Legal psychology is a field of study that seeks to apply the knowledge of traditional psychology in legal institutions and in law-related contexts. Its objective is to help legal professionals to perform their work better by providing tools derived from the study of human behavior.
Thus, for example, legal psychology seeks to achieve goals such as better understanding memory to determine how to act in front of eyewitnesses, so that more accurate decisions can be made in cases where they provide the main evidence.
Along with forensic psychology, legal psychology is part of what is known as “psychology and law”. This field of knowledge began to gain importance in the 1960s in an attempt by lawyers, judges and mental health professionals to improve the justice system. Despite originating in the United States, it soon spread across Europe and the Western world.
Currently, legal psychology is one of the most important branches of this science; there are more and more professionals in this field who collaborate closely with judges, lawyers and other workers in the justice sector. Although there are some critical voices in relation to this discipline, its relevance has not stopped growing in recent years.
History
first indications
Legal psychology is a fairly recent discipline, as it has only officially existed since the second half of the 20th century. However, the interest of mental health professionals in the field of justice appeared much earlier.
It is considered that the first publications that could be framed in this discipline occurred at the end of the 18th century, when several researchers began to write about different elements that differentiated criminals from normal people. This was during the rise of the psychology of individual differences.
For example, Mckeen Cattell (one of the leading exponents of the psychology of individual differences) published a study in which he investigated different court interrogations to better understand the psychology of testimony.
In addition, experts at that time began to recognize the need to use the discoveries made by psychology (which at the time was a newborn science) to better understand criminals and help in the exercise of judicial practice.
During the 19th and 20th centuries, legal psychology had not yet been established as a separate discipline, but more and more studies, research, and publications related to this topic were being carried out.
Birth of legal psychology
Already in the 1940s, psychologists began to intervene more actively in the development of different legal activities. However, it was only in the 1950s that they began to testify as experts in different trials, which definitively marked the birth of forensic psychology as an independent discipline.
During this decade and the following ones, moreover, there has been a great increase in studies related to the psychology of different legal aspects. For example, in the 1960s, social psychology focused on investigating phenomena such as crime, violence, altruism, or respect for norms.
Finally, in the 1970s, legal psychology was divided into two different fields: forensic and legal. Currently, there are numerous schools specializing in each of these disciplines, as well as publications dedicated exclusively to one of them.
What does legal psychology study? Study object
Like the other specialties of this science, legal psychology focuses on the study of human behavior and the different aspects that derive from it. In practice, this takes the form of three different fields: study of crime-related behavior, conflict resolution or mediation, and law assessment and improvement.
– Study of behavior related to crime
The first scope of legal psychology is the study of different aspects of human behavior and mentality related to legal activity.
Thus, in this area, we can find research on the psychological characteristics of criminals, but also on witnesses or legal professionals themselves.
In this case, legal psychology is largely based on research from other branches related to the study of human behavior, such as basic or social psychology. For example, to better understand the role of witnesses in a trial, findings about memory or social pressure can be used.
The objective behind this field of application is to better understand all the pieces that make up a court case. In this way, specialist psychologists will be able to work with legal professionals to create more concrete and effective norms, as well as discover better ways to enforce them and punish those who violate them.
– Conflict resolution or mediation
Another of the most important fields of application of legal psychology is the mediation and resolution of conflicts that may arise in this area. In some cases, legal and forensic psychologists need to be expert witnesses to trials to determine the veracity of different tests or to conduct studies on those involved in a case.
For example, a legal psychologist may determine that a witness is not telling the truth because he has a memory distortion; therefore, the judge may decide to waive your testimony as evidence.
– Evaluating and improving laws
The last field of application of legal psychology is also the most recent. Professionals in this field can study existing laws and their relationship to the human mind so that they can offer suggestions for improvements to increase their effectiveness and reduce their undesired effects.
For example, within social psychology, different mechanisms have been studied through which greater collaboration with authority is generated and fewer crimes are committed.
By applying this data, a legal psychologist can help legal professionals prevent crimes or create more effective punishments for those who break the rules.
Branches of legal psychology
– expert witnesses
One of the most common roles of legal psychologists is to act as expert witnesses in different legal proceedings. Thus, these professionals must opine on different psychological aspects, such as the memory of witnesses, identity confusion or the existence of cognitive biases in the jury.
– Counseling
Legal psychologists can also play an advisory role in legal systems. In this sense, they often help judges, lawyers, and other professionals make decisions within a case, based on what they know about the behavior of the human mind.
In addition, legal psychologists can also educate members of the legal system about different aspects of human psychology relevant to a specific case, such as the existence of certain mental pathologies.
– Law development
Legal psychologists can also participate in lawmaking through empirical research on a particular phenomenon. These experts would be in charge of evaluating current laws and suggesting changes or improvements based on the workings of human nature.
– Consulting
Legal psychology can also be used to assist in the process of training legal professionals. Thus, a psychologist specializing in this area can participate in the training of judges or lawyers using techniques such as role play , group dynamics or psychological preparation of the same.
– Investigation
Most legal psychologists work in research centers such as universities, conducting empirical and teaching studies.
Their work in this regard is twofold: on the one hand, they try to better understand certain aspects of the human mind related to law, and on the other hand, they need to be able to publicize their findings.
Examples of legal psychology cases
– Ted Bundy
One of the most famous cases in recent history was that of Ted Bundy, a serial killer who killed dozens of people across the United States before finally being arrested.
His case could not have been solved without the help of a team of forensic and legal psychologists, who recreated his profile based on the evidence they were finding and the nature of his crimes.
Finally, thanks to the information gathered and the help of different witnesses, especially one of Bundy’s former partners, the legal psychologists on the case were able to give the police a number of crucial clues and link this killer to various crimes. unresolved.
– John Wayne Gacy
The “killer clown” John Wayne Gacy was arrested primarily on suspicions and complaints from his neighbors, but without the help of the legal psychologists involved in his case, he would not have been convicted of all the crimes he committed.
The team of experts dedicated to his case discovered the reasons behind his murderous behavior and were able to unravel his reference plans and find out where he was hiding the bodies of his victims.
