Evaluation for Risk of Violence in Adults

by Heilbrun, Kirk; King, Christopher M.

• ISBN13: 9780197812785
• ISBN10: 0197812783
• eBook ISBN(s): 9780197812792
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2026-02-13
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• More Book Details

Summary

In this second edition of Evaluation for Risk of Violence in Adults, Kirk Heilbrun and Christopher M. King review, analyze, and offer recommendations for best practice in violence risk assessment in adults conducted during forensic mental health assessment (FMHA), particularly over the last four decades, with attention to updates since the first edition was published in 2009.

Because violence risk is such a wide-ranging field, this volume focuses specifically on violence risk assessment as a process--including the legal contexts of risk assessment, the relevant forensic mental health concepts, the role of specialized risk assessment tools, the scientific and applied debates surrounding this area, and the integration of risk assessment into a full evaluation. Various aspects of the evaluation process (preparation, data collection, interpretation, report writing, and testimony) are discussed in detail, making this book a valuable resource for those who conduct formal evaluations for risk of violence in the legal system.

Author Biography

Kirk Heilbrun is a professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Drexel University, where he served as department head from 1999 to 2012 and 2014 to 2016. He has authored, coauthored, edited, or coedited nearly 250 publications, including 19 books, in the areas of forensic mental health assessment, risk assessment, interventions with justice-involved individuals, and ethics. He is board certified in clinical psychology and in forensic psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology, and is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association in six divisions.

Christopher M. King is an associate professor of psychology and the director of clinical training for the PhD program in clinical psychology at Montclair State University. He is a licensed psychologist and attorney, and his research program focuses on forensic psychology, correctional psychology, police and public safety psychology, and mental health law. He is currently an associate editor for Law and Human Behavior and is on the editorial board for several other academic journals. He has also cochaired the annual conferences of the American Psychology-Law Society and the International Association of Forensic Mental Health Services.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Preface
Chapter 1: Legal Context
Chapter 2: Forensic Mental Health Concepts
Chapter 3: Empirical Foundations and Limits
Chapter 4: Preparation for the Evaluation
Chapter 5: Data Collection
Chapter 6: Interpretation
Chapter 7: Report Writing and Testimony
References
Legal Cases