Article title: Improving Correctional Strategies for Women at the Margins: Recommendations for an Intersectionally-Responsive Approach
Author: Breanna Boppre
Journal: Corrections: Policy, Practice and Research
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23774657.2019.1588807
An earlier version of this article inferred that the antisocial attitudes section of the WRNA is calculated as part of the total risk score, which is not the case. The correct version of that section appears below.
Correctional assessments, such as the LSI-R and LS/CMI (Level of Service/Case Management Inventory), also make inferences about clients’ “antisocial” attitudes. Clients are typically asked to describe their offense, perceived fairness of the outcome, and remorse. The interviewer then assigns scores based upon the clients’ responses. This is a highly subjective or interpretive portion of actuarial assessments. Inferential scoring is one example of how values, biases, and cultural competencies may disproportionately impact outcomes. Kapoor et al. (2013) describe how marginalized clients may rightly describe outcomes as unfair, or that they received harsher sentences than White defendants. The case manager may then interpret such responses as a refusal to take responsibility for ones’ actions, summarized as “antisocial attitudes.” Therefore, it is imperative to carefully consider the implications of assigning risk scores based upon the interviewer’s interpretations. Notably, the WRNA does not include the antisocial attitudes score in the total risk score, like the LSI-R and other gender-neutral tools. Instead, the antisocial attitudes portion of the WRNA is used purely for case management and treatment referral.