Human Behavior & Judiciary CRJ-554

Written Exercise 1

Ethical Dilemmas in the

Practice of Forensic Psychology

Dr. Joven recently completed his doctoral degree in clinical psychology and hopes to pursue

a career in forensic psychology, primarily consulting with law firms. While he is waiting for

his private practice to become established, he has been working as an adjunct faculty

member at a local community college and in a group practice conducting group therapy for

adjudicated sex offenders. He is finding it difficult to make ends meet and neither job

provides any benefits. He and his child are on his wife’s employers benefits. The financial

strain is starting to take a toll on his marriage and he wonders if he should simply find a full

time job as opposed to pursuing independent practice.

He is contacted by a prominent law firm in the state who is defending a congressman. The

congressman is facing a sexual harassment civil lawsuit from a former aide. The law firm

has indicated that they need an “expert witness” who can definitively state that their client

does not possess the “psychological characteristics of a sex offender” and would have been

incapable of the alleged conduct. The attorneys indicate that they are willing to pay their

‘average’ fee of $500 per billed hour as well as a “contingency fee in the five figures’ if they

win the case. They also assure Dr. Joven that success on this case would lead to a solid

reputation in the law community and would put his name on their “rolodex.”

Dr. Joven feels conflicted. He knows from his work that there are no set psychological

characteristics of a sex offender but he also realizes that no professional can equivocally

state that someone would or would not commit a crime. If he refuses to work with the law

firm, it is likely he will gain the reputation as someone who is uncooperative and can

probably forget about the possibility of an independent practice. Also, it is quite likely the

firm will find another professional for the job. Accepting the job would be lucrative and could

easily evolve into an excellent statewide, if not national, referral network. On the other

hand, if he accepts the consult, he feels he is caving in to pressure to simply do the bidding

for this firm.

What are the ethical and professional issues facing Dr. Joven and how should he proceed?

Be sure to consider the APA ethics code as well as the specialty guidelines.

Written Exercise Questions:

1. In your discussion, consider the ethical standards that Dr. Joven will have to face if

he continues to pursue his career as a professional forensic psychologist.

2. How will this differ from lawyers in the firm that Dr. Joven works with and their

ethical standards? Include examples in your responses.

3. In your discussion, consider the ethical standards, APA ethics code, as well as the

specialty guidelines Dr. Joven might face if he continues to pursue his career as a

professional forensic psychologist and how this might differ from lawyers in his

current firm. Cite examples in your response from research including research from

http://www.apa.org that would explain why or why a forensic psychologist’s ethical standards might differ from a lawyer’s ethical standards. Remember to cite research

using APA format.

4. Submit your paper to the Assignment box and attach your paper in a post to the

Written Exercise 1 Discussion Board no later than Saturday 11:59 PM EST/EDT.

(This Assignment box is linked to Turnitin.)

After posting this assignment, you will respond logically to at least three of your

classmates’ papers. Each of your responses is to be at least 100 words in length and

can be based solely on your opinion. Refer to the syllabus for additional guidance.

You must post your responses no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT.