Applying Psychology to Criminal Justice

This essential volume, edited by four psychologists and a lawyer, argues that psychology can, and should be, applied more widely, particularly within the criminal justice system. Psychology and Law has made enormous strides during the last three decades. It now incorporates a much wider range of topics and has seen a marked international growth in specialist journals, books and conferences. The focus, until now, has been on research and academic membership rather than on practical applications and participation by practitioners, psychologists or lawyers, something this volume aims to change. This book develops the case for successfully applying psychology to law, and criminal justice in particular, by providing a rich range of applicable examples for development, now and in the future. In Applying Psychology to Criminal Justice psychologists are encouraged to challenge the currently relatively limited ambition and imagination of psychology and law by examining, amongst other aspects: The relevance of offenders' methods of thinking and concepts to criminal responsibility The ways in which psychology might be used to inform analyses of corporate responsibility for systems failure How analyses of decision-making under pressure are most effectively undertaken How psychological research and insights might be applied to the investigation and analysis of system failure. This text is an important addition to the bookshelves of forensic, legal, clinical, and occupational psychologists, students, and criminal justice personnel: police, probation, prisons. Also essential reading for investigators, lawyers, law reform agencies, and those government departments concerned with home, constitutional, law reform agendas. Contributors Laurence Alison, UK Ray Bull, UK Susan Dennison, Australia Leslie Ellis, USA Jacey Erickson, USA Marie Eyre, UK Ronald Fisher, USA Edie Greene, USA John G. D. Grieve, UK Kirk Heilbrun, USA Peter van Koppen, The Netherlands Jenny McEwan, UK Becky Milne, UK Francis Pakes, The Netherlands/UK Emma Palmer, UK Margaret Reardon, USA Gary Shaw, UK Aldert Vrij, UK Jane Winstone, UK