Reflections on psychology and law

Abstract

The chapters in this book demonstrate how broad and versatile the field of psychology can be, in applying its concepts and methods to the study of the legal system, and especially to the role of the expert witness. The last chapter in this volume comes from Lawrence S. Wrightsman, Jr., who was the beneficiary of a festschrift. His comments are typical of the scholar and the man himself. He is humble, astute, and aware of the unfinished research that still engulfs the psychology and law field. His ability to see beyond psychological theories generated for one area of behavior and utilize those theories to understand and explain the behaviors that occur in the theorizing and practice of law is evident from his own description of his work. More importantly, Larry reminds scholars who study psychology and law (and any discipline) to focus on the source, in order to understand why behaviors occur and what can be done to transform them. In the end, Larry’s approach to his scholarly work derives from the legacy of his own training in psychology. He reminds us that psychology is really a discipline to be given away. Consequently, through his research, teaching, and numerous textbooks, Larry Wrightsman has given much to the field of psychology and law. Our greatest hope is that the present volume, and the future research it will stimulate, continues to give in his honor.