Foundational Concepts

Actuarial Risk Assessment

Also Known As Actuarial Risk Assessment Instrument (ARAI)

Citation Formats

General Reference

Crime and Justice Atlas. "Actuarial Risk Assessment." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://crime.interactiveatlas.org/concepts/actuarial-risk-assessment.

APA Style

Crime and Justice Atlas. (n.d.). Actuarial Risk Assessment. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://crime.interactiveatlas.org/concepts/actuarial-risk-assessment

BibTeX

@misc{crimeandjusticeatlas-actuarial-risk-assessment,
  author = {Crime and Justice Atlas},
  title = {Actuarial Risk Assessment},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://crime.interactiveatlas.org/concepts/actuarial-risk-assessment},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Statistical tools used in sentencing and parole decisions to predict a defendant's likelihood of reoffending from static and dynamic factors; the software COMPAS is a widely used example, and a 2016 ProPublica investigation found it flagged Black defendants as higher risk at a disproportionate rate, sparking an ongoing fairness debate that such tools cannot satisfy every definition of fairness at once.

Facts

Domainthe subject's own account

Sentencing, parole and corrections 1

Cross-Tradition Connections