CGD Publishing

Forensic psychology could be defined in many ways including:

The psychological study of crime.
The scientific behavioural study criminals.
The science of studying crime-related behaviour

Cognitive psychology- it’s important to know how a person’s mental processes can cause them to commit a crime.

Personality- how a person’s personality increases their likelihood to commit a crime.

Treating offenders in a public or private prison

For instance, you could research:

Gangs- what causes them

Sexual aggression- why do some people commit sexual offenders and others do not?

Firesetting- why are more males arsonists compared to females?

Ethics within Forensic Psychology:

‘Beware the actions of man.

Beware the lust for power and knowledge.

Beware the morality and ethics of a man’

-Connor Whiteley

For example, we cannot study rape in a natural setting as this would be extremely unethical as we would effectively be watching a rapist rape a person and allowing it to happen for the sole purpose of gathering data.

You need to be analytical and critical