About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline

30 T. Jefferson L. Rev. 455 (2007-2008)
Ethical Dilemmas, Forensic Psychology, and Therapeutic Jurisprudence

handle is hein.journals/tjeflr30 and id is 459 raw text is: ETHICAL DILEMMAS, FORENSIC
PSYCHOLOGY, AND THERAPEUTIC
JURISPRUDENCE
Ida Dickie*
Broadly speaking, the legal system and forensic psychology
have in common the management of criminal behavior.
However, one of the immense difficulties that psychologists face
when trying to work within the legal system is that historically,
the legal system has not been conducive to promoting
therapeutic change of criminal behavior! Some argue that an
irreconcilable conflict exists between therapeutic and forensic
psychological roles in civil contexts.' This position also exists
within the criminal contexts and promotes the idea that effective
psychological assessment and intervention cannot occur within
the legal system.3   However, with the relatively recent
emergence of the legal theory of Therapeutic Jurisprudence
(TJ),4 which articulates how the legal system can act as an agent
of therapeutic change, a collaborative relationship between
psychology and law can exist.
The question now becomes: How can forensic psychologists
and the legal system work together to contribute simultaneously
to the advancement and well-being of the offender, the
community, and society?    This Article explores how  the
* Ida Dickie, Ph.D., Director of Forensic/Correctional Psychology Emphasis
Area, Spalding University.  Correspondence can be addressed to
idickie@spalding.edu.
1. DAVID H. BARLOW & VINCENT MARK DURAND, ABNORMAL
PSYCHOLOGY: AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH 554-55 (Marianne Taflinger et al.
eds., Thomson Wadsworth 4th ed. 2005).
2. Stuart A. Greenberg & Daniel W. Shuman, Irreconcilable Conflict
Between Therapeutic and Forensic Roles, 28 PROF. PSYCHOL.: RES. & PRAC.
50,50 (1997).
3. James McGuire, Ethical Dilemmas in Forensic Clinical Psychology, 2
LEGAL & CRIMINOLOGICAL PSYCHOL. 177,186 (1997).
4. David B. Wexler & Bruce J. Winick, Therapeutic Jurisprudence as a New
Approach to Mental Health Law Policy Analysis and Research, 45 U. MIAMI L.
REV. 979,981-90 (1991).

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

profiles profiles most