On Friday, September 25, a conference organized and hosted by the Forensic Psychology department at Saint Mary’s was attended by approximately 400 registrants from five continents.
The virtual conference featured keynote speakers Judge Halfpenny-MacQuarrie, provincial court judge and judge of the Donald Marshall Centre for Reconciliation and Justice presenting “Decolonizing the Court: Wagmatcook First Nation”; Dr. Amy-May Leach, Professor of Forensic Psychology at Ontario Tech University presenting “Detecting Deception During a Pandemic”; and Dr. Michael Seto, Forensic Research Director at the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group, on “What Do We Know About Online Sexual Offending?”
“Canada is a world leader in forensic psychology research, and Saint Mary’s prominence in this field has increased considerably,” said Dr. Veronica Stinson, who organized the event along with Saint Mary’s Psychology colleague Dr. Meg Ternes.
“The idea of organizing this conference is the product of typical friendly, collegial conversations between colleagues. Organic conversations among colleagues—faculty and students—are often found in the hallways and open offices of our floor; this environment provided fertile ground for research and related ideas to flourish.”
Along with the keynote speakers, this conference was an opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students in the Saint Mary’s Forensic Psychology program to gain valuable experience attending, and in some cases, participating in this event.
Students have played an integral role in organizing and delivering the conference.
Gena Dufour, a second-year Master’s student, will present her innovative research that explores how Canadian sentencing rulings are affected by victim impact statements, and whether victim impact statements at sentencing trigger expressions of remorse from offenders. At a time when we are on the journey of healing from Canada’s worst mass murder, the hundreds of victims—including those who survived the massacre— may be looking to have their voices heard in court in the civil case. The research looks at sentencings, and there may also be bigger lessons to be learned from this study.
Kailey Roche, an alumna of our Master’s program (“An Exploration of Sexual Health in those with Sexual Interest in Children”), and Martina Faitakis (“A Screening Scale for Hebephilic Interests: A Preliminary Analysis”) and Brandon Burgess (“Criminal Trajectories of Adult-Onset Sex Offenders”), current second-year Master’s students, are also presenting their research at this conference, as are Kamelle LePage (“Canadian Victim Impact Statements”), Jennifer McArthur (Silence in the interrogation room”) and Samantha Perry (“Give me a Number:
Evaluating the Effect of Disclosing the Number of Photos in Sequential Line-up Instructions on Eyewitness Identification Decisions.”
Forensic Psychology at Saint Mary’s University
Forensic psychology focuses on researching aspects of human behaviour directly related to the legal process and applying this knowledge to the legal process.
Master of Science in Applied Psychology (Forensic Psychology) graduates at Saint Mary’s will leave equipped with skills for either applied work in the justice system or for further PhD-level studies in Forensic Psychology. Faculty offer a variety of courses, including Forensic Tests and Measurement, Correctional Psychology, and the latest developments in research methods. Our students will apply their learning during a practicum in the field, and through teaching and research assistantships. Students will also conduct and defend their own original research through their Master’s thesis.