What is Forensic Psychology?The word 'forensic' is derived from the Latin word 'forum' which was the...

1. Forensic Psychology
What is Forensic Psychology?
The word 'forensic' is derived from the Latin word 'forum' which was the place of public gathering in
the Roman cities where the process of justice was carried out through debates. Today the term
forensic is used to define the use of scientific methods and procedures to investigate crime. Forensic
psychology is therefore defined as 'the application of clinical specialties to legal institutions and
people who come in contact with law.
It consists of understanding criminal law, making legal evaluations, and interacting with judges,
attorneys, and such other legal professionals. Looking for information about ? these 2015 auto
accident injury lawyers reviews will give you some good insights.It also includes the capability to
make psychological findings what is life without parole translate them into the language of the law,
so that the information is understood by the legal practitioners. It is also essential that a forensic
psychologist understand the philosophy of the law and legal processes.
The questions that are normally asked to a forensic psychologist are legal questions where the
forensic psychologist must be able to convert psychological data into legal language for the court.
statistics on death penalty forensic psychologist therefore must have relevant training in psychology,
including clinical or counseling psychology. He must gain relevant experience in forensic psychology
by working with other practitioners.
Therefore, a forensic psychologist is very different from a typical clinical psychologist. A forensic
psychologist does not see the situation from the client's perspective; neither does he empathize with
the client. During the evaluation process, it is important for the forensic psychologist to examine the
consistency of factual data across several sources.
Functions of a Forensic Psychologist
There are several functions of a forensic psychologist. The primary function is to provide testimony
in court. This has grown to become quite a daunting task because attorneys have now become quite
competent at undermining the testimony of these psychologists in the court of law.
Apart from this they also perform various other functions. They are:

2. Competency Evaluations:
The psychologist is usually appointed by the court of law to assess the competency of the individual
to a stand trial. If the assessment states that the individual is incompetent to stand the trial, it will
also state recommendations for the procedures to be followed in order to render him competent for
the trial. The forensic psychologist may also prescribe medication for the treatment of the individual.
If these medications and treatments do not show the required effect, then the psychologist may then
advise the court to commit the individual to a psychiatric facility till he can be declared competent to
stand the trial.
Evaluation of Sanity:
The forensic psychologist is appointed by the court to assess the individual's state of mind at the
time of the crime. This happens when the lawyer pleads that his client is 'not guilty' stating the
reason of insanity.
Malingering:
Often the individual may also fake symptoms of mental illness during competency evaluations. This
will often be revealed by the forensic psychologist by observing the individual in other settings,
because it is difficult to consistently maintain false symptoms over a period of time. Such offenses
can also add what is life with parole time to the sentence of the individual, when found guilty.
Mitigation of Sentence:
An evaluation by a forensic psychologist is very important when considering the mitigation of the
sentence for the individual. When the individual's mental disorder does not meet the criteria for
being 'not http://const4kids.forums.commonground13.us/?p=19 guilty' by giving reasons of insanity
plea, other considerations are taken into account. the definition of homicide include the individual's
state of mind death penalty facts against the time of the crime, relevant history of mental disorder
and psychological abuse, medical history, family and social history including physical abuse, mental
abuse, domestic violence, and exposure to traumatic events, and criminal violence. The psychologist
considers all these factors before making a recommendation to the court about mitigating the
sentence of the individual.
Other Evaluations:

3. A psychologist is also referred while making other evaluations in the legal processes. One such
evaluation is to about assessing whether the individual will commit the same crime again, or
whether he is still to be considered to be a danger to society. They are also consulted during
probation hearings and parole hearings. They also provide assessment of the individual's capacity to
be rehabilitated after their release from jail. They provide information about the credibility of
witnesses, help select the jury during the process of a trial, and also provide profiles of criminals to
law enforcement authorities.
Thus a forensic psychologist performs a very important function in today's world, especially at the
junction of law and psychology.
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