Creative Ideas for Actualizing Student Potential

Abstract

Due to the highly public nature of forensic psychology (the testimony of forensic psychologists in courts and other adjudicative tribunals) there exists a critical need in forensic psychology training programs to teach not only didactically, but to give students ways of handling psychological data when confronted by attacks on their findings (such as cross examination). Several aspects of the training program in forensic psychology at Nova Southeastern University are described, all the way from basic courses in ethics and professional issues, to advanced courses in forensic consulting, civil and criminal law, and forensic assessment. Experiential exercises such as serving as expert witnesses in trials and hearings, and defending various psychological assessments against cross examination are described. Students write briefs and argue the psycho-legal issues in front of a mock supreme court justice, as well as prepare amicus briefs that address certain psychological issues in family law settings.

APPENDIX A: PSYO 317 “Psychology of Creativity”

Requirements for all Essays and Projects

Note: It is important that you talk to me in person about your topic well before the submission date if there is anything that is not clear.

Style and Format

• Must be submitted on the due date: In hardcopy and also in electronic format by vista dropbox or by vista email (I will let you know).

• Do not call your electronic file “Creativity.doc”. Electronic form must be labeled in the following format: Last name _ first name _ PSYO317PPE

• Title page with title and your name and name of class.

• All written documents should be double-spaced; do not justify right-hand margins,

• Suggested length: 2,000 words (= about 10 pages including cover page and references page) or the equivalent,

• Must be free of spelling and grammatical errors,

• Should not be worded in an awkward manner; read it over out loud to yourself before submitting to make sure.

• References listed at end in APA format; there must be at least a few scholarly references (e.g., academic journal articles).

Content

• Regarding your choice of topic: It is best to choose something you are passionate about. But if you choose a topic that most people would consider to be only minimally creative (such as, say, hockey) you may have a challenge ahead of you explaining why you think it is creative. If you genuinely believe that most people just have not yet appreciated the creative element of your chosen topic, and you think you can argue this convincingly, then go for it. But if the reality is that you are just trying to find a way of getting marks for a course while writing about your favorite topic, that will show through

• Must contain original work (be aware that there are computer programs that professors can run an essay through to see if it matches anything on the internet).

• Links to YouTube videos are not original work and will not count as part of your submission, but you can include them if they are useful to illustrate a point.

• Must have references to scholarly material including not just books but journal articles (references to nonacademic items are not sufficient although you may add some if they are relevant).

• Cite direct source of literature; do not cite someone who discussed the study but the person who did the study.

• If you stick to referencing papers we covered in class you will not get a top mark; additional research is required using PsycInfo or Google Scholar.

Essays

• Essays will be assessed for primarily for content, accuracy, clarity, and strength of arguments. Originality, insight, and effort invested are also taken into account.

• Should have introduction that gets reader’s attention and states clearly the central idea or focus of the essay.

• Body of essay should develop the idea showing clearly a depth of understanding gained by reading articles related in some way to the psychology of creativity.

• Should have a concluding paragraph.

• Even if your essay is a critical evaluation of a topic discussed in one particular paper, it should be clear that you are using knowledge acquired through reading other papers to bear on the evaluation. Similarly, even if you discuss your own creative process, your essay should demonstrate familiarity with the scholarly literature on this creative domain and how it sheds light on your creative process.

Projects

• I am extremely open to (even enthusiastic about!) something creative or even outright weird, so long as it is not just creative but also demonstrates an understanding of the psychology of creativity (e.g., A scrapbook of your trip to Maui will not get a good mark).

• Integrate the creative output with what you have learned about the creative process through not just the class but also independent scholarly research for this project.

• The application of scholarly theories about creativity to particular creative works takes time. Don’t worry if you don’t see them right away. The best thing you can do is read lots of articles over the course of the semester, and the connections will slowly start to dawn on you. If you put all your effort into the creative project and leave the scholarly part until the last minute, any connections you try to make between creativity theory and the creative work will probably feel forced.

• Must have all parts submitted at the same time, and attached together or in a container so that they cannot be separated.

• If it is a movie, edit out stuff that is not interesting (like asking someone on the street what creativity is and having that person say they don’t know), and don’t film yourself reading class notes.

• Don’t make statements such as “this is clearly creative”. (Such statements often follow discussion of things that are not particularly creative.) Explain why it is creative and what theories it exemplifies or principles it demonstrates in a way that is not gratuitous but genuine.

• Important. Projects that consist of fragmentary components can come across as scattered; they must at the very least include a synthesis, which explains how they relate to each other, and to the psychology of creativity. A collection of scattered quotes or statements can indicate a fragmented understanding of the topic. Ideally your project should show that you have delved deep into your topic, both in terms of researching it and in terms of synthesizing the research and mulling it over and arrived at a nuanced understanding of the topic. You should show how research on creativity pertains to you or a particular creative individual or creative task.