Essay about Forensic Psychologists

Forensic Psychologists use their knowledge in clinical psychology to verify the mental state of people that are involved in criminal, civil, or juvenile court cases. They use the information obtained from those involved to evaluate eyewitness testimonies, assess potentially dangerous people, and confer with jury selection.

Forensic Psychologists generally have a graduate school Ph. D. or a Psy. D. They also have experience in clinical psychology forensic science. An American Board of Forensic Examiners certification is also essential. Work experiences include making discoveries by analyzing information, giving talks or speeches to groups of people, diagnosing causes of problems and finding solutions, resolving conflicts between groups or individuals, and working interpersonally with others. Diagnosing, information handling, and speaking are critical abilities needed in this field.

Duties in this field include conducting psychological autopsies on deceased people to determine their mental state, emotions, and competency while writing a will or in a murder-suicide case. In murder defense cases they interview people who are somehow related to the murderer, review medical and psychological test records in order to get an idea of the murderer’s state of mind during the crime. For family will disputes psychological biographies are created from the deceased to determine if psychological problems, drugs or alcoholism reduced competency while writing the will. Their findings are presented in written and oral court testimonies. They provide advice and evidence to legislators, judges, correctional officers, lawyers and the police in order to diagnose and treat offenders.

The average annual starting salary in trial consulting firms with a Ph. D. is about $47,000. Ph. D. university professors who consult can earn $60,000 to $80,000 per year when teaching, plus an additional $30,000 to $50,000 for part-time consulting.

Due to the increase in the number of litigation and court cases, consulting opportunities in forensic psychology are rapidly growing. Many forensic psychologists are university professors and consult on a part-time basis, while some work as members or partners in trial consulting firms or as independent consultants.

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