[The Quality of Violence Risk Formulation and a Quasi-Forensic Mental Health Training Experiment].

Objectives: The study was aimed at measuring the impact of training on forensic case formulation in mental health and to provide more evidence on the reliability of the TEC-F.

Method: Nine psychiatrists and six psychologists from various Latin American countries participated in a quasi-pedagogical experiment. The quality of formulations was independently and blindly measured pre- and post-intervention with the TEC-F and the assignment of two standard vignettes was also randomly manipulated.

[Quality of the Forensic Case Formulation in Mental Health].

Objectives: The "Guide to understand and assess the quality of the case formulation in forensic mental health - TECF" is tested in order to contribute to the development of the forensic reports.

Method: Twelve mental health professionals of different Latin American traditions assessed with the TECF the quality of ten international forensic reports, both psychological and psychiatric. The guide includes the manual that describes the dimensions, criteria and guidelines to assess the quality of the forensic case formulation.

[Psychopathy in female inmates in Chile].

Introduction: although psychopathy is a clinical construct of great importance for both the clinical and forensic field, previous Latin American research has been focused mainly on males.

Objectives: determine the prevalence of psychopathy and of antisocial personality disorder in imprisoned female population. To explore the distribution scores obtained with the PCL-R and to test its psychometric characteristics.

Psychosocial Factors and Juvenile Homicide in Argentina.

Although knowledge on and prevention of juvenile homicide are crucial for social welfare and have been approached through different methodological instruments, this behavior is still quite difficult to be addressed. In this study, we have analyzed several psychological and social factors that could be theoretically related to juvenile homicidal behavior. Our case-control study included young ( = 16.

[Psychopathy among inmate population in Argentina and Chile: Characterization and transnational norms].

Introduction: In Latin America, there is evidence on the prevalence of psychopathy in prison population and on the validity and reliability of the specifc assessment instrument; but there has been no exploration on whether psychopaths have different characteristics in different countries nor has there been an integration of a transnational normative sample.

Objective: To test the universality of the construct comparing psychopaths of the Chilean and Argentinian sample and to formulate norms for the prison population with both samples pooled.

Method: Samples of Argentinian prison inmate population (n = 153) and Chilean (n = 209) assessed with the PCL-R and HCR-20 were compared.

[Postraumatic mental disorders in traders victims of crime].

Introduction: Crime consequences are not only a security problem; they are also a community health question. Because shop assistants are particularly exposed to crime victimization, they are at risk from suffering posttraumatic stress disorders.

Objectives: To describe posttraumatic symptomatology of crime victimized shop assistants and to explore the relationship between the symptoms and demographic, victim and situational factors.

The construct of psychopathy in a Chilean prison population.

Objective: To test the four-factor model of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R) empirical construct of psychopathy in a Chilean prison population by using instruments that supply different types of data.

Methods: Two hundred and nine male inmates of the Prison of Los Andes, Chile, were evaluated. Confirmatory factor analysis was carried out with the PCL-R and the Self-Report of Psychopathy - III - Short Form (SRP-III-SF).

[Pathological gambling, illegal behavior and the preventive potentiality of a helpline in Argentina].

Introduction: The evolution of Pathological Gambling has some important landmarks such as the age of onset, time elapse between onset and the perception of gambling consequences and their severity. These events encourage the exploration of the preventive potential of a helpline service for gamblers, thus the contact with this service might be the beginning of opportune intervention.

Objectives: To describe and to compare the course and complications due to gambling reported by two Argentineans gambler population with access to different services: a sample of participants of a self-help group; and a sample of helpline clients.

[Evaluation of psychometric characteristics of the Argentinean version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version].

In spite of the relevance on diagnosis, therapeutic strategies and prevention of psychopathy of the accurate assessment of psychopathic traits in youngsters, in Argentina the internationally widespread specific instruments have not been validated. This research is aimed to the assessment of the reliability and aspects of the validity of the Argentinean version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version. Thus, thirty institutionalized juvenile offenders were simultaneously assessed by two raters who produced independent and a consensus scores.

Accuracy of the Historical, Clinical and Risk Management Scales (HCR-20) in predicting violence and other offenses in forensic psychiatric patients in Brazil.

Background: Assessing the risk of violence is a complex task. In Latin America it is often based on clinical criteria that are not very objective or structured. HCR-20 has been used to increase the accuracy of this exam.

Juvenile offenders assessment.

Purpose Of Review: Evaluation of juveniles is an integral process that includes a broad bio-psycho-social clinical perspective together with the use of auxiliary instruments. The aim of this review is to report relevant issues for this process found in recent publications.

Recent Findings: Several evidences lead to broadening the assessment process of children and youngsters to include family functioning style.

Reliability of the Brazilian version of HCR-20 Assessing Risk for Violence.

Objective: Assessing risk for violence is a complex task often based on not objective or structured clinical evaluations. HCR-20 Assessing Risk for Violence has been used in several countries to increase the accuracy of this exam. The purpose of this study was to inform on central aspects of this instrument, as well as the results of the reliability assessment of the HCR-20 Assessing Risk for Violence in a Brazilian inpatient criminal population.

Pathological gambling and criminality.

Purpose Of Review: To review research results on the relationship between pathological gambling and criminality, published in 2007 and 2008, in English and in Spanish.

Recent Findings: An important association between pathological gambling and criminality was confirmed in populations of anonymous gamblers, helpline callers and substance abusers. Helplines provide a timely service to gamblers who have not reached the maximum stages in the development of a pathological gambling pattern.

[Child and juvenile delinquency and legal system in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina].

Taking into account the social relevance of child and juvenile delinquency, the little availability of local scientific evidence concerning the subject and the moment of change in the system, this article is intended to describe the criminal system of responsibility in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Psychiatric and psychological aspects of youth involved in crimes and of those who are institutionalized in the Legal Department of La Plata shall be explored.

[Young killers: study of distinctive features with youth that have committed other crimes in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina].

The violence in its different forms, is a social problem that calls for multidisciplinary approaches in actions aimed at prevention. Among the skills needed to guide preventive policies, the highlights are risk and protective factors for violent behavior. This study aims to contribute, from the psychiatric perspective, in exploring factors influencing the behavior of homicidal adolescents.

[Gamblers seeking for help].

Objectives: To describe demographic characteristics and other health and gambling related dimensions of a sample of callers to the Helpline Service of the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Method: Helpline callers were surveyed during a six month period (November, 2006 to April, 2007). The phone interviews were conducted by health professionals and had both a structured and an open section.

Education in forensic psychiatry.

Purpose Of Review: The present review focuses on the education needs and related pedagogical aspects of education in forensic psychiatry.

Recent Findings: Physicians specializing in other fields generally deal with concepts that are thoroughly addressed in forensic psychiatry, such as the ability of patients to consent to treatment, confidentiality, victimization, and risk factors for auto and hetero-lesive behaviour. Present practices like the advance of e-health and patients' rights call for ethical and responsible attitudes.

[Characteristics of pathological gamblers in Argentina].

Objective: To describe the characteristics of a series of identified cases of pathological gamblers in the Province of Buenos Aires.

Methods: A group under study was composed of 62 cases (45 men and 17 women) of pathological gamblers in Self-help Groups in the Buenos Aires Province, Argentine, who were submitted to questionnaire. It was corroborated that all the subjects surpassed the diagnostic threshold of the South Oaks Gambling Screen -SOGS-.

[The facets of psychopathy described by the hare psychopathy checklist revised and its reliability].

Introduction: The second edition of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (Hare 2003) describes facets that allow a more accurate measure of interpersonal, affective, lifestyle and antisocial aspects.

Objective: The aim of this research is to assess the reliability of the Argentinean version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist Revised on a penitentiary population, taking into consideration the new factor and facet structure.

Method: Thirty four subjects were simultaneously assessed by two raters yielding two independent scores.

Latin American aspects of refusal to undergo court-ordered forensic psychiatric examination.

Purpose Of Review: Forensic psychiatric examinations have gained increasing importance in many areas of the law. When individuals refuse to undergo court-ordered examinations of this kind, experts have to solve the tension between ethical and technical problems and judicial requirements. The purpose of this review is to obtain research information and standards related to refusal to undergo court-ordered forensic psychiatric examinations.

[Assessment of dynamic violent behavior risk factors].

Dynamic violent behavior risk factors have special significance since they constitute the main target for preventive intervention. Different dynamic factors as well as violent recidivism were assessed with, among other instruments, the environmental risk (Risk Management) section of the Argentinean version of the HCR-20 in 25 parolees from the Province of Buenos Aires Penitentiary System. Among other findings, the prevalence of the risk factors linked to substance abuse and socioeconomic deprivation, and the heterogeneous perception of the official institutions are very significant.

The Risk Assessment Program and the Court of Penal Execution in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

This study describes the working of a new system that supervises the execution of the punishment phase in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina; namely, the Court of Penal Execution, as well as the risk assessment program. It also reports the results of the violent recidivism baseline risk assessment carried out in candidates for conditional release. The cohort studied was recruited during 18 months in the Judicial Department of La Plata, taking into consideration psychopathological and criminological variables.