Although many people with an interest in forensic psychology have a parallel interest in forensic science, the two terms are not synonymous.
Forensic science has a foundation in the “hard” sciences and involves laboratory-based investigation of crime scene evidence, such as DNA collection and analysis, taking fingerprints, and examination of firearms and bullets.
Forensic psychology, on the other hand, is defined by the American Board of Forensic Psychology as “the application of the science and profession of psychology to questions and issues relating to law and the legal system.” Essentially, forensic psychologists specialize in applying psychological knowledge to situations within a legal context.
Oh thank you for this post, I'd actually not really thought about the difference between these two terms but that's really interesting.
Is there a forensic psychology manual or preffered book for beginners you recommend?
Forensic science is related to medical field and forensic psychology deals with the legal system. Although both fields have same aims to find a criminal but they work in different ways.
Thank you for sharing such an informative post.
Another great post, thanks for sharing the distinction between two fascinating fields. Perhaps one interesting facet is that even material evidence which some may view as more trustworthy than psychological evidence, still needs an interpretation and a placement within a context that fits the case.
As such, the materials may differ between the fields, and yet still the aims are to use those disparate materials and utilise them to explore and build a picture of a past event.
Both fields may suffer equally when there is a bias in human judgment or as Sherlock Holmes said "twisting facts to suit theories rather than theories to suit facts".
Thanks again for helping us better understand these two fields.