The validity and reliability of the Violence Risk Scale-Sexual Offender version: Assessing sex offender risk and evaluating therapeutic change.

2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Stephen C. P. Wong ◽  
Terry Nicholaichuk ◽  
Audrey Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offender ◽  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Therapeutic Change ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Validity And Reliability ◽  
Risk Scale

Validity and Reliability of the Violence Risk Scale–Youth Sexual Offense Version

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 826-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Y. Rojas ◽  
Mark E. Olver
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Treatment Planning ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Sexual Offense ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Validity And Reliability ◽  
Assessment Protocol ◽  
Assessment And Treatment ◽  
General Recidivism ◽  
Risk Scale

The present study examined the validity and reliability of a youth sexual offense risk assessment and treatment planning tool, the Violence Risk Scale–Youth Sexual Offense Version (VRS-YSO), on a sample of 102 court-adjudicated youth referred to assessment and/or treatment outpatient services followed up an average of 11.7 years in the community. VRS-YSO scores demonstrated “good” to “excellent” interrater reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients [ICCs] = .64-.83). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of the static and dynamic items identified three latent dimensions consistent with the extant risk literature labeled Sexual Deviance, Antisocial Tendencies, and Family Concerns. VRS-YSO scores showed strong patterns of convergence with scores from the Estimate of Risk for Adolescent Sexual Offense Recidivism (ERASOR), Juvenile Sex Offender Assessment Protocol–II (J-SOAP-II), and the Juvenile Sexual Offense Recidivism Risk Assessment Tool–II (J-SORRAT-II). VRS-YSO scores, in turn, demonstrated moderate to high predictive accuracy for sexual, violent (sexual and nonsexual), and general recidivism (significant areas under curve [AUCs] = .67-.88). Examination of pre–posttreatment change data on the subset of youth who attended treatment services found VRS-YSO change scores to be significantly associated with reductions in general recidivism, but not other recidivism outcomes. Future research and clinical applications of the VRS-YSO in youth sexual offense assessment and treatment planning are discussed.

Construct Validity of the Violence Risk Scale–Sexual Offender Version Instrument in a Multisite Sample of Treated Sexual Offenders

Assessment ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Craig S. Neumann ◽  
Drew A. Kingston ◽  
Terry P. Nicholaichuk ◽  
Stephen C. P. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Construct Validity ◽  
Factor Structure ◽  
Sexual Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Risk Scale ◽  
Three Factor

The present study examined the construct validity of the Violence Risk Scale–Sexual Offender version (VRS-SO) through an examination of its factor structure and convergence with psychological measures assessing conceptually relevant constructs in a sample of 732 treated incarcerated adult male sex offenders. The VRS-SO was rated prospectively pre- and posttreatment by service providers, and several of the men had completed a psychometric battery at each time point. Prospective Stable 2000 ratings were examined for comparison purposes. Results of exploratory longitudinal factor analysis, performed on VRS-SO pre- and posttreatment dynamic item scores, supported a three-factor model (comparative fit index = .990) and the measurement invariance of the loadings over time. A stringent longitudinal confirmatory factor analysis of the VRS-SO items also supported the three-factor structure. Scores from the three factors (Sexual Deviance, Criminality, and Treatment Responsivity) were correlated in conceptually meaningful ways with scores from the Stable 2000 and selected psychometric measures. The results provide evidence for the construct validity of VRS-SO test scores as providing an index of sex offender risk and, more specifically, that its item content and factor domains measure psychological constructs pertinent to sex offender risk and need.

Incorporating change information into sexual offender risk assessments using the Violence Risk Scale-Sexual Offender version (VRS-SO)

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Beggs Christofferson ◽  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Sarah M. Beggs ◽  
Randolph C. Grace ◽  
Stephen C. P. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Risk Assessments ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Risk Scale

Incorporating Change Information Into Sexual Offender Risk Assessments Using the Violence Risk Scale–Sexual Offender Version

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 472-499 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Sarah M. Beggs Christofferson ◽  
Randolph C. Grace ◽  
Stephen C. P. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Risk Assessments ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Risk Scale

Cross-Validation of the Discrimination and Calibration Properties of the VRAG-R in a Treated Sexual Offender Sample

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 741-761 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Lindsay A. Sewall
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Treatment Change ◽  
Present Sample ◽  
Risk Appraisal ◽  
Violence Risk Appraisal Guide ◽  
Dynamic Risk Assessment

The present study featured an examination of the predictive properties of the Violence Risk Appraisal Guide–Revised (VRAG-R) in a treated sample of sexual offenders, using modern risk metrics. The Sex Offender Risk Appraisal Guide (SORAG) and the original Violence Risk Appraisal Guide (VRAG) were examined for comparison purposes. The three measures were rated archivally on 296 treated sexual offenders followed up 17.6 years. VRAG-R scores demonstrated good discrimination of recidivists from nonrecidivists for sexual (area under the curve [AUC] = .60-.67) and violent (AUC = .70-.78) recidivism, and were incremental in the prediction of violent, but not sexual, recidivism after controlling for baseline sexual violence risk and treatment change. The VRAG-R bin structure demonstrated good calibration, although the present sample generated lower 5-year estimates of general violence compared with the normative sample. Application of the VRAG-R in the assessment and management of violence risk, via integration with dynamic risk assessment information, is discussed.

Predictive Accuracy of Violence Risk Scale–Sexual Offender Version Risk and Change Scores in Treated Canadian Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Sexual Offenders

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 254-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark E. Olver ◽  
Justina N. Sowden ◽  
Drew A. Kingston ◽  
Terry P. Nicholaichuk ◽  
Audrey Gordon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
First Nations ◽  
Sexual Offenders ◽  
Cox Regression ◽  
Sexual Offender ◽  
Baseline Risk ◽  
Offender Treatment ◽  
Violence Risk ◽  
Change Scores ◽  
Violent Recidivism ◽  
Risk Scale

The present study examined the predictive properties of Violence Risk Scale–Sexual Offender version (VRS-SO) risk and change scores among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal sexual offenders in a combined sample of 1,063 Canadian federally incarcerated men. All men participated in sexual offender treatment programming through the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) at sites across its five regions. The Static-99R was also examined for comparison purposes. In total, 393 of the men were identified as Aboriginal (i.e., First Nations, Métis, Circumpolar) while 670 were non-Aboriginal and primarily White. Aboriginal men scored significantly higher on the Static-99R and VRS-SO and had higher rates of sexual and violent recidivism; however, there were no significant differences between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups on treatment change with both groups demonstrating close to a half-standard deviation of change pre and post treatment. VRS-SO risk and change scores significantly predicted sexual and violent recidivism over fixed 5- and 10-year follow-ups for both racial/ancestral groups. Cox regression survival analyses also demonstrated positive treatment changes to be significantly associated with reductions in sexual and violent recidivism among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal men after controlling baseline risk. A series of follow-up Cox regression analyses demonstrated that risk and change score information accounted for much of the observed differences between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal men in rates of sexual recidivism; however, marked group differences persisted in rates of general violent recidivism even after controlling for these covariates. The results support the predictive properties of VRS-SO risk and change scores with treated Canadian Aboriginal sexual offenders.

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