Forensic Psychology - A Threat and a Response

• NCJ Number: 72930
• Journal: Professional Psychology Volume: 11 Issue: 1 Dated: (February 1980) Pages: 72-77
• Author(s): M I Kurke
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 6 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Drived from a presentation made at a session on Forensic Psychology - A New Specialization at the meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association held in Washington, DC, on March 29, 1978.

Annotation

The certification of forensic psychologists as a requirement for being expert witnesses is discussed as part of a movement toward national accreditation of a number of forensic science specialities.

Abstract

To some forensic psychologists, the very existence of forensic psychology appears to be threatened by the recent formation of the American Board of Forensic Psychiatry and its program of national certification of forensic psychiatrists. The exclusion of psychologists from such a move toward certification tends to lower the status of psychologists while possibly excluding them from being classified as expert witnesses. These concerns have been responded to by the American board of Forensic Psycholody (ABFP), a body dedicated to the establishment and maintenance of standards and educational opportunities for forensic psychology, along with the certification of qualified forensic psychologists. The certification of forensic psychologists appears to be a logical response to the need for recognition of the specialty of forensic psychologists by the fields of psychology and law, the need to establish and maintain parity with other forensic professions, the need to maintain high standards of professional competence, and the need to stimulate continuing educational opportunities for forensic psychologists. Ten references are provided.