This symposium is co-organized by the International Centre for Comparative Criminology (CICC) and the Ordre professionnel des criminologues du Québec (OPCQ). This paid activity is recognized by the OPCQ as continuing education for its member criminologists.
Wednesday, November 5, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (EST), via Zoom
This training session focuses on the role of young people within the various follow-up processes implemented in the justice system—whether in the youth sector (Youth Criminal Justice Act) or the adult system—as well as within the youth protection system. It examines how young people can genuinely participate in the decisions and intervention processes that affect them, and how practitioners can support them in this participatory approach.
The session will revisit key conceptual foundations for understanding youth accompaniment, question prevailing representations of youth within judicial and child protection contexts, and identify promising concrete practices.
More specifically, this training aims to:
Enhance understanding of the contexts in which social and penal interventions take place, and how these contexts shape young people’s relationships with the justice and youth protection systems, as well as with the interventions themselves;
Provide practitioners with tools related to youth rights and participation, offering practical ways to include young people’s voices in interventions—drawing in particular on an innovative co-created publication authored by, for, and with young people who have experienced youth protection and youth criminal justice services;
Foster dialogue around diverse intervention experiences involving young people in social and penal contexts, taking into account the specific realities of practice across different sectors.
The content of the session draws on a diversity of knowledge sources, including the testimonies of two young adults formerly involved in the youth criminal justice and protection systems, current theoretical writings relevant to the issues discussed, and applied knowledge through group reflection activities.
Marie Dumollard
marie.dumollard@umontreal.ca
Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work, Université de Montréal, since July 2022. Her research focuses on the trajectories of justice-involved youth transitioning to adulthood, interventions within the penal system (juvenile and adult justice), and public policies concerning youth and socio-penal issues.
She is currently leading several research projects on: (1) social age relations shaping the treatment of youth transitioning to adulthood; and (2) employment trajectories and support for justice-involved youth.
Dr. Dumollard completed a joint Ph.D. in Public Administration and Political Science at the École nationale d’administration publique (ENAP) and the University of Rennes 1 (France) in 2020, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in Sociology and Criminology at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique – Centre Urbanisation Culture Société and the School of Social Work and Criminology at Université Laval. Before beginning her research career in Québec, she worked as a research officer at the Institut national de la jeunesse et de l’éducation populaire (INJEP) in France (2013–2015).
Anta Niang
anta.niang.ciussse-chus@ssss.gouv.qc.ca
Researcher at the Institut universitaire de première ligne en santé et services sociaux (IUPLSSS) of the CIUSSS de l’Estrie–CHUS in Sherbrooke and Associate Professor at the School of Social Work, Université de Sherbrooke.
Her research interests focus on the analysis of socio-judicial intervention trajectories of youth and families within constrained institutional and social contexts. Specifically, her work explores three main areas:
Professional practices in socio-judicial decision-making and intervention processes within child protection and youth justice systems;
Young people’s and families’ experiences of access to rights and their relationships with socio-judicial institutions in minority contexts;
Youth and family participation in socio-judicial intervention processes within child protection and youth justice systems, as well as participatory research methodologies.
Placed for several years within the youth protection system, Victoria has drawn on her resilience and strengths to pursue studies in helping relationships.
Now a special education teacher and a social work student, she works within youth protection services and has long been involved in projects, causes, and research focused on the realities of placed youth. Her mission is to defend young people’s rights and to inspire hope among those who have faced difficult experiences, which motivates her engagement with the Collectif Ex-Placé DPJ.
A mother of two young children under two years old and an entrepreneur, she thrives on action and compassion.
Arriving in Canada at the age of 9, Ursy was placed under youth protection from age 10 until reaching adulthood. He served as spokesperson for the Sommet des jeunes 2013 with the Bureau de consultation jeunesse, a project designed to influence Québec’s 2030 Youth Policy.
He holds a certificate and a bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences and Political Science and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in the same field. Passionate about youth-related issues, he collaborates as a co-researcher with several university professors on topics concerning youth in care.
Ursy is a member of the Canadian Consortium on Adolescent and Youth Trauma and a co-founder and active member of the Collectif Ex-Placé DPJ.
This training will be led by professors Sébastien Brouillette-Alarie and Ghayda Hassan and will take place on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in Room C-3061, Pavillon Lionel-Groulx, Université de Montréal, and via Zoom.
Risk assessment plays a central role in clinical, judicial, and preventive practices. This training provides a structured introduction to risk assessment methods in criminology and psychology, focusing on risk and protective factors, actuarial and clinical approaches, and the evolution of assessment tools over time. Special attention will be given to violent extremism prevention (VEP), a field where assessment tools raise debates and concerns.
Participants will explore the results of recent systematic reviews, learn to balance scientific rigor with ethical considerations, and discover practices adapted to sensitive contexts. Specific tensions in the VEP field — such as fears of stigmatization, inappropriate use in primary/secondary prevention, or lack of psychometric validation — will be discussed with examples from criminology. The training will also highlight overlaps between risk factors for delinquency and violent extremism.
Through interactive pedagogy, participants will gain a clearer understanding of the benefits and limits of assessment tools, reflect on their practical use in professional settings, and explore potential interdisciplinary adaptations.
This training aims to introduce participants to the conceptual and methodological foundations of risk assessment in criminology and psychology. It seeks to clarify what “risk assessment” means, distinguishing between types of risk and protective factors (static vs. dynamic) and the methods used to identify them, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
Participants will explore the evolution of assessment approaches — from unstructured clinical judgment to dynamic actuarial tools and case management instruments — while becoming aware of issues related to clinical override. The course offers an in-depth understanding of the link between risk assessment and psychosocial intervention, based on the principles of Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR).
The training will cover the main tools used to assess the risk of criminal recidivism or violence, before turning to those employed in the prevention of violent extremism. In this context, participants will reflect on the limitations and controversies of existing tools, ethical concerns (stigmatization, primary/secondary prevention use), and the current lack of rigorous psychometric validation. Finally, the training will highlight research- and practice-based recommendations and explore ways to adapt tools from other domains to violent radicalization contexts.
Block 1 – 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.: Foundations of Risk Assessment in Criminology and Psychology
9:00 – 9:30: Welcome, training objectives, interactive introductions
9:30 – 10:00: What is risk assessment? Key concepts, uses, and myth deconstruction
10:00 – 10:30: Risk and protective factors: identification, dimensions, and integration into assessment tools
10:30 – 10:45: Break
10:45 – 11:30: Generations of risk assessment tools (1st–4th), examples, and clinical applications (RNR principles)
11:30 – 12:00: Limitations/biases of current tools and clinical override: when to use or not use a tool
Lunch break – 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.
Block 2 – 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.: Risk Assessment in Violent Extremism Prevention (VEP)
1:00 – 1:45: History of risk assessment in VEP: tool development, controversies, and practitioner resistance
1:45 – 2:30: Risk/protective factors for violent extremism: recent meta-analyses, overlap with psychology/criminology factors, integration into multisystem models
2:30 – 2:45: Break
2:45 – 3:15: Overview of VEP tools (e.g., ERG22+, TRAP-18, VERA-2R): common features, specificities, and uneven psychometric validation
3:15 – 3:45: Practitioner feedback: contributions to intervention vs. blind spots, guidelines for ethical and effective use
3:45 – 4:00: Conclusion and reflective discussion on the role of tools in VEP
Integrated Activity: Case study evolving throughout the training, with new elements added in each module
Sébastien Brouillette-Alarie
Associate Professor, School of Criminology, Université de Montréal; Research Lead, RPC-PREV.
Since 2018, Sébastien Brouillette-Alarie has worked in the field of violent radicalization prevention, ensuring ongoing exchange between research and practice through systematic reviews and Delphi processes. His work helps differentiate best practices from those potentially causing iatrogenic effects for individuals and communities.
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