Keep it Simple

Using the BARR-2002R to Assess Risk for Violent Recidivism in a Police Context

Abstract

The general criminality subscale and age at release item from the Static-2002R form the actuarial risk scale, Brief Assessment of Recidivism Risk-2002R (BARR-2002R), to predict violent and general recidivism among male sex offenders. Previous studies show that the BARR-2002R predicts violent and general recidivism significantly better than the Static-99R and Static-2002R with convicted sex offenders. Although the BARR-2002R, the Static-2002R, and its predecessor, the Static-99R, have been validated using convicted offender samples, only one recently published study has examined the predictive validity of the Static-99R and Static-2002R with non-convicted male perpetrators of sexual assault. The present study investigated the ability of the BARR-2002R to predict future violent offending of 290 perpetrators that were randomly sampled from police-referred sexual assault cases. Police cases were retrospectively coded for the Static-99R and Static-2002R, which includes the six items that comprise the BARR-2002R. Provincial and federal criminal records were used to code recidivism outcomes including presence, severity, frequency and imminence of future violence. The relationship between BARR-2002R scores and recidivism outcomes as well as the utility of the BARR-2002R as a risk tool for police officers who investigate sexual assault had not yet been examined. Results indicate that the BARR-2002R had very good predictive validity for future violent and general recidivism and higher scores were associated with increased frequency of post-index violent offences and decreased time until violent reoffending, though severity of future violence was not related to higher BARR-2002R scores. Implications for the use of the BARR-2002R in front-line work and directions for future research will be discussed.

Discipline: Psychology Honours

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Sandy Jung