Causality of Psychological Injury: Presenting Evidence in Court [Hardcover]

Gerald Young (Author), Andrew W. Kane (Author), Keith Nicholson (Author), Daniel Shuman (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 9, 2007

This book offers a welcome expansion on key concepts, terms, and issues in causality. It brings much needed clarity to psychological injury assessments and the legal contexts that employ them. Focusing on PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain (and grounding readers in salient U.S. and Canadian case law), the book sets out a multifactorial causality framework to facilitate admissibility of psychological evidence in court.

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews: "Causality of Psychological Injury: Presenting Evidence in Court is an edited volume with chapters that are not only informative but also well written. The references that I sampled are relevant, useful, and probably as current as any could be in a nonelectronic book … . surely heightens its educational value to clinical and forensic practitioners and should shape corresponding professional thinking and praxis." (Richard W. Bloom, PsycCritiques, Vol. 52 (37), 2007) "I was delighted to find a concise summary of why third party observers should not be allowed during the course of a forensic neuropsychological examination, touching on such seminal issues as proper test administration, norms, ethical issues as well as legal precedents prohibiting this practice. The summary was so well done. … This information was also quite helpful in formulating the expert affidavit … . I found this volume to be responsive to some very different dilemmas I encountered in my civil practice." (Jerid M. Fisher, Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, December, 2007) "Causality of Psychological Injury … addresses issues pertinent to psychological assessment in personal injury cases in a well-organized, comprehensive, and authoritative manner. … The writing is clear and concise, and is useful for both those who wish to expand their practice into this area of forensic psychology, as well as the more experienced forensic psychologist or psychiatrist … . Causality of Psychological Injury fills a serious gap in the forensic psychological literature … . I recommend it without reservation." (Eric G. Mart, Psychological Injury and Law, Vol. 1, 2008)

From the Back Cover

This sequel to the authors’ Psychological Knowledge in Court offers a welcome expansion on key concepts, terms, and issues in causality, bringing much needed clarity to psychological injury assessments and the legal contexts that employ them. Focusing on PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain (and grounding readers in salient U.S. and Canadian case law), Causality sets out a multifactorial causality framework to facilitate admissibility of psychological evidence in court. Issues concerning malingering are examined in depth, as are clinical gray areas that can jeopardize validity. At the same time, the book clearly explains what lawyers and clinicians need to understand about each other’s work—of crucial importance since the two sides often seem to speak at cross-purposes. The authors and six guest contributors Illustrate the roles of preexisting vulnerabilities, traumatic events, and post-event occurrences in psychological impairment and disability Review the literature on PTSD, TBI, and chronic pain for legal relevance Identify current challenges and controversies in the field, as well as emerging areas for research Recommend methods and instruments for conducting more courtworthy assessments Provide a detailed critical review of malingering and related phenomena Propose a more accurate, shared terminology of causality Valid causality judgments are based on sound knowledge of research on large populations and careful testing of individuals; at the same time they must conform to stringent legal standards of relevance and reliability to be accepted for testimony. Forensic practitioners and attorneys will turn to Causality of Psychological Injury as their professional paths increasingly cross in seeking comprehensive and state of the art information.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 660 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (February 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0387364358
• ISBN-13: 978-0387364353
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #907,029 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #99 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Disorders & Diseases > Chronic Pain

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent resource for psychologists, March 20, 2008

By 

Eric G. Mart (Manchester, NH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Causality of Psychological Injury: Presenting Evidence in Court (Hardcover)

Causality of Psychological Injury: Presenting Evidence in Court is a well written and extremely useful contribution to the professional literature dealing with the forensic assessment of trauma. It provides a solid background on the legal context of such assessments and also thoroughly covers specific areas such as testing, assessment of malingering, and evaluation of traumatic brain injury. The approach to the relationship between trauma and subsequent symptoms is dynamic and brings a depth to this topic that has not been seen before. This book will be of great benefit to mental health professionals working in this area of practice, and to attorneys who need to understand and critically review mental health reports in litigation.