Who are you? - interviewing techniques

Developing interview techniques is the next stage of offender profiling, this is where forensic psychologists use the developed profile to highlight weaknesses that may encourage the offender to talk or confess. This technique is also used to put the offender on edge or to make them nervous so that they become flustered and cannot keep their lies straight. The trick to conducting any kind of interview is establishing a rapport with the individual being interviewed. This is because if an individual neither likes nor trusts you they are extremely unlikely to take you into their confidence, which defeats the purpose of any kind of interview as the aim is to gather information. But, it is not always clear if the individual that is being interviewed is a witness, a suspect, a co-offender or simply an innocent bystander. So, it is therefore the task of the interviewer to decipher the verbal and nonverbal responses and make the connections and decide what role the interviewee will play in the investigation. The best known interview technique to use to catch out a liar or someone who is editing the information they are providing, is to present the interviewee with a series of accusatory behaviour increasing questions, because often when an individual is lying they display an increased amount of tension and anxiety which an interviewer can pick up on for example they may beging fidgeting or sit on their hands and hit their leg against the table.
However, it is very important for the interviewer to remain impartial throughout they should not display emotions such as anger, shock, disgust or disbelief. This is because it would hinder them in their job as their aim is to get to the truth, and if the interviewer was to show their true feelings most likely of disgust this would put the suspect on the defensive so they would not tell the interviewer anything. The truth could be gained through sympathising with the suspect so that they believe that their state of mind is understood by the interviewer. If the rapport with the suspect is strong enough they may begin to believe that the interviewer would have acted in the same way and that they are not alone in their anti social behaviour

I'll stand by you - Counselling the police

Many people take for granted how stressful police work truly is, when in fact it is one of the only professions where an individual is continuously exposed to violence, murder, accidents and terrible personal injury and risk. No matter how healthy an individual truly is both mentally and physically they cannot withstand long term exposure to violence and traumatic personal incidents without some kind of blow back the stress alone can do considerable damage. But, there is the problem of the administration that only tends to get involved in reducing stress when an incident has occurred rather than getting involved before hand to help prevent incidents such as officer suicide.

Dealing with incidents before they have a chance to occur is not that difficult administrators can begin by offering extra training to help officer cope with post-traumatic stress when it occurs. It is also very important that police officers understand that counselling can be very beneficial, or even sharing their feelings with their peers so they can understand that they are not alone in their feelings and that other officers experience them to. Officers also need to learn to refrain from making judgemental comments towards an individual that has suffered a traumatic event. However, this is only a temporary fix for the damage that has been done departments also need to set up a long term form of support this doesn't have to be expensive the problem could be solved by using peer support groups, as the officers are all going through the same things.

Officers need to know they have the support of their administrators as they may already feel unappreciated by the general public. It has been found that seventy percent officers who are involved in a shooting leave their department after five years. This would not happen if the correct counselling was available to them, it only damages the department as they are losing valuable man power as well as losing out financially since they have paid to train the officer. Officers should not be made to feel like they have to deal with the stress alone they should know they have the firm support of their administrators, their peers and their families.

Other Related Blogs

·         http://student-guide-to-forensic psychology.blogspot.com/2009_01_01_archive.html

This blog shows and reviews all types of forensic psychology information. This blog has been around since 2006. What I found interesting about this blog is that the blog discussed everything like a book review, job opportunities and the overall the responsibilities on a psychologist. One thing that I found interesting was the serial killer information and how there was a list of books in the Kindle Collection that would help to understand this topic.

• http://symptom- magnification.blogspot.com/2006_12_01_archive.html

This blog is by Stuart J. Claymon, PH.D. and he discusses in his blog about different mental disorders that are used in psychiatric. These disorders can be used in forensic psychology as a ruling in court decision. One interesting theme that is discussed is Malingering. “Malingering is defined as people who deliberately  pretend to have an illness or disability in order to receive financial or other gain or to avoid punishment or responsibility.’’ 

 http:// www.minddisorder.com/Kau- Nu/Malingering.html

• http://forensicir.blogspot.com/

This blog is based on the science of forensics, incident response, methodologies and other real world investigations. This blog was developed in 2007. What I like about this blog is that it discusses the person’s own experience in forensic psychology and what he or she thinks. The most recent post is about the sophistication of attacks. I found it interesting because most blogs are only a bunch of researched information, but this is his or her own thoughts. In the poem he or she talks about how attacks are labeled as unsophisticated and how they negatively affect people’s views.

The website below shows other forensic psychology blogs. The blogs I have above are the most interesting blogs to me.

http://www.forensicpsychology.net/features/forensics/

A Controversy in Forensic Psychology

A Controversy in forensic psychology is eyewitness testimony. It is stated that when a witness perceives a complex event, it is difficult for them to separate what they have seen and what they have been told later on. When a witness perceives an event, a number of factors can affect the accuracy of what was perceived and stored in memory. The factors that could affect are exposure time, or the salience of effect of the event or the witnesses’ prior expectations. A crucial period in the eyewitness is the time between an experience and whiteness’s recollection of that experience. The length and the event that takes place during the experience affect a witness’s testimony.

The next side of the controversy is that the accuracy of memory is influenced by what is demanded of it. Memory is less accurate when it is called upon to reconstruct an event than when recognition of the event is demanded. There are certain inferences that affect the accuracy of eyewitnesses. For example, individual differences in eyewitness abilities, the effects of stress and of the presence of weapons upon witness recall, the effects of racial differences between witness and suspect upon recall, and a broad range of other important issues. Basically, if witnesses were approached a certain way then memory would be able to be retained.

http://www.maryconnell.com/eyewitness.htm
http://www.softdevlabs.com/personal/Eyewitness_Testimony/Eyewitness_Testimony.html

The Differences in Serial Killers

How often do you sit down to watch one of those criminal shows that I discussed earlier and feel like you are suddenly able to detect a serial killer from your average Joe Schmo? Well, chances are you can’t. The recent Long Island murders are discussed in a TIME article by Kayla Webley. She interviews a professor of forensic psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at the City University of New York, Louis B. Schlesinger, discuses “to TIME about the gritty details of the Long Island killings” (Webley 1).

In the interview, Webley asks intriguing questions about distinguishing the differences between both murder and sexual murder and the differences of murder in fiction television vs. reality. Schlesinger brings up interesting facts about sexual murder that I had no idea about.

For instance, the Long Island murders have been prostitutes. Why? “The main problem that serial sexual murderers have is the act of abduction, getting the woman to go with them. That problem is eliminated with a prostitute because they'll go with anybody” (Schlesinger 1). In addition to the target, the location plays an important role in sexual murder, and murder in general. “So if you're killing in an urban area, it's because you live there and you're familiar with it. If you kill in a rural area, it's because you're familiar and comfortable in that area as well” (Schlesinger 1).

Something I was certainly unaware of was the number one way serial killers get caught. A surviving victim is the number one way a murder is caught. However, a good percent of the time, victims fear going to the police because sometimes, victims are already participating in illegal activities such as prostitution or drugs.

Finally, Schlesinger mentions the difference between the public perception or a serial killer and the reality of one. Ironically, society gives serial killers more credit than they really deserve. “The public wants its serial killers to be evil geniuses, with high IQs, who speak five languages and are connoisseurs of fine wine and literature” (Schlesinger 1). When in reality, most of them have a below average IQ. This is the difference between reality and fiction. We put serial killers on a pedestal of evil perfection, when in truth, anyone reading the news about the Long Island Killer could probably score better than them in a simple IQ test.

Read the full story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20110413/us_time/08599206497000

Evaluations and Malingering

Forensic Psychologists have a multitude of responsibilities in the courtroom. One of the most important is evaluating the Sanity and Competence of defendants as well as looking for any sign of Malingering, or feigned insanity.

A Competence evaluation is designed to see if the accused is competent enough to stand trial. This mean that a forensic psychologist is brought in to make sure that the defendant is able to understand all court proceedings and adequately participate in them when required to do so. They must also be able to consult with their attorney, and have a clear understanding of why they are being charged in the first place. In order to determine competency a psychological evaluation is employed. Such evaluations usually make use of different tools such as question sequences or rating scales. The person being evaluated may also have to submit to a standardized psychological test. Should the accused be deemed incompetent to stand trial they will often be provided with treatment, or even committed to a mental facility in order to restore competence. The court proceedings will be postponed until a time where the accused is capable enough to stand trial.

Read the E-how page on Competency Evaluations

The difference between a Competency evaluation and a Sanity evaluation is that the latter is a test to determine whether or not the defendant was in a stable frame of mind during the time the offense was committed. In order for this type of evaluation to take place, the judge prosecutor or public defender must have reason to believe that the accused was mentally impaired when the crime was committed. The defense attorney may also have their client plead insanity, in which case this type of evaluation will be employed by the court. However the defense can call in its own psychological evaluator. Despite all of this, any decision concerning the defendant’s state of mind when the offense is committed is usually made before the trial begins.

Sanity Evaluation Information at PyschWest

Malingering is the term used to describe a defendant faking mental illness or over exaggerating a pre-existing mental illness. This is done in an attempt to escape punishment for crimes committed, and if proved false can be considered an obstruction of justice, resulting in harsher punishment. Even if Malingering is not suspected it is important for a Forensic Psychologist to always keep this form of deception in mind in order to ensure justice is served. When Malingering is suspected the psychologist is tasked with monitoring the defendant’s behavior in and outside of the courtroom. This is due to the fact that a feigned mental illness is often quite hard to preserve accurately. The psychologist should be able to spot moments when the accused behaves without symptoms and use this to determine whether or not they are truly mentally ill.

EMedicine Article on Malingering

Profiling is the New Sexy

There are dozens of television shows which have commercialized the field of forensic psychology. Criminal Minds, Law and Order: SVU and CSI are just a few examples of fictionalized criminal psychology. Profiling has become a fad rather than a science. A recent article published in The Beacon-News explains this with fuller detail; “Experts arrest TV myths about how to solve crimes”, published by Mike Danahney.

“‘Apparently, it helps (investigators) to have a good pair of sun glasses,’ quipped Elgin Community College associate psychology professor Shawn Mikulay in reference to “CSI: Miami” star David Caruso’s habit on the show of using his shades for dramatic effect” (Danahney 1). This is true. Flip on the television one evening when one of these, inaccurate yet guilty pleasure shows is on (I’ll be the first to admit, I love my Law and Order), and you will see how “sexy” profiling really is.

Brent Turvey, a key speaker with Mikulay, continued on in the seminar to explain the basics of profiling. Learning as much about the victim as possible is the main goal of any investigation. One must, “build a victim’s profile” (Danahney 1). It takes time and patience, but it is the key point in any case. A profiler must check biological information of a victim, their financial status and the major question of, how did they become a victim? What did they do to become involved in this? “ ‘For the viewers, crime shows and movies tend to oversimplify things — show crimes being solved faster than they actually can and to a degree of certainty there often isn’t,’” Turvey said. “‘For professionals, the shows aren’t honest about science. But some play to those roles, which can lead to cutting corners and to being far too certain’” (Danahney 1).

So, why do these shows cut out the middleman and edit the truth with fancy clothes and inner-office romances? Part of it is the media, of course. However, speaking of psychology, I have another theory. As we learned not too long ago, those who go against the “norm” of psychology are considered in need of psychological testing. A farfetched idea as to why shows stray so far from the truth of criminal psychology could be this. My theory is that as a form of media, to make money producers and writers must create shows that relate to viewers. If three shows are preaching the appeal of profiling, how can another make a show that is similar and yet still hold valuable facts about the subject. Who (aside from me and a select group) would watch shows that are so raw? In a way, the media causes these shows to form to fit a typical, “normal” mold. Like I said, call it a farfetched idea, but I find it relevant nevertheless.


Want to read more?
 http://http//beaconnews.suntimes.com/4731608-417/experts-arrest-tv-myths-about-how-to-solve-crimes.html

Video Review: More on Offender Profiling

This video mainly deals with criminal profiling; a tool used by investigators to analyze criminals, find patterns in their behavior and potentially even identify them. An In depth analysis of the crime and how it was committed can also be used to determine what sort of mind set the perpetrator was in that compelled them to their actions. The video also talks particularly about profiling serial killers. If done successfully an Offender profile could potentially be used to predict the killer's next victim or actions. Profiling is also utilized when a suspect is in custody. The profile can give clues as to what sort of questions the suspect should be asked and generally how they should be handled. In a homicide case the aspects most focused on are usually: How the homicide was carried out, the type of victim, and how the body was disposed of.

Howard Teten, one of the main experts interviewed in this video, gives a very good description of the process; he says "you have to say to yourself, what kind of a person would do this? What is this person saying? Either to the victim or to the people he expects to find the victim." Teten is one of the more notable Criminal profilers. He became part of the Behavioral Science Unit at Quantico in 1972 under instructor Patrick J. Mullany. Together they came up with a method of analyzing offenders by looking for signs of mental disorders at crime scenes. Their system paved the way for future profiling techniques, programs and more sophisticated tools.

More About Howard Teten

It is interesting to hear how the men interviewed in the video regard this field. Robert Ressler claims that interviewing convicted criminals gives him insight into the mind of other offenders. However despite the knowledge that such interviews grant him, his claim that he "has to leave his psychological baggage outside the interview room" shows that dealing with these criminals can be unnerving, angering, or even disturbing to criminal profilers. Ressler also speaks about the dangers of speaking with these kinds of criminals. He says that because his job is to empathize with these people it is often hard not to get caught up in their point of view. Luckily he claims that he is able to pick up his "psychological baggage" that he must leave behind when conducting an interview. Therefore returning to a state of "equilibrium" and not getting to caught up in the criminal's lies or warped perception of reality. David Canter on the other hand says that interviewing a serial killer is one of the more exciting aspects of a profiler’s career and can be seen as a "scalp on your belt." However he does also say that this is less of a scientific advantage and more of an achievement to a profiler.

The Overview of a Forensic Psychologist

Nature of Work:  Forensic psychology is the mental study and human behavior by observing, interpreting and recording of how people relate to the environment through law.  Forensic Psychologists use psychological principles in the legal and criminal system to help judges, attorneys and other legal professionals understand the psychological findings of a particular case. They can specialize in one of three areas of study. One can be in family court where child custody evaluations are investigated and reports of child abuse. Another area of study could be in civil courts. They could investigate assess competency and provide psychotherapy to crime victims.  The last area is within the criminal court where they may work with child witnesses and provide assessment of juvenile or adult offenders.

Requirements:  A doctorate degree in psychology is recommended.  To have psychology bachelor’s degree is not a required major. The college studies should include experimental psychology, developmental psychology, abnormal psychology and forensic psychology. Classes in statistics, English, foreign language and history to complete a strong liberal arts education.  A minor in law is also needed. A doctorate degree takes between four to seven years to complete after a bachelor’s degree.  Psychologists do not need to attend medical or law school.

Earnings: There are conditions that affect salaries such as the person’s level of education, professional experience and location. Salary can range from as little as 37,900 to 64,140 to as high as 106,840 or more.

Work Environment and Skills needed: They have a structured schedule. Psychologist should be analytical, details oriented and have strong math and writing skills. They should also be a people’s person, have good communication skills, and listening skills.

Certification or Licensing: The American Board of Professional Psychology offers voluntary specialty certifications. For licensing, certain states require certain certifications and licensing. You will need to check with your state’s licensing board for specific information.

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos056.htm

Offender Profiling

Forensic psychology takes many forms one of them being offender profiling. There are two different stlyes of offender profiling American and British. The British style was originally developed by David Canter who used it in order to aid the police in their investigation of the Railway Rapist who later became known as the Railway Killer and eventually apprehend the perpetrator John Duffy. Whereas, the American style was developed by the FBI and is used by their behavioural analysis unit to solve many cases. The British style is centred around the individual so is therefore only specific to a particular case hence, the profile developed cannot be generalised to other crimes of a similar nature. But, the American style is focused on assigning specific characteristics relevent to all of the individuals that commit a specific crime. This techniques was first devloped in 1972 by Howard Teten and Patrick Mullany who were the founders of the FBI's behavioural analysis unit. The basic principal of the technique was to analyse a crime scene by looking for any characterisitics that could have manifested through mental illness, and this in turn was aimed to help the detective's deductive reasoning.

This technique was put to the test in the summer of 1973 when a seven year old girl was taken from a Rocky Mountain camping site in Montana. The girl was taken from a tent where she was quickly overpowered so as not to alert her parents who were sleeping nearby, after an extensive search of the surrounding area failed to produce the girl the case was referred to the FBI. Who developed a profile claiming that the offender would most likely be a young, white male who could be classed as a homicidal peeping tom, a sexually motivated killer who mutilated the bodies of his victims after he killed them and most likely took body parts as souvenirs. This profile later led to the arrest and capture of David Meirhofer a local twenty three year old white man who was also a suspect in another homicide. A warrant was issued to search his house whereupon investigators found body parts belonging to both victims which he had taken as souvenirs. Meirhofer was the first serial killer to be arrested using this technique.

Although offender profiling has proven to be successful on many occasions it is regularly criticised by other psychologists. As they pose the question as to whether or not an accurate assupmtion of an individuals personality can be gathered from one isolated aspect of their behaviour. As surely it would take multiple instances for any characteristics to be successfully identified, which poses the question as to whether or not this technique is only relevent for the study of serial offenders.

Forensic Psychology in the Judicial System

Forensic psychology is an extremely important part of the justice system in America. If someone is on trial for a vicious crime, they could plead "not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect," and must undergo an exam to see if they are competent to stand trial. Competency to stand trial is necessary to ensure due process, provide equal treatment under the law, and maintain the dignity of legal proceedings. States have their own rules for determining a defendants competency to stand trial. In most cases, defendants must be able to understand the charges against them, understand the facts of his or her case, to tolerate stress while awaiting the trial and at the trial itself, and to refrain from irrational behavior in court. If found to not be able to stand trial, the defendant can be treated with psychiatric medication for up to a year. The charges are not dismissed, but the case gets suspended. If treatment has failed, a defendant can be committed to a treatment program at a psychiatric center until they are deemed appropriate to stand trial.

An example of this very situation is seen in season two of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. The witness is suffering from schizophrenia and is given an injection of psychiatric medication that will last for a month so that he can testify at a trial.

This episode can be watched on this link -

http://www.watchsvuonline.net/season2/s02e06.php

A brief review on The Human Predator

My idea of a “good book” is probably unconventional to some people. How many people can sit down with a book called The Human Predator and become immersed in the mind frame of a classified murderer. I picked this particular title up in a book store a few months ago. Since then, whenever I get some free time, I pick a section and start reading. Nothing has ever interested me as much as this field of psychology. Katherine Ramsland, Ph.D., and author of the book, The Human Predator, discusses the mechanics of Forensic psychology and criminology. It was interesting to learn that the concept of forensics was established, several decades after the death of Christ. Ramsland wrote with a great deal of intellect and detail. The book flows well whether one reads the chapters in numerical order or simply skims through different sections. The sections I found most interesting had to do with historical, landmark cases or murders. Criminals such as Jack the Ripper, H.H Holmes, Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer have created the need for such a thing as forensic psychology; the interaction between psychology and the criminal justice system. Ramsland draws the reader in by giving the (to me) curious details of famous crimes such as these. When one hears how, “The soft-spoken Dahmer was killing men, then cutting off body pieces and preserving them or dissolving them in acid” how can one not wonder what was going through every thought Dahmer was having. Why would someone do something like this? Call me crazy, but it is the most fascinating field of psychology and I think Ramsland’s mixture of academic facts and respectable writing skills could provoke even the least interested person to read a sentence of this book.

http://www.amazon.com/Human-Predator-Historical-Chronicle-Investigation/dp/0425213781/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1304517050&sr=8-1

Getting a Degree and Career in Forensic Psychology

Forensic Psychology can be described as the use of psychology to aid in the criminal justice system. Typically utilized in court rooms, Forensic psychologists often find work evaluating those who are facing the judicial system. However, only a select group of colleges offer degrees strictly in the field of Forensic psychology. These universities include:

University of Arizona

University of Virginia

University of Denver

University of Nebraska

University of Illinois

Nova Southeastern University

Florida Institute of Technology

The Chicago School of Professional Psychology

CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Michigan State University

Farleigh Dickinson University

These are just a few of the more well know schools that offer Master’s Degree programs that will put you on the right track to becoming a Forensic Psychologist. In particular, most of these colleges offer a “Master of Arts” Degree. This means that the holder has already received a bachelor’s degree and is now a postgraduate. Once completing graduate school and demonstrating an advanced understanding of the skills and concepts taught, this degree may be earned. The difference between this and a Master of Science degree is that the Master of Arts is far less science oriented. Instead it focuses more on humanities. However both degrees put an emphasis on liberal arts and an overall well-rounded education. Because Forensic Psychologists study the human mind and work towards evaluating individuals, it is understandable that such a thorough education is required of them. Getting a degree is only the first step in actually acquiring a job in this exciting field. Once you gained the license and appropriate skills you’ll need to do some job hunting. One of the best places to begin your search is:

Psychology Jobs

This website contains an extensive list of positions that need to be filled. Information about contacting, applying, and scheduling interviews has been made available by the employer, as well as job descriptions.

Simply Hired

Simply Hired is another website with similar information concerning job offers. However this website also allows visitors to create a username and ‘save’ and prospective jobs that the user finds interesting for quick and easy access at a later time.