Criminal of Psychology

Definition of Criminal Psychology

The first time when criminal psychology grow up, criminal psychology are know is ‘that branch of applied psychology which is concerned with the collection, examination and presentation of evidence for judicial purposes’ (Gudjonsson and Haward 1998, p. 1). It seem like as an investigation of case in psychology and that going to court to deal the case.

And then, with the growth in the last quarter of a century, criminal psychology also know to be a studied criminal psychologists in the assessment and treatment of offenders following their sentencing. And then, some of American Psychologist said that criminal psychology is the legal system to can be involved in all areas of the judicial process.

In 1981 Professor Lionel Haward, one of the UK’s founding fathers of criminal psychology, described the four roles that psychologists may perform when they become professionally involved in criminal proceedings. These are:

1.   Clinical: to assessment of an individual in order to provide a clinical judgement. The psychologist could use interviews, assessment tools or psychometric tests. Information can be found from: (a) Police, (b) Victim, (c) prison and (d) courts.

2.   Experimental: involve the psychologist performing research in order to inform a case. It is to given information about the reality of case.

3.   Actuarial: to use of statistics in order to inform a case. They can be to calculate about criminal case was happened in they country.

4.   Advisory: in this role the psychologist may provide advice to the police about how to proceed with an investigation. If they need to help them.