The psychology quadrant: an outcome measure based on the START risk assessment
| Pages | 14-22 |
| Date | 13 February 2017 |
| Published date | 13 February 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFP-03-2016-0018 |
| Author | Matthew John Gill,Samantha Brookes |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Criminology & forensic psychology,Forensic practice,Sociology,Sociology of crime & law,Law enforcement/correctional,Public policy & environmental management,Policing,Criminal justice |
The psychology quadrant:
an outcome measure based
on the START risk assessment
Matthew John Gill and Samantha Brookes
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to develop a psychological outcome tool which reflects
the relationship between clusters of items on the Short Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability
(START) risk assessment and different categories of psychological progress in male inpatient
psychiatric services.
Design/methodology/approach –A principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted on data from 135
male psychiatric rehabilitation patients’START risk assessments.
Findings –PCA identified four strength psychology quadrants which were explained by a five-factor
structure and four vulnerability quadrants which were explained by a four-factor structure. The development
of the psychology quadrant, its usefulness in establishing a treatment pathway and areas of future research
are also discussed.
Originality/value –Developing accessible, transparent outcome measures using evidence-based practice
is highly relevant within the field of mental health rehabilitation.
Keywords Mental health, Psychology, Outcome, Risk assessment, START, Inpatient
Paper type Research paper
Defining and measuring psychological progress with service users in mental health services
presents a number of on-going challenges to clinicians. A continued focus on evidence-based
outcomes has increased the scrutiny on the effectiveness of psychological interventions used in
treatment with this clinical population.
The need for accessible outcome measures which assist both service users and clinicians to
monitor progress, is therefore of upmost importance. Mental health practitioners are increasingly
encouraged to adopt evidence-based practices to assist with the evaluation of interventions
(Garland et al., 2003). Standardised outcome measures can also aid a therapist in formulating
care plans (Hatfield and Ogles, 2007) and in reviewing the patient’s current treatment pathway
and the effectiveness of the psychological models being applied.
Currently in many clinical settings psychometric assessments are used to identify patient
progress within therapeutic interventions. However, one common difficulty is variation in the
psychometrics used in different clinical settings to assess change and clinical effectiveness.
Their focus can be on narrow areas of clinical need rather than broader spectrums of
psychological progress.
The choice of psychometrics to determine clinical progress can be affected by a number of
additional variables. One consideration may include whether the measure is likely to elicit practice
effect. Research has suggested that practice creates a higher risk of formulating inaccurate
conclusions about a patient’s actual progress and risk levels (Kruyen et al., 2013).
Other psychometric tests may be limited in their universal application due to having limited
normative data for a particular clinical population. For example the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental
Received 17 March 2016
Revised 23 May 2016
21 June 2016
Accepted 22 July 2016
The authors would like to
acknowledge the contribution
made by Katie Timmins (Assistant
Psychologist, Cambian Oaks)
and Stacey Heppell (Assistant
Psychologist, Cambian Limes)
to this paper.
Matthew John Gill is a
Consultant Forensic
Psychologist and
Samantha Brookes is an
Assistant Psychologist, both at
The Cambian Group,
Stoke-on-Trent, UK.
PAG E 14
j
JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PRACTICE
j
VOL. 19 NO. 1 2017, pp. 14-22, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2050-8794 DOI 10.1108/JFP-03-2016-0018
To continue reading
Request your trial