Bachelor of Arts in Forensic Psychology

Transcription

SPEAKER: In general, with forensic psychologists, the service we provide today has to do with the interface between psychology, the science of psychology, and civil and criminal court matters. There are people who focus specifically, say on, family law issues. So there are forensic psychologists who do child custody studies and make recommendations to the court regarding which parent in a divorce ought to have custody of the child. In my field of criminal forensic psychology, mainly what we do is advise the courts and law enforcement agencies at various points in the process of investigating a crime, identifying who committed the crime, making an arrest, determining their state of mind at the time they committed the crime, then moving into trial. Talking about any psychological issues that related to their criminal conduct. There are psychologists who do the hands on practical end of things, like myself. There are psychologists who strictly do research. The main differences is the researchers are looking at the work we do and helping us do it better. They're developing tests and protocols that help us identify, for example, psychopaths. Some years ago, there was a case in Benton County where a young woman in her 20s was kidnapped from the OSU campus and just disappeared. Sexual psychopaths are predators. They're hunters. That's what it's all about. The thrill of the hunt. They always remember where they put the bodies. As a consultant to that county, I helped identify who the offender was. Helped them locate him. He was brought in. Helped them put the case together. Helped them convince him to take a plea agreement. And followed him all the way into the prison system. Anybody getting into this field needs to expect that. You're held to a very high academic standard. There's so much specialization. There are graduate schools that provide doctoral programs, graduate programs, in forensic psychology. So you'd be well advised to attend one of those. The most challenging aspect of forensic psychology probably is the court room work because, by definition, it's adversarial. You don't just get to get up and lecture. There's going to be somebody intent on making you look bad, discrediting what you say, typically try to discredit you. That's challenging. We more than virtually anybody, know what a jungle it is out there. How scary our world is. And so, I basically go about my life a lot different than most of the people I know because I see the threats they don't. The most rewarding aspects of the job, for me, are basically helping the criminal justice system get it right. The judges and the juries make the decisions, but the information I provide helps them inform those decisions. Helping people get closure. I'm looking at the victims of these offenses. And actually at times, being the person who helps structure the treatment and management of these people to reduce their level of dangerousness in the future.