Competency Versus Capacity:
Competency is a term used in forensics and is a legal term can refer to a defendant’s capacity to comprehend allegations against them, such as Competency to Stand Trial, or can refer to a person’s competency to handle their own affairs, such as financial or medical decision making. Competency is a global assessment and a legal determination made in court; it is a judicial decision and is decided by the court, though the court often has a psychologist evaluate the individual to provide information on their abilities and functioning.
Capacity refers to an assessment of an individual’s psychological abilities and has four main dimensions: understanding, appreciation, reasoning, and expression of a choice. Capacity is determined by a psychologist, and is fluid and can change over time. An individual may have impaired capacity for a short, temporary period of time or it may last for longer. For example, individuals with dementia may have fluctuations in their capacity. Additionally, capacity should be related to something specific, for example, you may have the capacity to make medical decisions but not have capacity to make financial decisions.
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