PSY 592: Graduate Psychology, Law, and Ethics
Professor: Matthew N. McMullen, PhD
Office: LA 506 Phone: 657-2958 email: mmcmullen@msubillings.edu
Office Hours: T, R, after class, or by appointment
No textbook.
Readings are on reserve.
Course Requirements
Four written essay exams.
One amicus brief paper.
Amicus curiae means “friend of the court,” and refers to experts in a field who write papers, or briefs, to inform a court about an issue. For example, when deciding on a case about whether a repressed and recovered memory of child abuse should be admissible as evidence, psychologists who study memory might write a summary of research and recommend a course of action to the judge. I want you to pick a topic, clear it with me first, and then write an amicus brief. For some samples of amicus briefs written by the American Psychological Association, see this: http://www.apa.org/psyclaw/issues.html
Class participation.
You are expected to come to class prepared to discuss the readings.
Grading
I will grade the paper and each exam out of 100 points, and use a straight scale (90%=A, 80%=B, etc.) to determine final course grades.
Course description
Psychology and law are very different fields. Psychology is primarily empirical – we look to research for our principles. Law is primarily driven by precedent and authority – they look to past court decisions and legislation. The mix between the two has been uneasy at best, with neither side trusting the other entirely. But the mix between the two fields is unavoidable, and in fact highly desirable. So much of the legal system involves psychological issues, like eyewitness memory, competence and mental state issues, custody, victimization, jury decision-making, punishment and rehabilitation, and many, many other issues. It’s been said that every legal issue is fundamentally a psychological one. Therefore, it is critical that psychologists play a role in the legal system, and it is inevitable that, as psychologists, you will get involved in the law in one way or another. This course will give you the preparation to do so.
Readings
Jan. 23
Insanity and competency
Wrightsman chapter - available on library website under my Forensic Psychology course
Jan. 25
Antisocial Personality disorder
DSM-IV section on APD
Hare, Psychopathy and antisocial personality disorder: A case of diagnostic confusion
http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/p960239.html
Jan. 30
Kassin, Confessions: Psychological and Forensic Aspects
http://www.williams.edu/Psychology/Faculty/Kassin/IESBS.confess.pdf
Feb. 1
Eyewitnesses
Wells et al.: From the lab to the police station
available on library reserves website
Feb. 6
Polygraph - Wrightsman chapter
available on library reserves website
Feb. 8
Exam 1
Feb. 13
Death penalty
APA’s amicus brief for Lockhart v. McCee
http://www.apa.org/psyclaw/lockhart.pdf
Supreme Court decision (optional)
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/printer_friendly.pl?page=us/476/162.html
Feb. 15
Affirmative action
APA’s amicus brief for Grutter v. Bollinger
http://www.apa.org/psyclaw/grutter-v-bollinger.pdf
Supreme Court decision (optional)
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=000&invol=02-241
Feb. 20
Sexual orientation
APA amicus brief for Lawrence v. Texas
http://www.apa.org/psyclaw/lawrence-v-texas.pdf
Supreme Court decision (optional)
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/02pdf/02-102.pdf
Feb. 22
Sexual harassment
APA’s amicus brief on sexual harassment
http://www.apa.org/psyclaw/harris.pdf
US Supreme Court decision, Harris v. Forklift (optional)
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=000&invol=U10433
Feb. 27
Amar, Unlocking the Jury Box.
http://www.hoover.org/publications/policyreview/3582656.html
March 1
Exam 2
March 13-27
APA ethics code
http://www.apa.org/ethics/code2002.pdf
March 29
Psychologists and torture
The APA’s statement on ethics and national security
http://www.apa.org/releases/PENSTaskForceReportFinal.pdf
Washington Monthly article critical of APA
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2007/0701.levine.html
April 10
David Finkelhor, Current information on the scope and nature of child sexual abuse.
http://www.futureofchildren.org/usr_doc/vol4no2ART2.pdf
April 12
Child molesters: A behavioral analysis (warning: this is a long one!)
http://www.missingkids.com/en_US/publications/NC70.pdf
April 17
Lilienfeld: When worlds collide
http://web.archive.org/web/20030429000006/http://www.haverford.edu/psych/ble/SciSoc/lilienfeld02.pdf
April 19
Child witnesses
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/innocence/readings/childwitnesses.html
April 24
Elizabeth Loftus, The Reality of Repressed Memories
http://faculty.washington.edu/eloftus/Articles/lof93.htm
April 26
Sex offender laws
Montana “Megan’s law” website