
解决工作场所的潜在威胁和预防暴力
In sum, the forensic clinical psychologist’s contributions to behavioral threat assessment are vital. Their training, experience and application of structured interventions provide a highly professional layer of assurance to all other experts – human resources, security, legal, law enforcement and employee assistance program representatives – in properly addressing the demands and challenges of violence risk in workplace and campus environments.
Jensen Hughes specializes in behavioral case management services and threat assessments for companies across all industries as well as U.S. 联邦机构、其他政府雇主和非营利组织. Learn more about our threat assessment and 预防工作场所暴力 services.
