NCJ Number
214946
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior Volume: 11 Issue: 4 Dated: July-August 2006 Pages: 414-423
Date Published
July 2006
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This literature review focuses on the empirical research on the relationship between insight and risk of violence in order to explore whether a lack of insight serves as an important element of risk of violence.
Abstract
Overall, there is insufficient empirical evidence to establish a relationship between insight and violence risk. Five out of a total of nine studies found a positive association between poor insight and violent behavior, but the nature and strength of the relationship was unknown due to methodological problems with the studies. Seven recommendations are offered for future research that address the shortcomings of previous research on insight and violent behavior. Recommendations include the advice to engage in prospective studies, to include more accurate measurement and analysis of the different components of insight, and to address the impact of risk management strategies on reducing violence risk. The literature review involved four searches on the association between insight and violence in the PsycInfo, EMBASE, ProQuest, and ISI Web of Science databases for empirical studies dated as late as September 2005. The review criteria targeted prospective empirical studies of community and inpatient samples. The resulting sample included nine studies dated from 1997 through 2005 from Australia, Great Britain, the United States, Spain, Sweden, and Taiwan. References