Abstract

The first editions of the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment Guide were developed in the 1990s during a time of increased recognition of the social and economic tolls caused by intimate partner violence (IPV). Since that time there has been a proliferation of research and commentaries on IPV risk assessment, and there is increasing evidence of the validity of a number of risk assessment tools including the SARA. Within this growing field, the SARA guides remain popular risk assessment and case management tools for those working with perpetrators and victims of domestic violence. Indeed, various versions of the SARA have now been translated into at least 10 languages and are being used in at least 15 countries on six continents. This chapter reviews the content and development of the third and most recent version of the guide, the SARA-Version 3. The chapter also summarizes existing reliability and validity studies on all versions of the SARA, and concludes with a case study to illustrate the use of the SARA-V3.