Education
The AP-LS Teaching, Training and Careers Committee is continuing its efforts to collect syllabi for courses in psychology and law or closely related topics. These syllabi have been posted on the Web for everyone's easy access. You may download any of the collected syllabi and submit a copy of yours.
Edie Greene and Erica Drew have collected information intended for instructors of undergraduate courses in psychology and law. As interest in the field has grown, so too has the availability of materials that instructors can use to enhance students' experiences and deepen their understanding of core concepts, theories and practices in psychology and law. The goal is to gather these diverse materials and make them easily accessible to instructors. Download the PDF (416KB).
"Activities for Teaching Psychology and Law: A Guide for Instructors" by Zelechoski, Wolbransky, and Riggs Romaine, offers a wide variety of such activities for courses in psychology and law. The activities incorporate individual and group work, videos, reading materials, classroom discussions, homework assignments, and lots of interactive exercises.
Many editions of the AP-LS Newsletter include a column titled "Teaching Techniques."
Internet resources that may aid instructors of classes in psychology and law include:
Refer to the following articles for more suggestions about teaching classes in psychology and law. (This list is taken from the references of the first two listed articles.)
Anderson, D. (1992). Using feature films as tools for analysis in a psychology and law course. Teaching of Psychology, 19, 155-157.
Fass, M.E. (1999). A forensic psychology exercise: Role playing and the insanity defense. Teaching of Psychology, 26, 201-203.
Fulero, S., Greene, E., Hans, V., Nietzel, M., Small, M., & Wrightsman, L. (1999). Undergraduate education in legal psychology. Law and Human Behavior, 23, 137-153.
Greene, E. (1987). An undergraduate course in psychology and the law. Teaching of Psychology, 14, 238-239
Liss, M. (1992). Psychology and law courses: Content and materials. Law and Human Behavior, 16, 463-471.
Miller, L. (1997). Teaching about repressed memories of childhood sexual abuse and eyewitness testimony. Teaching of Psychology, 24, 250-255.
Ogloff, J., Tomkins, A., & Bersoff, D. (1996). Education and training in psychology and law/criminal justice. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 23, 200-235.
Otto, R., & Fulero, S. (2006). Integrating psychology and law into undergraduate instruction. Observer (Association for Psychological Science), 19, retrieved from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/getArticle.cfm?id=1919
Perry, N., Huss, M., McAuliff, B., & Galas, J. (1996). An active-learning approach to teaching the undergraduate psychology and law course. Teaching of Psychology, 23, 76-81.
Schumacher, J.E., & Brodsky, S.L. (1988). The mock trial: An exploration of applications and dynamics in interdisciplinary training. Law and Psychology Review, 12, 79-93.
Schwarzmueller, A. (2006). Critiquing media portrayals of forensic professionals: A project for students. Teaching of Psychology, 22, 205-207.
Small, M. (1993). Legal psychology and therapeutic jurisprudence. St. Louis University Law Journal, 37, 675-700.
Swenson, E. (1983). Incorporating law into the undergraduate psychology curriculum. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 119-120.
Thagard, P. (2006). Evaluating explanations in law, science, and everyday life. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 15, 141-145.
Werth, J.L., Harvey, J., McNamara, R., Svoboda, A., Gulbrandson, R., Hendren, J., et al. (2002). Using controversial mock trials in Psychology and Law courses: Suggestions from participants. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 20-24.
