Article archive / January 1, 2014
Originally published: . Volume 5, No. 5. Source pages: 6.
Members of the Coalition for Violence Prevention are working with Louisiana Tech professor Dr. Frank Igou and a team of Industrial Organizational (I-O) doctoral graduate students to develop a scientifically based training method for skills in violence risk prediction.
“From the beginning, we have been committed to developing a scientifically rigorous process and product,” said Dr. Mkay Bonner, newest member of the steering committee for the Coalition. “We want something that is more than just ‘feel good.’ We want, as the ultimate goal, a tangible product with appropriate metrics that can make a difference in the real world,” she said.
Often methods and outcomes of continuing professional education are left to chance, even by the large associations such as the American Psychological Association, the American Counseling Association, or the American Medical Association.
This is why the group sought out Dr. Frank Igou, I-O psychologist and professor at Louisiana Tech. He and his research team have been working to develop an instrument that aids in measuring the ability of mental health professionals to estimate if someone might act in a violent manner. And the work also supports the goal of understanding if training has been successful in teaching the skill set needed.
Dr. John Simoneaux, steering committee member, thinks this has been essential. “Rather than simply accepting as truth our assumption that mental health professionals know little about the science of risk assessment,” said Simoneaux, “we asked Frank and his colleagues at Louisiana Tech to help us to identify specifically where those deficiencies might exist.”
“This will hopefully allow us to direct our eventual training efforts to the areas where educational needs are most salient,” Simoneaux said. “Our I-O colleagues know much more about how to correctly approach these concerns, and Dr. Igou has been gracious and generous in his willingness to help.”
The group is developing a set of scientificallly constructed items that will allow mental health professionals to better understand what they know and don’t know about their skill in the prediction of violent behavior. The research team is currently isolating characteristics and content, and beginning to work with Subject Matter Experts to analyze the information. Several hundred characteristics have been reviewed and condensed to prepare for the next phases of the study.
The team from Louisiana Tech, headed by Igou, includes Louisiana Tech graduate students Lindsey Anderson, Bharati Bekwalkar, Scott Hines, Michael Knot, and William Scanu. Scanu is the graduate student team leader.
“We appreciate the work of Dr. Igou and his students who are assisting us with this project,” said Dr. Bonner. “They are incorporating some newer technologies which will facilitate data collection and analysis. Subject matter experts (SMEs) will be contributing their knowledge and experience as well,” she noted.
Igou explained that one software program he would be using was Qualtrics. “Qualtrics performs some statistical procedures in real time,” Igou said, “and we will be able to go in and check progress with SMEs responses at anytime after the survey goes live.”
While necessary for valid training programs, all of this can becumbersome. “Unfortunately, this is very time and effort intensive,” Dr. Bonner explained. “But the end result will allow for greater support from professionals in all fields as well as the public.”
The Coalition came together last year after the Sandy Hook shootings, noting that often violent behavior was related to untreated mental health problems and that many mental health professionals and those in the lay public are ill-equipped to identify the danger and get help.
The Coalition members decided to design training that is scientifically sound and that would be a foundation for community programs to build a safety net so that potentially violent people are accurately identified and given mental health assistance.
“Our hope with Louisiana Coalition for Violence Prevention is to approach this effort as scientists who have a sincere interest in using our knowledge and expertise to solve what we consider to be a significant social ill,” Simoneaux said.
Members of the Louisiana Coalition for Violence Prevention. (Standing left to right) Dr. Bryan Gros, Cindy Nardini, LPC, and Dr. John Simoneaux. The group is currently working with Dr. Frank Igou and doctoral graduate students from Louisiana Tech to design and test a training method that will help mental health professionals deal with people who may become violent.
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