Analysis of Forensic Psychology Practice

Discussion

First of all, it is necessary to mention that for the successful implementation of the innovative principles, linked with the issues of forensic psychology, and decreasing the levels of criminal behavior, it is necessary to realize the judicial system and the motifs of criminals. As for the judicial system, it should be stated that originally, zero-tolerance is accepted to any types of homicides, shootings, robberies etc. Nevertheless, there are lots of ways, allowing a criminal to avoid the severest punishment, and then get back to criminal behavior.

As for the motifs, statistical data should be regarded first. The daily average amount of crimes is the following:

• Homicides: 1
• Non-fatal Shootings: 4
• Street Robberies: 1
• Commercial Robberies: 1
• Bank: 0,5
• Other: 1
• Vehicle Thefts: 5
• Vehicle Recoveries: 5
• Breaks: 16
• Residential Break-ins: 6
• Commercial Break-ins: 3 (Barak, 2009)

The motifs of the criminals are generally different, still, their aim is the only – the wish of an easy gain. The only way of discouraging such criminals from committing crimes is adjusting the punishment, which is potentially severer than the damage, caused by the crime. Moreover, the legislation and court systems should be really effective, for the criminals knew, they will not stay unpunished. From this point of view, it is necessary to mention that Blackburn (2006) stated the following fact in his research: “Lack of a firm grasp of the judicial procedures will result in the forensic psychologist losing credibility in the courtroom. Nevertheless, for better effectiveness, it can be trained in clinical, social, organizational or any other branch of psychology. In the United States, the salient issue is the designation by the court as an expert witness by training, experience or both by the judge.”

As for the principles of forensic psychology implementation, it should be stated that the questions, which are generally risen by forensic psychology do not touch upon the matters of psychology itself but deal with the legal issues and the response must be presented in the form, applicable for testifying. In the light of this fact, it should be emphasized that the language and the form of the psychological conclusion should be suitable for the formalities of the court on the one hand, and clear enough for creating the principles of legislation, based on the conclusions of psychological examination.

As for the matters of effectiveness, it should be stated, that the depth of the research and the severity of punishment are closely linked to each other. The following graph represents this dependence: thus, the heavier the crime – the severer punishment the offender is sentenced to – the more efforts are spent for his / her psychological research and examination.