This book explores topical policy and practice issues and the innovative Dutch system of treatment for forensic patients. It discusses the importance of the setting for treatment, inpatient or outpatient, voluntary or compulsory and the question of what makes a patient suitable for treatment is a theme that runs throughout the book.

A contemporary case-based discussion of ethical dilemmas faced by researchers in forensic mental health, this book offers useful guidance to anyone planning research in this field. It focuses on problems frequently encountered, such as issues of capacity to consent in forensic settings and the meaning of consent to participate. Chapters cover issues such as the procurement of consent among incarcerated people; the ability of young people to provide consent; the effects of culturally specific lay beliefs about mental illness; confidentiality; multidisciplinary approaches; and ethics in risk assessment research. The contributors address questions such as whether research can be therapeutic, and whether it is ever reasonable to compromise patient confidentiality for the wider benefits of publishing research. Based on empirical data from researchers' own experiences, this comprehensive book will be essential reading for anyone planning research in the area of forensic mental health, and all whose work is in this area.

This book explores applied research methods used in forensic settings – prisons, the probation service, courts and forensic mental health establishments – and provides a comprehensive 'how-to' guide for forensic practitioners and researchers. It provides practitioners and researchers with grounding in the practical techniques appropriate for research in applied forensic settings. This includes knowledge and skills of the research process and the wide range of research methods (both quantitative and qualitative) being applied in this arena. The text provides a critical understanding of the problems, challenges and ethical issues which can arise and ideas for managing these. Specific attention is paid to empirical research within forensic populations and settings including researching vulnerable groups (e.g. offenders and the mentally ill in secure settings), evaluating treatment programmes, and the uses and problems of randomised control trials. The book is clearly structured, with each methodology chapter describing the background of the approach; the type of research questions addressed; design principles and issues; the types of analysis that can be utilised; strengths and limitations of the method; future directions and further sources of information. Through the inclusion of case studies and illustrative examples from forensic researchers and practitioners who have extensive experience of conducting applied research, this book tackles real-life problems typically faced by researchers and practitioners. Research in Practice for Forensic Professionals is an essential one-stop resource for practitioners (such as psychologists, nursing and medical staff, prison and probation workers, social workers, occupational therapists) who have an interest in research and in evaluating their own work and the services in which they work. It will also be of interest to students studying areas of applied research, such as forensic psychology or applied criminology and those teaching them.

This practical guide helps forensic psychologists negotiate the many ethical dilemmas they can encounter in civil, criminal, and family law cases. It presents a practical, systematic decision-making model that has been thoroughly revised since the first edition based on new scholarly knowledge and updated ethical and legal requirements. The authors answer complex ethical questions related to third-party requests, collecting and reviewing data, conducting forensic evaluations, reporting results, and addressing ethical misconduct by colleagues.

Go behind the scenes of police work with this unique book that opens the door to the psychological side of policing. Police Psychology: A New Specialty and New Challenges for Men and Women in Blue offers readers the opportunity to examine two different aspects of police psychology: psychology as it pertains to the personality of police officers and the application of psychology in police practices. The book takes readers inside the lives of real officers struggling with the daily quest to remain mentally healthy in the face of often-gruesome crime scenes. The actual experience of police work is illustrated through case studies and vignettes, and the text offers a template of best practices for those who practice police psychology. Other insights in this book reveal the practical side of policing, examining the use of psychology in hostage negotiation, interview and interrogation, threat assessment, and criminal profiling. Readers go behind the scenes to watch as police apply psychological principles in actual cases, and then are given the opportunity to match wits with a simulated foe themselves.

Lie detection, offender profiling, jury selection, insanity in the law, predicting the risk of re-offending , the minds of serial killers and many other topics that fill news and fiction are all aspects of the rapidly developing area of scientific psychology broadly known as Forensic Psychology. Forensic Psychology: A Very Short Introduction discusses all the aspects of psychology that are relevant to the legal and criminal process as a whole. It includes explanations of criminal behaviour and criminality, including the role of mental disorder in crime, and discusses how forensic psychology contributes to helping investigate the crime and catching the perpetrators. It also explains how psychologists provide guidance to all those involved in civil and criminal court proceedings, including both the police and the accused, and what expert testimony can be provided by a psychologist about the offender at the trial. Finally, David Canter examines how forensic psychology is used, particularly in prisons, to help in the management, treatment and rehabilitation of offenders, once they have been convicted. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Few resources exist for those interested in developing their professional competence vis-à-vis ethics in forensic psychology, with the most recent text being published more than a decade ago. However, forensic psychology is changing quickly and there is a need for a current guide on ethics within the field. The Ethical Practice of Forensic Psychology highlights the ethical standards and guidelines set forth by the American Psychological Association's (APA) Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (EPPCC) and the Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology (SGFP). This Casebook provides readers with a practical review of these ethical standards and professional guidelines in the context of forensic case vignettes with corresponding commentary by leaders in the field. Concepts are presented using a best-practices model that encourages and promotes engaging in empirically supported decision-making. This volume is distinct from all others published in this area, given its inclusion and integration of a review of the ethical standards and guidelines contained in the EPPCC and SGFP, in addition to numerous types of ethical dilemmas encountered in forensic practice, a review of the relevant empirical literature and case law/legal statutes, and commentary by experts in forensic psychology. This unique Casebook will prove useful for a broad audience including academics in forensic psychology, psychology graduate and post-doctoral students and trainees, practitioners, mental health counselors, social workers, and legal professionals.