Forensic Psychology PDF

# Forensic Psychology ## Definition - *"Forensic"* meaning 'legal' or 'judicial', is derived from Latin word *forensis*, which literally means 'relating to the forum or market'. - Forensic Psychology is the branch of psychology concerned with the production and application of psychological knowled...

# Forensic Psychology ## Definition - *"Forensic"* meaning 'legal' or 'judicial', is derived from Latin word *forensis*, which literally means 'relating to the forum or market'. - Forensic Psychology is the branch of psychology concerned with the production and application of psychological knowledge and principles within the legal process. ## History - J. McKeen Cattell conducted some of the earliest research on the psychology of testimony. He posed a series of questions to students at Columbia University, asking them to provide a response and rate their degree of confidence in their answer (1895). - Cattell's results indicated a surprising degree of inaccuracy, which generated interest among other psychologists who went on to conduct experiments on eyewitness testimony. - Inspired by Cattell's work, Alfred Binet replicated Cattell's research and studied the results of other psychology experiments that applied to law and criminal justice (Bartol, 2005). His work in intelligence testing was also important to the development of forensic psychology, as many future assessment tools were based on his work. - Psychologist William Stern also studied witness recall. In one experiment, students were asked to summarize a dispute they witnessed between two classmates. Stern discovered that errors were common among the witnesses, concluding that emotions decrease the accuracy of witness recall (Stern, 1939). Stern continued to study issues surrounding testimony and later established the first academic journal devoted to applied psychology. - During this time, psychologists were also beginning to act as expert witnesses in criminal trials throughout Europe. In 1896, a psychologist by the name of Albert von Schrenck-Notzing testified at a murder trial about the effects of suggestibility on witness testimony (Bartol, 2005). - Hugo Munsterberg's (refereed as 1st forensic psychologist) ardent belief that psychology had practical applications in everyday life also contributed to the development of forensic psychology. - In 1908, Munsterberg published his book On the Witness Stand, advocating the use of psychology in legal matters. Despite his contributions, Munsterberg was generally disliked by many of his peers in psychology and by much of the legal community. - Stanford psychologist Lewis Terman began applying psychology to law enforcement in 1916. After revising Binet's intelligence test, the new Stanford-Binet test was used to assess the intelligence of job candidates for law enforcement positions. - In 1917, psychologist William Marston (a student of Munsterberg) found that systolic blood pressure had a strong correlation to lying. This discovery would later lead to the design of the modern polygraph detector. - Marston testified in 1923 in the case of Frye vs. United States. This case is significant because it established the precedent for the use of expert witnesses in courts. The Federal Court of Appeals determined that a procedure, technique, or assessment must be generally accepted within its field in order to be used as evidence. ## Post-World War II Growth - Significant growth in American forensic psychology did not happen until after World War II. Psychologist served as expert witnesses, but only in trials that weren't perceived as infringing on medical specialists, who were seen as more credible witnesses. In the 1940 case of the People vs. Hawthorne, the courts ruled that the standard for expert witnesses was in the extent of knowledge of a subject, not in whether or not the witness had a medical degree. - Forensic psychology has continued to grow and evolve during the past three decades. Increasing numbers of graduate programs offer dual degrees in psychology and law, while other offer specialized degrees emphasized forensic psychology. - In 2001, the American Psychological Association officially recognized forensic psychology as a specialization within psychology. ## Subfields of Forensic Psychology - **Clinical-Forensic Psychology** Very similar to clinical psychology. Clients here are not only suffering from some type of mental problem, but their issues are of importance to legal decision making as well. - **Developmental Psychology** Deals with juveniles, the elderly, and the law. Focus on policy making rather than treatment of those with mental problems. - **Social Psychology** Concerned with how jurors interact and arrive at a group decision. - **Cognitive Psychology** Closely associated with social psychology subfield, but looks more into how people make decisions in legal cases. - **Criminal Investigative Psychology** Police psychology, criminal profiling, and psychological autopsies. Experts may choose to conduct research and/or work closely in analyzing the minds of criminal suspects. ## Differences in the Functions of Forensic Psychology and Clinical Psychology | Function | Forensic Interview | Clinical Interview | |---|---|---| | **Goal** | To obtain information as reliable and accurate as possible | To assess and provide treatment of symptoms | | **Focus** | Fact-finding focus - accurate recollection of events important | Therapeutic focus - Attributions and perceptions of events important | | **Approach** | Objectivity, neutrality, avoidance of biases | Empathy, therapeutic alliance, support of Client | | **Client** | Court | Child | | **Interview Style** | Interviews are formal and restrictive | Interviewing strategies are variable | | **Outside Information** | Consent to obtain outside information and disclose information is obtained and understood prior to proceeding with the interview | Client's consent required to seek external verification of information and to provide information to outside sources | | **Confidentiality** | Confidentiality restricted | Traditional confidentiality | | **Competency** | Competency of client questioned | Competency of client not the primary concern | | **Recording** | Recorded | Private | ## Forensic Assessment Forensic assessment is used when a psychologist is hired to answer a specific legal question (i.e. competency, insanity, etc.). Depending on the specific question, the psychologist will conduct a clinical interview, collateral interviews (e.g. with witnesses, family, friends, attorneys, police officers, etc.) review records (i.e. medical, psychological, criminal, school, etc.), administer psychological tests, and form an opinion to answer the legal question. ## Difference in Forensic Assessment and Clinical Assessment When a client is referred for clinical assessment, he or she is often posing their own questions regarding treatment, diagnosis, progress, etc. In forensic evaluations, the client can be court ordered or referred by their attorney to assist in their legal case. Therefore, forensic assessment can often create an adversarial relationship between the psychologist and client, as opposed to a therapeutic one. Other differences include: - **A narrow focus** to answer the specific legal question. - **A focus on the client's accurate portrayal** of information (rather than his or perspective). - **A lack of guidance** or autonomy on behalf of the client to answer his or her own questions. - **The possibility of the client's distortion** or inaccurate portrayal of information. - **The psychologist does not act** in a therapeutic or "helping" role, as the goal of the evaluation is not to provide therapeutic feedback. - **The setting of a forensic evaluation does not** always take place in a psychologist's office, but can take place in a jail or other correctional setting. - **Can be limited by time restraints**. ## Roles of a Forensic Psychology 1. **Competency to stand trial**: Also known as fitness to plead, which refers to the defendant's mental capacity to make a proper defense i.e., to understand the legal proceedings and the charges against him or her. 2. **Criminal responsibility**: Also known as insanity defense, which refers to the time of the alleged offense and more specifically asks the question whether the defendant had the mental capacity to distinguish between right and wrong at the time of the alleged offense and could control his/her conduct accordingly. 3. **Other defenses**: - **Intoxication by alcohol or other drugs**: Because it is self-induced and temporary, is seldom given complete guiltless/innocent effect. The major exception is when the substance abuse has been prolonged to a point where it has produced a serious mental disorder. - **Amnesia at the time of the offense**: Is one of the most common defenses heard in the criminal court, especially concerning violent crimes. It is also one of the most difficult defenses to assess. It is not only difficult to determine the weight that should be given to the claimed amnesia, but also to distinguish between genuine and stimulated amnesia. - **Dissociative identity disorder**: Formerly called multiple personality disorder, is primarily characterized by the presence of two or more distinct personalities that in turn take control of the person's behaviour. However, the disorder is highly controversial and sometimes called the 'UFO of mental health'. Experts admit that it is very difficult to distinguish between real cases and malingering. 4. **Prediction of violent behaviour**: To determine the tendency for future violence/crime. However, the role of the mental health professional in violence prediction is controversial. 5. **Sentence Mitigation**: Even in situations where the defendant's mental disorder does not meet the criteria for a not guilty by reason of insanity defense, the defendant's state of mind at the time, as well as relevant past history of mental disorder and psychological abuse can be used to attempt a mitigation of sentence. The forensic psychologist's evaluation and report is an important element in presenting evidence for sentence mitigation. ## Ethical Considerations 1. **Identification of the Client:** - The individual - via his/her lawyer - The guardian of the individual - The court which has ordered the evaluation 2. **Informed Consent or Disclosure**: Regardless of whether an informed consent or disclosure process is used, the individual being evaluated should be informed about: - The name or agency requesting the evaluation and the intended recipient of the product. - Other professionals or agencies who will have access to the report. - Limits of confidentiality and the absence of privileged communication. - Non-Therapeutic nature of the relationship. - The psycho-legal or referral question to be addressed in the evaluation (e.g., mental state at the time of offense). - The type of material that will be collected, and the methods by which the information will be obtained (e.g., interview, psychological tests). - The nature of the legal proceedings at which the examiner may be required to testify (e.g., trial or sentencing). - The type of information which may require mandatory reporting (e.g., child abuse). - Whether the examinee has a right to decline participation in the evaluation and the possible consequences for declining. 3. **Producing a forensic report without a clinical interview**: In some instances, an interview is not possible because either the evaluee declines to participate, or circumstances do not allow the possibility of an interview. In such cases, forensic psychologists can prepare a report when there is sufficient collateral information to formulate an opinion with a reasonable degree of clinical certainty. Clearly stating in their report the limitations that this situation imposes. 4. **Confidentiality**: In forensic arena, psychologists are advised to assume non-confidentiality as a general matter, and to conduct evaluations accordingly. However ethical standards require that the examinee be informed, at the beginning, of the absence of confidentiality. 5. **Presence of Lawyer during evaluation**: In cases where a court order specifies the presence of the lawyer, or instances where a particular lawyer wants to be present during the interview. Another option would be observation of the interview by the lawyer from a location which is out of the visual field of the evaluee. 6. **Multicultural competence**: Apart from knowing the mainstream culture, psychologists must learn and understand other cultures. Especially in case of forensic evaluations, where impartiality and the avoidance of undue bias are critical, psychologists should actively pursue multicultural learning on an ongoing basis. Further psychologists must be aware of their own biases, attitudes, and beliefs and how they can potentially influence their interpretations.