Expert Witness Skills Lab
Volledige vakbeschrijving
Every forensic psychologist occasionally must appear in court. When this happens, (s)he is faced with two basic problems: firstly, (s)he must apply psychological knowledge in a legal context and, secondly, (s)he must inform legal professionals such as lawyers and judges (who lack expertise in psychology) about the case at hand. In addition to this, (s)he has to avoid confusing the therapeutic role and the forensic role, which may serve conflicting goals. During this course, the following subjects are covered: the differences between judicial and psychological knowledge and ways of reasoning, the practical and ethical aspects of serving as an expert witness in legal cases, training on how to serve as an expert witness and to write an expert witness report, as well as how to avoid common misconceptions and complications.
Doelstellingen van dit vak
Students are able to:
- follow and apply judicial reasoning;
- avoid expert bias;
- follow courtroom procedure;
- write an expert witness report;
- present an expert witness report in court;
- analyse a case or a case file;
- apply their knowledge of witness memory
- can identify and explain ethical dilemmas in forensic psychology
- can differentiate between different professional roles and infer respective responsibilities, rights, and obligations.