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Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS)
Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS) is a research-based, risk and needs assessment tool for criminal justice practitioners to assist them in the placement, supervision, and case management of offenders in community and secure settings. The COMPAS is an objective risk and needs assessment instrument
Type of content:
Assets
Type of asset:
Tool
Big data potential
Yes
Policy domains:
Justice, Legal System & Public Safety
Phase in the policy cycle:
Policy Implementation
TRL
8
Open license availability
Yes
Tags:
Standardisation of processes
Serves:
Addresses:
| SWOT Analysis for Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS) |
||
|---|---|---|
| Helpful | Harmful | |
Internal |
Strengths• Uses evidence-based principles, including providing rehabilitative programming to the higher risk-to-reoffend prisoners and parolees, and provide other types of programs to low-risk-to-reoffend prisoners and parolees. • Helps correctional staff assign the right inmates to the right programs at the right time based on individual risk and needs assessments. • Aids in reducing the likelihood that the inmate will reoffend upon reentry to society. • COMPAS assists CDCR in determining: Risk (who to target), Needs (what to treat) and Responsivity. • Consists of: A series of questions used to determine overall risk potential and criminogenic needs profile, and Data on the inmate’s history of substance abuse, education, family background, criminal activity, and social functioning. |
Weaknesses• Issues around data collection: many of the items on the COMPAS questionnaire ask respondents to recall events and experiences that occurred in the past. As is the case with all such data collection efforts, certain details of respondents’ pasts may be reported inaccurately, either because of intentional misrepresentation or faulty memory. • Implementation milestones: a) adopting use of an automated risk and needs assessment instrument and beginning initial implementation at reception centres b) Training for Correctional counsellors at Reception Centres to use the COMPAS risk and needs assessment as part of the process to classify and endorse offenders to an institution c) Need for Correctional staff in all reception centres to use inmate COMPAS profiles for prison placement as it is a critical toward assignment of inmates to appropriate programs based on individual risk and needs assessment. • Data quality: the COMPAS data as they currently exist are seriously biased, and there are a number of limitations to the interpretation of these data |
External |
Opportunities• Reducing the inmate’s chance of reoffending: Placing inmates in the appropriate programs that will aid in their re-entry to society and will most likely reduce the inmate’s chance of reoffending. | Threats• Unemployment rates • Issues around data collection: many of the items on the COMPAS questionnaire ask respondents to recall events and experiences that occurred in the past. As is the case with all such data collection efforts, certain details of respondents’ pasts may be reported inaccurately, either because of intentional misrepresentation or faulty memory. • Implementation milestones: a) adopting use of an automated risk and needs assessment instrument and beginning initial implementation at reception centres b) Training for Correctional counsellors at Reception Centres to use the COMPAS risk and needs assessment as part of the process to classify and endorse offenders to an institution c) Need for Correctional staff in all reception centres to use inmate COMPAS profiles for prison placement as it is a critical toward assignment of inmates to appropriate programs based on individual risk and needs assessment. |
