Quickly acquire the knowledge and skills you need to confidently administer, score, and interpret the key assessment instruments used by forensic psychologists
Mental health professionals are frequently called on to perform forensic assessments for a wide variety of court cases. To use these instruments properly, professionals need an authoritative source of advice and guidance on how to administer, score, and interpret them. Now fully revised and in a second edition, Essentials of Forensic Psychological Assessment is that source.
The Second Edition is completely updated to reflect current research and theory in the field, including the most recent codes and standards published by the American Psychological Association. In addition, this volume offers updated coverage of the most frequently used instruments in forensic psychological assessments, including the MMPI®-2 and MMPI-2-RF, PAI®, Rorschach®, ASPECT, and various neuropsychological assessment instruments.
Like all the volumes in the Essentials of Psychological Assessment series, this book is designed to help busy mental health practitioners, and those in training, quickly acquire the knowledge and skills they need to make optimal use of major psychological assessment instruments. Each concise chapter features numerous callout boxes highlighting key concepts, bulleted points, and extensive illustrative material, as well as test questions that help you gauge and reinforce your grasp of the information covered.
Written by a noted forensic psychologist, the Second Edition offers in-depth coverage of maltreatment and domestic violence, as well as the assessment of recidivism, fitness to stand trial, civil commitment, substance abuse assessment, custody evaluations, personal injury assessments, and many other aspects of forensic mental health practice.

Series Preface ix
Acknowledgments xi
One Introduction to Essentials of Forensic Assessment 1
Two Essentials of Child Custody Evaluations 22
Three Essentials of Personal Injury Assessment 66
Four Essentials of Malingering Assessment 85
Five Essentials of Competency to Stand Trial Assessment 112
Six Essentials of Involuntary Civil Commitment Assessment 149
Seven Essentials of Juvenile Assessment 185
Eight Essentials of Substance Abuse Assessment 224
Nine Essentials of Maltreatment Assessment: Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Psychological Abuse, and Domestic Violence 248
Ten Essentials of Violence and Risk Assessment 275
References 293
Annotated Bibliography 319
Index 321
About the Author 333