Okay, so I was super into this whole clinical forensic psychology thing, you know? It’s like the ultimate combo of two of my favorite things – understanding how people’s minds work and then that whole crime and justice world. I decided to do a deep dive into this topic and see what it’s all about.
First, I tried to really nail down what this field is even about. I’m going to be honest – it was a bit of a maze at the start! But then I found this book, “Clinical Forensic Psychology: An Introduction”. The title got me, I needed something to help me understand the basics. So, I started reading it, you know, trying to wrap my head around it all.
So what I read in the book was that clinical forensic psychology is basically using psychology in the legal system, both for criminal stuff and civil cases, you know? It is like you could be evaluating someone, figuring out their mental state, or helping folks who have been through some really rough stuff. And guess what? It used to be that only doctors with medical degrees could do this kind of work. But then there was this thing called the Jenkins decision, and after that, more and more psychologists started getting involved. I thought that was pretty cool, right? More opportunities for people who are into psychology!
- Then I tried to get into some of the history of it, just to see where it all started. Apparently, it’s got roots in academia and even has some ties to psychiatry. It was a bit like putting together pieces of a puzzle.
- The book I was reading broke down the field into different parts. This was super helpful for me. Part I was all about the history, and Part II went into how psychology is used in things like police work, the law, and helping victims.
After I got a better handle on what the field is and how it works, I wanted to see what real experts had to say. I read about these two people, Drs. Garofalo and Sijtsema. They collected a bunch of writings from top scholars in the field. That made me realize just how much there is to this whole forensic psychology thing – it’s not just one small area, but it covers so much!
So, my journey into clinical forensic psychology was quite the ride. I started out just curious, then got a bit lost, but eventually, I started to understand it better. It’s like this whole world opened up to me, and I saw how psychology could be used to help people in the justice system.
