Roles of Mental Health Specialists in Targeted Violence Prevention

Mental health diagnoses or behavioral problems are neither necessary nor sufficient to account for involvement in targeted violence or terrorism.  Nonetheless, there are multiple ways that mental health specialists can and should be involved in targeted violence prevention. Mental health specialists can play many different roles in targeted violence prevention at primary, secondary, or tertiary levels. 

Primary Prevention

At a primary prevention level, mental health specialists can help share information with the public about targeted violence prevention and they can be involved in programs aimed at violence prevention at the community level, such as increasing access to mental health services, promoting social connections, or preventing bullying.    

Secondary Prevention

At a secondary prevention level, mental health specialists can be part of a behavioral threat assessment and management team in a setting such as a school or workplace. There, they work together with others on the team that reviews cases of persons believed to be at risk, and the team determines what should be done. They can also refer a person at risk to other mental health specialists who can work with the person over time, or they can be the mental health specialist who accepts a referral and provides ongoing treatment. Mental health specialists may also be approached by their patients or other persons who have concerns about someone they know who may be at risk for violence.

Tertiary Prevention

At a tertiary prevention level, mental health specialists can be engaged in providing direct treatment to individuals who were convicted of a targeted-violence-related offense, such as a person being released from prison on probation.  

Mental health specialists can also be involved in training and capacity building of persons in mental health or in other professions and sectors involved in prevention, such as teachers or law enforcement. 

Mental health specialists can also be involved in designing and overseeing the monitoring and evaluation of targeted violence prevention programs, including developing measures to evaluate outcomes.