Violence risk instruments may be culturally unsafe for use with Indigenous patients.
OBJECTIVE
Violence risk assessment assumes a critical medico-legal role addressing offender/patient needs and informing forensic mental health decision making. Yet questions remain over the cross-cultural applicability of such measures. In their current form, violence risk instruments may not reflect the unique life and cultural experiences of Indigenous Australians rendering them culturally unsafe.


CONCLUSIONS
To realize equitable forensic assessment, it is necessary to ascertain whether there are cultural differences across risk factors for violence and that risk instruments are validated as culturally appropriate. Greater cross-cultural rigour in forensic mental health risk assessment, research and practice is proposed.
Research Fellow and Lecturer, Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science, Swinburne University of Technology, Clifton Hill, VIC, Australia sshepherd@swin.edu.au.
Stephane M
SM
Shepherd
D001315:Australia; D065246:Culturally Competent Care; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry; D006303:Health Services, Indigenous; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000208:ethnology; D008603:Mental Health / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology*
Indigenous Australians; cross-cultural psychiatry; forensic mental health; forensic psychiatry; violence risk assessment