Deck 2: Forensic Psychologists: Roles and Responsibilities

Question 1

Describe the facts in the case of Daubert v.Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.What was the decision? Why was the decision of importance to forensic psychologists?

Answer 1

no answer

Question 2

Contrast the Frye test,the Federal Rules of Evidence,and the Daubert decision with regard to the standard for admissibility of expert testimony.

Answer 2

no answer

Question 3

Evaluate Margaret Hagen's book Whores of the Court.Do you agree or disagree with her premise? Why or why not?

Answer 3

no answer

Question 4

What is an amicus curiae brief? What is its purpose? Give an example.

Question 5

Describe some potential (ethical?) conflicts between psychologists who act as as expert witnesses on the one hand and lawyers or judges on the other.

Question 6

What are death-qualified jurors? Has the Supreme Court ruled on their acceptability?

Question 7

Discuss the likelihood that an expert witness would be penalized (how?) for their testimony.

Question 8

How do judges feel about the Daubert decision?

Question 9

Describe some potential conflicts between trial consultants and the attorneys they work with.

Question 10

What are the activities of a trial consultant?

Question 11

Describe some of the ethical issues facing the psychologist as an expert witness.

Question 12

Describe some of the ethical issues facing a trial consultant.

Question 13

What role or roles did psychologists and other social scientists play in the Brown v.Board of Education decision? Were they effective?

Question 14

What ethical issues may arise for a forensic evaluator?

Question 15

What are some topics for which psychologists have served as expert witnesses?

Question 16

What has been the aftermath of the Daubert decision on the courts? How was the decision's relevance extended by the Kuhmo Tire Co.v.Carmichael decision?

Question 17

Define psychopathy.How is it measured?

Question 18

Saks described three different perspectives for expert witnesses faced with the task of relating their field's state of knowledge and the matter at trial.What are they?

Question 19

Describe and evaluate the findings and conclusions of the doll study by Kenneth Clark and Mamie Clark.

Question 20

Distinguish between expert witnesses and fact witnesses.

Question 21

Who always has the final say in determining an expert witness's admissibility?

A)The scientific community
B)The district attorney
C)The defense attorney
D)The judge

Question 22

Contrast an advocacy brief and a science-translation brief.Give an example of each.

Question 23

The term "junk science" refers to

A)fields such as astrology and phrenology.
B)a "battle of the experts" between two conflicting scientific expert witnesses.
C)expert witnesses to use questionable methodologies to support preconceived opinions.
D)claims made by corporations based on unscientific research.

Question 24

Which of the following is the correct order of steps research

A)Empirical testing,hypothesis generation,statistical interpretation,peer review
B)Hypothesis generation,empirical testing,statistical interpretation,peer review
C)Hypothesis generation,statistical interpretation,empirical testing,peer review
D)Hypothesis generation,peer review,empirical testing,statistical interpretation

Question 25

Trial consultants are most often hired by

A)law firms defending clients in civil cases.
B)district attorneys prosecuting big businesses.
C)district attorneys in criminal trials.
D)law firms defending clients in criminal cases.

Question 26

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of psychopathy?

A)Impulsivity
B)Pathological lying and manipulation
C)Overwhelming guilt and remorse
D)A continual willingness to violate social norms

Question 27

Peter Huber's book Galileo's Revenge (1991) was critical of

A)expert witnesses who testified for whatever side paid them.
B)judges who refused to allow scientific expert testimony.
C)trial consultants who worked only for rich clients.
D)corporations that made every effort to avoid being sued by individuals.

Question 28

What is NOT an guideline for ethical research as listed in Chapter 2?

A)Do not fake data.
B)Do not draw false conclusions from data.
C)Do not do research without a license.
D)Do not plagiarize.

Question 29

How consistent should results be,or how sure should a psychologist be,of the reliability of his or her findings,before the psychologist offers a conclusion to the legal system based on the findings? What standards of proof might be applied?

Question 30

Which of the following is NOT something a trial consultant would do?

A)Assist the lawyer in identifying major issues in a case
B)Prepare witness for the trial
C)Advise in jury selection
D)Generate evidence to be presented at trial

Question 31

Which of the following of Saks' classifications of expert-witnesses would be the most likely to agree with the statement "My central role is to share the mostfaithful picture of my field's knowledge with those who have been assigned theresponsibility to make decisions"?

A)The mere conduit-educator
B)The philosopher-ruler/advocate
C)The hired gun
D)The fact witness

Question 32

It is almost impossible to prosecute an expert witness for _______

A)perjury.
B)contempt of court.
C)falsifying data.
D)practicing without a license.

Question 33

Which of the following is permitted to present opinions as part of testimony?

A)Eyewitnesses
B)Expert witnesses
C)Fact witnesses
D)Law enforcement personnel,as witnesses,but no others

Question 34

Which is NOT a possible example of a substantive conflict between trial consultants and their employer-attorneys?

A)The appropriate theory of the case
B)Issues about invasion of the client's privacy
C)Which jurors should be excused
D)How witnesses should present themselves

Question 35

Which of the following practices would be encouraged by the American Society of Trial Consultants?

A)The compilation of win-loss data
B)The trademarking or copyright of instruments or terminology
C)Sharing with the court all information,including any which can identify research participants
D)The strict adherence to standards of confidentiality

Question 36

What role did an amicus brief by the American Psychological Association play in the decision on Bowers v.Hardwick (1986)?

Question 37

Which of the following questions best corresponds to a defendant's competence to stand trial?

A)Does the defendant have an adequate understanding of the legal system?
B)What was the defendant's mental condition at the time of the alleged offense?
C)What are the prospects for the defendant's rehabilitation?
D)Was the defendant of legal age at the time of the alleged offense?

Question 38

Describe four temptations of forensic psychologists to go beyond what is acceptable,when they interact with the legal system.

Question 39

The Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised is

A)a multiple-choice test.
B)a self-report scale of personality characteristics.
C)now considered to be out-of-date.
D)a rating scale,completed by a clinician after an interview with the subject.

Question 40

How many states license or certify trial consultants?

A)0
B)13
C)31
D)50

Question 41

When composing an amicus brief,Saks (1993) suggested that psychologists should

A)assert opinions on the ultimate issue in the case.
B)represent a consensual view of social scientists.
C)focus on constitutional law.
D)let others apply their research findings.

Question 42

Which of the following was NOT one of the themes found by those who reviewed Margaret Hagen's book,Whores of the Court?

A)Forensic clinical psychologists are not scientifically competent.
B)Forensic clinical psychologists are economically motivated.
C)Forensic clinical psychologists are driven by missionary liberal motives.
D)Forensic psychologists are uninformed about legal procedure.

Question 43

Hafemeister and Melton (1987) concluded that when secondary social-science sources were cited in cases,they were most often originally published in

A)law reviews or government reports.
B)textbooks.
C)social psychology journals.
D)Psychology Today.

Question 44

In a summary judgment

A)the judge lets expert witnesses decide the case rather than a jury.
B)a trial is avoided;the judge rules after evaluating the evidence.
C)the jury makes a judgment based on a summary of the case by the judge.
D)the jury supplements its verdict by giving the reasons,in writing,for it.

Question 45

Attorneys "shopping around" until they find an expect who will say what they want contributes to expert witnesses

A)doing a cursory job.
B)promising too much.
C)substituting advocacy for objectivity.
D)presenting their information in a confusing manner.

Question 46

In determining admissibility of expert testimony,which of the following uses criteria such as whether scientific evidence has been peer-reviewed,is testable,has a recognized rate of error,and adheres to professional standards?

A)The Warren Standard
B)The Federal Rules of Evidence
C)The Frye Test
D)The Daubert Rule

Question 47

In which case,did the Supreme Court agree with the opinion of

Question 48

The case that led to the Supreme Court decision in Daubert v.Merrell Dow (1993) involved

A)an expert witness who assessed the quality of tire design.
B)whether repressed memories were scientifically accepted.
C)whether silicone breast implants caused auto-immune reactions
D)whether the morning sickness drug Bendectin had damaging side effects.

Question 49

Which of the following best represents the danger of the advocate role in expert testimony?

A)It confuses the jury.
B)It must present more than one explanation for the individual's behavior.
C)It sacrifices intuition for empiricism.
D)It compromises the objectivity of the expert.

Question 50

In the decision of Kuhmo Tire Co.Ltd.v.Carmichael (1999),the Supreme Court expanded the Daubert decision to

A)other experts besides scientists.
B)experts whose methods do not meet acceptable standards.
C)Both A and B
D)Neither A nor B

Question 51

Clark and Clark (1952) concluded what from their study of Black children in segregated and non-segregated environments?

A)Black children in segregated areas were more adjusted to feeling inferior and did not engage in as much denial.
B)Black children in rural communities experienced less racism than children from urban communities.
C)Black children in non-segregated areas were more psychologically prepared to deal with racism.
D)Black children in segregated areas demonstrated less of an effect to their self esteem than children from non-segregated areas.

Question 52

Which of the following was NOT an argument used by the psychologists in their amicus curiae brief submitted in the case of Lockhart v.McCree (1986)?

A)The death penalty is administered in a racially-biased manner.
B)The jury-selection process in capital trials produces a jury that is conviction-prone.
C)Death-qualified juries are unrepresentative because a higher percentage of certain classifications of people are excluded.
D)None of the above

Question 53

"Well-recognized standards regarding the principles or evidence for a particular field should determine the admissibility of expert testimony" describes which ofthe following?

A)The Warren Standard
B)The Federal Rules of Evidence
C)The Frye Test
D)The Daubert Rule

Question 54

Which of the following of Saks' roles for expert witnesses would be most likely to agree with the statement "My primary responsibility is to present onlyinformation that agrees with my employer's values,not my own"?

A)The mere conduit-educator
B)The philosopher-ruler/educator
C)The hired gun
D)The fact witness

Question 55

Which of the following of Saks' types of expert witnesses would be most likely to agree with the statement "I am comfortable presenting only certain evidencebecause I believe the other side is responsible for presenting evidence whichconflicts with my own"?

A)The mere conduit-educator
B)The philosopher-ruler/educator
C)The hired gun
D)The fact witness

Question 56

Which of the following focuses on the importance of the general acceptance of an expert's testimony,emphasizing its relevance?

A)The Warren Standard
B)The Federal Rules of Evidence
C)The Frye Test
D)The Daubert Rule

Question 57

In the Brown v.Board of Education decision in 1954,the values of the social scientists who submitted an amicus brief

A)conflicted with the eventual decision by the Court.
B)were in line with the eventual decision by the Court.
C)had no influence on the eventual decision by the Court.
D)were in line with the minority opinion of the Court.