NAMI Ask the Expert: An Evidence-Based Conversation on Violence and Mental Illness

Course overview

This course, based on the Ask the Expert webinar series by NAMI, examines what the research actually shows about the relationship between violence and mental illness and how public narratives can overstate this link. Drawing on large cohort studies, the MacArthur Violence Risk Assessment Study, and national threat assessments, the session emphasizes co-occurring factors (e.g., substance use, access to firearms, environmental stressors) that are stronger predictors than psychiatric diagnosis alone and highlights evidence-informed prevention strategies (e.g., threat assessment, IPV prevention, place-based interventions). When mass attacks are analyzed, mental illness is not among the most frequent risk factors, underscoring the need for broader, evidence-based violence-prevention approaches The course, with an intended audience of social workers, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, and counselors, then presents practical ways clinicians can translate this evidence into safety-focused assessment, de-stigmatizing communication, and multi-factor care planning across settings.