Publications by authors named "Benjamin L Spivak"

The use of statistical learning methods has recently increased within the risk assessment literature. They have primarily been used to increase accuracy and the area under the curve (AUC, i.e.

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Objective: Clinicians often rely on readily observable intermediate outcomes (e.g., symptoms) to assess the likelihood of events that occur outside of treatment (e.

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Article Synopsis
  • - This meta-analysis examines the effectiveness of problem-solving courts with judicial supervision in reducing recidivism in Australia and New Zealand compared to traditional justice processes, analyzing data from 16 studies with over 38,000 participants.
  • - The results indicate a significant reduction in the odds and incidences of recidivism for participants in problem-solving courts; however, methodological weaknesses and biases in the studies raise concerns about the reliability of these conclusions.
  • - The analysis suggests that while judicial supervision has a positive impact on recidivism rates, more rigorous research is necessary to better match experimental groups, avoid biases, and accurately track participants after intervention.
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Objective: Cross-cultural research into risk assessment instruments has often identified comparable levels of discrimination. However, cross-cultural fairness is rarely addressed. Therefore, this study explored the discrimination and fairness of the Level of Service/Risk, Need, Responsivity (LS/RNR) within a sample of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males.

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A considerable number of papers have been published on the ethics of artificial intelligence for the purposes of violence risk assessment. In this issue of The Journal, Hogan and colleagues argue that artificial intelligence introduces novel concerns for violence risk assessment that require consideration. While the concerns that have been raised are entirely valid and require consideration, we argue that artificial intelligence does not herald a more serious or unique challenge in these areas relative to other forms of violence risk assessment.

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There has been an increasing interest in cross-cultural risk assessment over the past 5 years. Much of this has been driven by concerns that particular risk instruments may be biased against, or ill-suited to, non-White offending populations. A growing body of work has asserted that unique cultural-specific risk factors and experiences may not be adequately considered within current risk assessment frameworks which have led to calls to culturally alter/remodel risk instruments.

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