Legal Psychology and Victimization

This week’s reading includes chapters addressing the issues of legal psychology and victimization. Chapter 10 in the Bartol & Bartol (2019)  text discusses criminal victimization and the practice of restorative justice. Individual bias and assumptions influence the assessments that are made about other people and about any given situation. Research substantiates culturally-based behavior patterns that may be specific to certain segments of the population, including victimology.

In your paper

• Discuss the role the psychological profile of the offender(s) and the victim(s) had on the presentation of evidence in court by the prosecution and by the defense, including the use of witnesses. (The goal is to analyze legal psychology as it is implemented in the criminal justice process as well as services provided to victims.)
• Discuss the role the psychological profile of the offender(s) and victim(s) had on the trier of fact (the judge and/or the jury) and on the sentencing. (The goal is to analyze correctional psychology as it is implemented in the criminal justice process as well as services provided to victims.)

The Legal Psychology and Victimization paper

• Must be three to four double-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Writing Center (Links to an external site.).
• Must include a separate title page with the following:
  • Title of paper
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
• Must use at least three scholarly sources in addition to the course texts.
• Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Writing Center.
• Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Writing Center.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.) for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

Required Resources

Text

Bartol A., & Bartol C. (2019). Introduction to forensic psychology: Research and application (5th ed.). Sage Publications, Inc.

• Chapter 10: Forensic Psychology and the Victims of Crime
• Chapter 11: Family Violence and Child Victimization

Recommended Resources

Website

Victims of Crime for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) (Links to an external site.). (http://ojp.gov/programs/victims.htm)

• This federal website can provide current and historical data and research regarding issues of mental health and the criminal justice system which can be of assistance in completing each of this week’s activities.