TY - JOUR
T1 - The level of service inventory-revised (LSI-R) and Australian offenders
T2 - Factor structure, sensitivity, and specificity
AU - Hsu, Ching I.
AU - Caputi, Peter
AU - Byrne, Mitchell K.
PY - 2011/6
Y1 - 2011/6
N2 - The Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R) assesses the risk of reoffending and identifies criminogenic need characteristics of offenders. Despite the assessment's popularity, its factor structure remains under-researched. Inconsistency in published research may be attributed to the misuse, and inappropriate statistical analyses, of the LSI-R subscale scores. The present study explored the factor structure of the LSI-R, at the item level, using a sample of Australian offenders. Binary exploratory factor analysis found a five-factor solution for male offenders and a four-factor solution for female offenders. Using these data to "recalibrate" the LSI-R, sensitivity and specificity comparisons of the original and modified LSI-R were undertaken. With specific attention to Indigenous status and types of sentence orders served, sensitivity and specificity improvements were observed. Findings are discussed in terms of the value of exploring latent constructs and validating assessment tools, as well as the potential impact on the management and rehabilitation of Australian offenders.
AB - The Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R) assesses the risk of reoffending and identifies criminogenic need characteristics of offenders. Despite the assessment's popularity, its factor structure remains under-researched. Inconsistency in published research may be attributed to the misuse, and inappropriate statistical analyses, of the LSI-R subscale scores. The present study explored the factor structure of the LSI-R, at the item level, using a sample of Australian offenders. Binary exploratory factor analysis found a five-factor solution for male offenders and a four-factor solution for female offenders. Using these data to "recalibrate" the LSI-R, sensitivity and specificity comparisons of the original and modified LSI-R were undertaken. With specific attention to Indigenous status and types of sentence orders served, sensitivity and specificity improvements were observed. Findings are discussed in terms of the value of exploring latent constructs and validating assessment tools, as well as the potential impact on the management and rehabilitation of Australian offenders.
KW - Australian offenders
KW - binary factor analysis
KW - Indigenous offenders
KW - Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R)
KW - reoffending
KW - sensitivity and specificity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=79955792240&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0093854811402583
DO - 10.1177/0093854811402583
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:79955792240
SN - 0093-8548
VL - 38
SP - 600
EP - 618
JO - Criminal Justice and Behavior
JF - Criminal Justice and Behavior
IS - 6
ER -