Case formulation in forensic practice: challenges and opportunities
| Pages | 240-250 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFP-01-2016-0005 |
| Date | 08 August 2016 |
| Published date | 08 August 2016 |
| Author | Vanessa Delle-Vergini,Andrew Day |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Criminology & forensic psychology,Forensic practice |
Case formulation in forensic practice:
challenges and opportunities
Vanessa Delle-Vergini and Andrew Day
Vanessa Delle-Vergini is a
Provisional Psychologist and
Andrew Day is a Professor,
both at the Deakin University,
Melbourne, Australia.
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of current practice in forensic case
formulation, describing different approaches and discussing some of the practical and ethical issues that
routinely arise. The paper further identifies areas where future practice and research might be strengthened.
Design/methodology/approach –There is only a very small literature to draw upon in reviewing this topic.
Therefore a narrative literature review was undertaken, synthesising findings from published, peer-reviewed
studies, and papers that addressed case formulation in psychological practice.
Findings –Despite case formation being considered by many to be a core competency of evidence-based
forensic practice, it is not currently possible to describe a typical forensic case formulation or advocate for a
particular approach to practice.
Practical implications –A number of practical and ethical issues routinely arise in the process of
conducting a forensic case formulation. Ultimately, the absence of a consistent approach can lead to lead to
poor clinical decision-making and the delivery of inadequate or inappropriate intervention.
Originality/value –This is one of the few discussions of case formulation that have been prepared for
forensic practitioners. It is likely to be of interest to readers of the journal given the importance of the
formulation process in contemporary forensic practice.
Keywords Psychology, Forensic psychology, Case formulation, Ethical issues, Evidence based,
Forensic practice
Paper type General review
Introduction
Case formulation is considered by many to be a core skill for both therapists (e.g. Bieling and
Kuyken, 2003) and mental health workers (e.g. Eells and Lombart, 2011). Although it has been
described as one of the c ore competencies r equired for eviden ce-based forensic practice
(Davies et al., 2013), “there is almost no empirical literature on forensic case formulation”
(Sturmey and McMur ran, 2011, p. 288), r esulting in what Dav ies et al. (2013) refer to as an
evidence vacuum. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of current practice in
this area, outlin e the different app roaches to forens ic case formulati on that have been
proposed, and consider some of the practical and ethical issues that can arise during the
formulation process.
Given the paucity of literature and guidelines relating to case formulation in forensic psychology,
as well as the large variability of methods and construct definitions used in different papers,
a narrative review methodology was adopted (Cronin et al., 2008). This approach represents a
critique and summary of relevant studies and knowledge that address a specific subject area and
is particularly useful when the goal is to synthesise a disparate body of knowledge rather than to
answer a specific research question. Relevant studies were identified through a search of the
Received 25 January 2016
Revised 23 February 2016
24 February 2016
Accepted 24 February 2016
PAGE240
j
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PRACTICE
j
VOL. 18 NO. 3 2016, pp. 240-250, © Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 2050-8794 DOI 10.1108/JFP-01-2016-0005
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