1. Linda J. Demaine, JD, PhD Arizona State University College of Law
Psychology in Law
Linda J. Demaine, JD, PhD
Arizona State University
College of Law

2. The Learners Law students Other graduate students 1L 2L & 3L
Psychology, religious studies, etc.
What kinds of students do you teach (e.g., engineering, journalism, architecture, medical students – hereafter referred to as X). Are they undergraduates, graduates, other?

3. Is Psychology Required?No
JD requirements
Optional programs
JD/PhD in Psychology
LS&T Certificate JD
MLS
Psychology and law electives
Is there a requirement in their curriculum for education in psychology? If yes, what are the requirements?

4. Why Psychology is in the Law Curriculum
Belief of at least some law faculty that law and policy are better crafted if informed by psychology
Belief that law students find it interesting and perhaps learn something that will help them in practice
Bolsters law school’s marketing efforts; cutting-edge interdisciplinarity
Up to psychologists to demonstrate benefits
Why is psychology in the curriculum for X? What role does it play? What content from psychology’s scientific knowledge base is most useful to X students? (Examples)

5. Psychological Concepts Most Useful to Law Students
Depends on school
Generally
Persuasion, negotiation, and conflict resolution
Decision making
Clinical
Mental Health Law
Social neuroscience and broad array of others

6. Special Issues in Teaching Psychology to Law Students
Lack of training in statistics and methodology
Mixed classes
Students’ perception that psychology is interesting but not integral to their profession
Not an issue for JD/PhD students, some schools
Responses
Condensed training in basics
Exposure to broad array of applications of psychology to law, with emphasis on practical applications
What are the challenges in teaching psychology to X? Are there particular pedagogies that are most useful? Are there special issues for X students in understanding psychology’s methods and content? How do we collaborate with other disciplines?

7. Barriers to Infusing Law School Curriculum with Psychology
Vulnerability of empirical research to nitpicking
Poorly done or over-generalized research
Perception that it’s all common sense
General negative reaction to/distrust of the unknown
Not many psychologists teaching in law schools
Psychologists and lawyers speak different languages
Entrenched legal fictions
Many psychologists are not interested in informing law and policy; applied research is considered inferior
Identify problems, but do not propose solutions
What are the opportunities and barriers for psychology as a discipline in teaching psychology to X? Are there disciplinary or institutional barriers to getting psychology content adopted in the curriculum of other disciplines? How does this teaching relate to multidisciplinary approaches to scholarship?

8. Overcoming the Barriers
Train translators
Reach a critical mass of law students
Acknowledge legitimate limitations in research, but stand firm on its contributions
Attack legal fictions and investigate other issues, and provide empirically supported alternatives
Underscore that law is the study, prediction, and shaping of human behavior

9. Implications for Psychology’s Long-Term Role in Academy
Prestige
Funding
Popularity
Multidisciplinary programs
Future of educational institutions
Integral part of psychology’s future
Ensure students have firm understanding of involved disciplines, as well as their intersection
How will our involvement or lack of involvement in this area affect psychology’s role in the academy over the next 25 years? What are the implications of multidiscipline-based programs for the structure and function of educational institutions?

10. Preparing for the Future
Build interdepartmental relationships on campus
so that graduate students may teach in other departments
so that graduate students may receive training in interdisciplinary research
to facilitate cross-fertilization of knowledge and ideas
Reward psychology professors who do applied research and teaching, and graduate students who want to do applied research and teaching
How should we prepare future faculty to teach psychology to X? Are we doing this in our graduate programs/internships? What should we be doing more or less of?

11. Role for APA
Establish a fellowship program that permits a psychologist to spend a semester or year teaching and researching in another department
Encourage exposure to cross-disciplinary training at undergraduate level
Facilitate publication of relevant psychological research in other disciplines’ magazines or newsletters (e.g., ABA Journal)
What should APA be doing to foster public understanding of the importance of our knowledge base to many other disciplines/professions.