The DOI matches its Crossref record; 16 of the 16 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Risk, Reward, and Redemption: Root Cause Analysis in Forensic Organizations
Open accessAbstract
Forensic science service providers are high reliability organizations and must manage their risk to ensure consistent quality. Investigations into unexpected outcomes, even positive ones, provides feedback into a system of continuous quality and improvement: the “why” is more important than the “what” for an organization to learn and grow. These investigations seek the root causes of the outcome and are called Root Cause Analysis (RCA). Various methods of RCA are available from other high reliability industries. The current article offers a method of root cause analysis for forensic agencies that hybridizes typical quality tools (Plan-Do-Act-Check cycle and “5 Whys”) with a decision matrix (simple, complicated, complex, and chaotic) to help streamline the process.
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Where appropriate, issue investigation includes root cause analysis (RCA) to devise most effective corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
“Where appropriate, issue investigation includes root cause analysis (RCA) in order to devise the most effective corrective actions to prevent recurrence of the underlying problem [22].”
From Quality issue management and disclosure in forensic science: A survey of practice and perceptions (2025) · cites this paper as [22]
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Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 3
- Ohno T., 2007, Workplace Management
- National Commission on Forensic Science, 2015, Directive Recommendation: Root Cause Analysis (RCA) in Forensic Science
- Weick K. E., 2007, Managing the Unexpected: Resilient Performance in and Age of Uncertainty
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Morgan, J. (2023) · Journal of Forensic Sciences · doi:10.1111/1556-4029.15233 · Cited by 63
Jalal, M. P., Noorzai, E., & Roushan, T. Y. (2019) · Journal of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution in Engineering and Construction · doi:10.1061/(asce)la.1943-4170.0000289 · Cited by 35
Heavey, A. L., Turbett, G. R., Houck, M. M., & Lewis, S. W. (2023) · Forensic Science International: Synergy · doi:10.1016/j.fsisyn.2023.100339 · Cited by 20
Self-citationForensic science in Ghana: A review
Amankwaa, A. O., Amoako, E. N., Bonsu, D. N. O., & Banyeh, M. (2019) · Forensic Science International Synergy · doi:10.1016/j.fsisyn.2019.07.008 · Cited by 19
Backlogs are a dynamic system, not a warehousing problem
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Busey, T. A., Sudkamp, L., Taylor, M. K., & White, A. V. (2021) · Forensic Science International Synergy · doi:10.1016/j.fsisyn.2021.100198 · Cited by 18
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Heavey, A. L., & Houck, M. M. (2024) · Forensic Science International Synergy · doi:10.1016/j.fsisyn.2024.100483 · Cited by 13
Self-citationQuality issue management and disclosure in forensic science: A survey of practice and perceptions
Heavey, A. L., Houck, M. M., Turbett, G. R., & Lewis, S. W. (2025) · Journal of Forensic Sciences · doi:10.1111/1556-4029.70121 · Cited by 10
“Where appropri - ate, issue investigation includes root cause analysis (RCA) in order to devise the most effective corrective actions to prevent recurrence of the underlying problem [ 22 ].”
Self-citationIncel Perpetrated Violence: Distal and Proximal Risk Factors and Pathways
Collins, C., Murphy, M. G., Reid, K. M., & Clark, J. J. (2024) · Deviant Behavior · doi:10.1080/01639625.2024.2417824 · Cited by 3
Chu, S. (2022) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-823677-2.00172-0 · Cited by 1
Houck, M. M. (2022) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-823677-2.00159-8
Self-citationImura, N. (2024) · IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM) · doi:10.1109/ieem62345.2024.10857064
Metadata
- Authors
- Houck, M. M.
- Corresponding author
- Houck, Max M.
- ORCID
- Houck, Max M.
- Venue
- Forensic Science Policy & Management: An International Journal
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2016-10-11
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 3-4
- Pages
- 106-112
- ISSN
- 1940-9036 (ISSN-L)
- 1940-9044
- OpenAlex
- W2531136741
- Semantic Scholar
- 02e11dad52e8abbbbf60474ce9ef4c3a39c6acfb
- Cited by
- 12
- References
- 14
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 2
- FWCI
- 1.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- digital.usfsp.edu
- Licence
- cc-by-nc-nd
- Locations
- Forensic Science Policy & Management An International Journal (publishedVersion)
- Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Management Systems and Quality Improvement
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Healthcare Quality and Management
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality › Risk and Safety Analysis
- Keywords
- root cause analysis, high reliability organizations, risk management, quality management, 5 Whys, decision matrix, continuous quality improvement
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