Behavioral Assesment and Analysis in Forensic Psychology

Psychology is a very broad field to study as it covers a variety of topics and needs. Psychologists work daily in their careers to help benefit an individual or a group of people. Regardless of their career choice, they are helping people better themselves. Those in this field follow McClintock’s (2004) definition of a scholar-practitioner, as they surround themselves with theory, research, and analysis as well as use their personal values, commitments and ethical codes to help motivate them in their field. They are the unrecognized heroes of people’s lives as they work to positively impact their clients. One day, I will be just as inspiring when I use my knowledge as a Forensic Psychologist to achieve my goal of becoming an FBI Profiler.

As a Profiler, I will be assessing behaviors and analyzing them to find suspects in cases. I will work every day to make sure the victims and/or their families feel safety and justice. My studies at Capella University have and will continue to help prepare me for this responsibility. Most importantly, the practitioner-scholar model will help me advance in my life. The practitioner-scholar model, for the master’s level, teaches one to acquire and process information, find a new approach, and apply it (Capella University, n.d.). For my career, this model will help me utilize the information I receive and learn how to approach the individual(s) at large as well as create the opportunity to make this world a safer place.

Vision and Goals

Growing up, my vision for my future was never fully clear but I always had the same passion: making the world a safer place. I grew inspiration from my father, who worked as a police sergeant and made many people feel such a way. I wanted to do just the same but also more. The desire to understand those who make the world feel dangerous began to consume my research. Soon, I knew that my future had to involve studying criminals and putting a stop to them. I will make this into my career as an FBI Profiler. To achieve this larger goal, I must go through other milestones and smaller goals.

Ultimately, the first goal is to graduate from Capella University with my master’s in clinical psychology specializing in forensic psychology. This field will help prepare me for dealing with criminals, their minds, and the law. Everything that I learn will carry with me to my career as I rely on it to guide me to make the correct decisions. Capella University offers many tools that can help people succeed in their program. I will certainly utilize the library to expand my research and knowledge. Smarthinking is another great option that I have used and will continue to as it helps improve my writing skills. My completion of my program will determine when I will apply for the position of an FBI Agent.

During my studies, I will be working on other milestones. I plan to learn another language, particularly Spanish as it is one of the most common languages in America. I feel this will help me communicate with a variety of people in my career and expand my cultural understandings. I also plan to learn American Sign Language. It is frustrating for an individual to be unable to communicate, especially in a time of need, and if I could help prevent that stress that would be ideal especially within cases.

Another milestone would be to obtain an internship especially within the field of forensics so that I can gain experience. Currently, I have applied for an FBI Internship and am awaiting to hear back. I will continue to find others and apply so that I am not relying on one source. It is important to gain this experience so that there are no surprises for me when I begin my career. I can get a feel for my future and see exactly how I will succeed by the that I will learn. This is a more visual way of learning of my field as I will be putting myself out there and doing work of a much lower scale that I would do in my career. I will finally gain an understanding of the career itself from my own experience rather than research and the fictional television shows that I watch.

Nearing the completion of my master’s degree, I will be applying to the FBI as a special agent. This is a major goal to accomplish as it is the step into my career field and obtaining this job will bring me closer to my biggest and final goal: becoming an FBI Profiler. Becoming an agent will bring me onto the field and working with the public. I will begin to understand the minds of criminal. From their crimes, I will gather their strengths and weaknesses that will get them caught and brought to justice. These experiences will make me a good fit for an FBI Profiler.

Upon completion of my final goal, I will work towards a doctoral degree to keep up on my education and awareness of the world and new psychological methods being created. It is important to always stay relevant in such a fast-growing field. Everyday there are new discoveries and studies. Furthering my education will be very beneficial as it will constantly update me on new methods and opportunities to incorporate into my career.

Professional Competencies and Requirements

There are educational and personal skill requirements in order to become an FBI agent. The minimum degree needed to become an FBI agent is a bachelor’s degree. However, any degree higher is encouraged and makes one stand out. Capella University is a recommended school by the FBI, which is one of the reasons I applied to attend. All majors are accepted into the FBI, but anything in the criminal justice or forensics field is preferred. For this job, skills in conscientiousness, detail-orientation, self-awareness, and professional ethics (Sternberg, 2017). I must adhere to ethical codes within my field. In a job that can be covered publicly by the news, I acknowledge the rights of both the victims and the suspects. I would be dealing with human beings who have rights like myself and I must obey them. I work with the law and dedicate my days to stoppings those who have committed a serious crime. I enforce the law to the public and ensure they know the consequences of their actions.

Capella University’s practitioner-scholar model has introduced me to a method that enhanced my skills and will be used into my career. As a future FBI Profiler, I must obtain and review my information and make it comprehendible which will allow me to create a new approach to practice and apply to my field (Capella University, n.d.). I envision myself using this method for locating suspects. I will gather evidence and information about the person(s) and process it so that I can relay it to my team in a comprehensible manner. Through this we will work together to find a way to approach and apprehend the suspect(s) and if successful it can be applied to future cases.

The FBI not only requires much mental preparation but physical as well. A person who applies to be an agent must undergo training. The training is both physical and mental as there are classes that will expand your knowledge in preparation. One must be physically capable of doing sit-ups, sprints, pushups, and running 1.5 miles (fbijobs.gov). As someone who has spent their time focusing on mentally preparing themselves for the jobs, I have in I the physical requirement department. I will gradually increase my exercise and incorporate techniques that will prepare me for my future training demands. Each day I will add a little more time to my runs and eventually run longer distances. Incorporating the exact expected exercises into my daily life now will help prepare me for the test. Lifting weights will help prepare my arms to make them more capable of handling many pushups. These techniques will be incorporated into my daily routine to help me pass the physical test.

Self-Assessment

Fortunately, the knowledge and experience I have obtained in my life have helped prepare me for my future. As for education, both my associate’s and bachelor’s degree furthered my interest and knowledge in psychology. In my bachelor program I took a Forensics Psychology course, which marked the beginning of my decision to further my education in that field. It brought me to where I am today, the end of my first quarter at Capella University, where I study Clinical Psychology specializing in Forensic Psychology. This is the beginning of advancing my knowledge within the law and understanding criminal intent, which in turn will help me succeed in my future career. Through my education, I have obtained the understanding of how to properly research literature. One of the best types of sources to use is scholarly and peer-reviewed journals, as they are primary sources that have been reviewed by trustworthy peers, thus making the source credible (American Psychology Association, 2010). Those are likely to be reliable and trustworthy. Knowing if the information from the source is valid and if the author is credible by their significance in the field is important (Capella University, n.d.). I make sure to research the author(s) to learn about them and make sure that their information is unbiased and contains reliable research by observing where their sources came from. If they are studies, I read to see if the study that occurred was ethical so that the results are accurate. It is important to read sources thoroughly as well as research them as it does increase the reliability.

As for experiences, I have not had much with the aspect of forensics. I am currently applying for internships to fulfill that gap. However, my job experiences have prepared me in unique ways for my future. Customer service, in general, allowed me to begin to understand the various types of people in the world and how each person’s mind operates differently. As I have worked in both retail and food, I have come across different personalities that I can begin to predict in others based on the way they present themselves even without verbal cues. I can look at a customer’s body language and facial expressions to determine how they will act around my coworkers and me. Their tone of voice is the final piece of evidence that I need to determine the type of person they are. I find this to be the beginning stages of my career of profiling. Even though I have experienced a variety of opportunities that have expanded my knowledge and prepared me for my future, I still have much room to grow and learn. I must complete my master’s degree in clinical psychology with a focus in forensics psychology, that way the education I receive can help me prepare for the future of my career. I will learn about laws and criminals, which directly applies to my career. Working as part of the government, I enforce laws and keep criminals from doing any harm. My master’s program will be helping me succeed in that aspect.

During this time, I will also be applying for internships that relate to my field so that I gain a more hands-on experience. This will test my capability to handle such serious situations. I plan to learn another language so that when I advance into my career, I can communicate with a variety of people while simultaneously becoming more culturally competent. The more languages I learn, the more people I can help. The application process for the FBI will occur approximately a year before my graduation. I will begin my career upon the completion of training, and I will work my way towards the position of a Profiler.