A broad definition of forensic psychology is any intersection between psychology and the law. A narrower definition of forensic psychology is the intersections of applied psychology (clinical, counseling, or school) and the law (and especially psychological evaluations to inform legal decision-making). Relatedly, mental health law concerns what the law says and directs about the bearing of psychological functioning on criminal, civil, and family law matters.
My research lab uses psychological science to study issues pertaining to the narrower definition of forensic psychology, and most typically criminal and juvenile justice law rather than civil or family law. My lab also studies forensic psychology topics from a legal perspective, using traditional legal research strategies in addition to approaches that blend traditional legal research strategies with empirical strategies.
My current directions within these research themes are as follows.
- Law and practice concerning forensic psychological testing.
- Law and practice concerning hybrid psychological–legal concepts for evaluation.
Recent representative forensic psychology and mental health law publications:
King, C. M., & Morales, I. (2020, October). Kahler v. Kansas (2020): Abolishment of the insanity defense? AP-LS Newsletter.
Layden, B. K., & King, C. M. (2019, October). Assessing threats of self-directed violence and duties of care within higher education institutions: Nguyen v. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2018). AP-LS Newsletter.
Heilbrun, K., King, C. M., & Slobogin, C. (2018). Insanity and diminished capacity: Scientific status. In D. Faigman, J. Blumenthal, E. Cheng, J. Mnookin, E. Murphy, J. Sanders, & C. Slobogin (Eds.), Modern scientific evidence: The law and science of expert testimony. West.
King, C. M., & Del Pozzo, J. (2018). The Supreme Court of California continues to endorse threat assessment and management. Intelligence, 4(3), 3.
King, C. M., & Del Pozzo, J. (2018, November). The Supreme Court of California’s continued endorsement of threat assessment and management duties: Regents of the Univ. of Cal. v. Superior Court (2018). AP-LS Newsletter.
King, C. M. (2017). Involuntary hospitalization. In A. E. Wenzel (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of abnormal and clinical psychology. SAGE.
King, C. M., & Zelle, H. (2017, October). Feeling more confident in finding and understanding the context of laws. AP-LS Newsletter.