Criminal Psychology – The Branch And Careers
Criminal Psychology is also known as forensic psychology. These days it has become an invaluable tool in criminal investigations. This field aids the police and justice departments in various ways such as creating the profiles of the victims or the criminal, conducting psychological tests on people who are either on trial for crimes or have been convicted etc.
Criminal Psychology must not be confused with its sister branch of study which is Criminal Psychiatry. Psychiatry focuses on the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of people who suffer from mental ailments. It is a specialization which requires a basic medical degree.
Criminal psychologists do not perform diagnosis not prescribe medication. They try to understand the reasons and results of aberrant behavior. In order to do this, criminal psychologists delve quite deeply into a person's background and childhood environment and the relationship with the person's parents. This enables them to pinpoint the exact reasons or motivations for people to become sex offenders, serial killers, wife beaters etc. Another area of their study is how the perpetrator acts after commiting a crime - whether they run, give themselves up, or move on to the next victim. Criminal psychologists can offer therapy in the form of counselling.
If psychology careers have got you interested, here are some basics to help you along.
Job description
The most common duty of a criminal psychologist is to provide an expert second opinion in cases where the offender pleads insanity. The offender will be sent for a psychological evaluation to see if his plea is backed by an actual mental disorder. A criminal who is legally a minor is also sent for this evaluation to test whether he / she was emotionally and mentally mature enough to understand the seriousness and consequences of the crime.
Salary
Criminal psychology or any foray into psychology careers is a lucrative choice. The salary for those employed in a government office or agency will always be slightly lower than those who have their own private practice. However, even in the government, the average salary is about US $40,000 per year. This amount can be even higher if you have a Master's or Doctorate degree and a few years of experience.