Álex Escolà-Gascón , Neil Dagnall , Kenneth Drinkwater
{"title":"Bias analysis in forensic and non-forensic psychiatric assessments","authors":"Álex Escolà-Gascón , Neil Dagnall , Kenneth Drinkwater","doi":"10.1016/j.ijlp.2023.101891","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In this research, we provide two important contributions to the psychiatric community. First, we offer the first valid and reliable cognitive test that measures forensic clinicians' ability to detect and avoid diagnostic biases in psychiatric assessments. Second, we also estimate the prevalence of clinical decision bias detection and prevention ability among psychiatrists and psychologists. A total of 1069 clinicians from different specialties (317 psychiatrists and 752 clinical psychologists, of which 286 were forensic clinicians) participated in this research. The <em>Checklist of Biases for Clinicians</em> (BIAS-31) was developed, and its psychometric properties were analyzed. The prevalence of bias detection and prevention was estimated using BIAS-31 scores. The BIAS-31 is valid and reliable for measuring clinicians' ability to avoid and detect clinical biases. Between 41.2% and 55.8% of clinicians try to avoid biased clinical judgments. Likewise, between 48.5% and 57.5% of clinicians were able to correctly detect the biases involved in the diagnostic assessment process. We did not expect to obtain these prevalences. Therefore, we discuss to what extent specific training in the prevention of diagnostic biases is necessary and propose several clinical strategies to prevent a priori the occurrence of biases in the psychiatric assessment.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47930,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Law and Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4000,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"International Journal of Law and Psychiatry","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160252723000341","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"LAW","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In this research, we provide two important contributions to the psychiatric community. First, we offer the first valid and reliable cognitive test that measures forensic clinicians' ability to detect and avoid diagnostic biases in psychiatric assessments. Second, we also estimate the prevalence of clinical decision bias detection and prevention ability among psychiatrists and psychologists. A total of 1069 clinicians from different specialties (317 psychiatrists and 752 clinical psychologists, of which 286 were forensic clinicians) participated in this research. The Checklist of Biases for Clinicians (BIAS-31) was developed, and its psychometric properties were analyzed. The prevalence of bias detection and prevention was estimated using BIAS-31 scores. The BIAS-31 is valid and reliable for measuring clinicians' ability to avoid and detect clinical biases. Between 41.2% and 55.8% of clinicians try to avoid biased clinical judgments. Likewise, between 48.5% and 57.5% of clinicians were able to correctly detect the biases involved in the diagnostic assessment process. We did not expect to obtain these prevalences. Therefore, we discuss to what extent specific training in the prevention of diagnostic biases is necessary and propose several clinical strategies to prevent a priori the occurrence of biases in the psychiatric assessment.
期刊介绍:
The International Journal of Law and Psychiatry is intended to provide a multi-disciplinary forum for the exchange of ideas and information among professionals concerned with the interface of law and psychiatry. There is a growing awareness of the need for exploring the fundamental goals of both the legal and psychiatric systems and the social implications of their interaction. The journal seeks to enhance understanding and cooperation in the field through the varied approaches represented, not only by law and psychiatry, but also by the social sciences and related disciplines.