Italian Validation of the Forensic Autism Risk Assessment Scale (FARAS-IT)

Condition(s) studied

Study summary

The study is a multicenter observational project designed to translate, culturally adapt, and validate the Italian version of the FARAS (FARAS-IT), a structured framework for assessing risk and protective factors specific to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) involved in the Italian criminal justice system.

Adult participants (≥18 years) with a diagnosis or well-founded clinical suspicion of ASD are consecutively enrolled over 12 months into three groups: offenders in forensic psychiatric settings under security measures, offenders considered criminally responsible and not under psychiatric care, and psychiatric patients with ASD without any history of criminal behavior followed by community mental health services or non-forensic residential facilities.

All participants undergo assessment with FARAS-IT and complementary clinical and forensic instruments (e.g., WHODAS 2.0, BPRS or equivalents, HCR-20, SAPROF, DUNDRUM), alongside collection of clinical, functional, and judicial variables, in order to evaluate the psychometric properties of FARAS-IT (factor structure, internal consistency, test-retest and inter-rater reliability, convergent and discriminant validity) and its clinical-forensic usefulness in understanding criminal responsibility and judicial decision-making trajectories in individuals with ASD.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• FARAS-IT total score — Baseline (T0), at enrollment
  Total score on the Italian version of the Forensic Autism Risk Assessment Scale (FARAS-IT), calculated as the sum of item ratings across seven domains (social communication, cognitive rigidity, cognitive empathy, adaptability, sensory sensitivity, emotional regulation, risk awareness). Higher total scores indicate greater autism-related vulnerability in the forensic context.

Trial sites (1)

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