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· Home Page (<-Start here) · Syllabus This class is unusual in that it tries to combine two very different fields by adopting the point of view of one (empirical or Scientific Social Psychology) and applying that to the other (the Legal System). Basically, we will examine issues about the behavior of people (remember that psychology is the study of human behavior) in the legal system. This will include such things as: · Why do people commit crimes? · Are the assumptions that the legal system makes about people (the fairness of jurors, the ability of eyewitnesses to remember things, the expertise of judges, the dangerousness of people, and so on) valid? · How do judges decide what sentence to give to convicted felons? · Are children more susceptible to influence than adults when testifying in court? · What is an expert? · Are people's previously "repressed" memories of childhood abuse real? · Does extensive publicity about a case prevent the defendant from receiving a fair trial? (What is a fair trial, anyway?) · Are some potential jurors more "conviction prone" than others? · When has a confession been coerced? · How should we measure whether someone is competent to stand trial? These are all psychological issues because they involve aspects of human behavior and thought. But, they are also legal issues because they arise in the legal system. Remember that this is a psychology class. It uses empirical information obtained by psychologists to answer questions about how the legal should and actually does work. This is also a class in analysis. Another way to say the same thing is that this class is designed to teach you how to think about human behavior in a rigorous and precise manner. We will analyze ideas about human behavior in the legal system and attempt to determine whether these ideas are supported by what is known, empirically, about behavior. That is, I hope you will learn how to analyze complex social-psychological issues using empirical data. I am not only interested in telling you what is known; I am also especially interested in motivating you to think empirically and analytically about an important social system (a system whose main purpose, some might argue, is to control your and other people’s behavior). I want you to be able to determine which aspects of various social issues can be answered empirically and which cannot (i.e., which claims can be tested and which rest on belief). I also hope that you will come to understand the relationship between particular issues (e.g., whether to legalize all drugs or at what age should children be treated as adults by the legal system) and the kinds of behavioral data that might shed light on those issues. |
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Psychology and the Law |
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Critical thinking and evaluation of evidence are essential aspects of human existence. |
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You can contact Dr. Ebbesen at any of the following: |