studies on evaluation of suggestibility in juvenile courts with Godjonsson scale

Complexity challenges the methods of scientific research, and the experimental approaches have possible shortcomings, regarding uses and misuses of measurement instruments, variables, statistics. Is it possible to approach complexity in psychological applied research? To approach complexity we need appropriate methods, suitable to integrate the classical experimental one, e.g. by monitoring directly the whole action object of study, allowing the ‘sense’ of the studied event to emerge. The symposium aims to show how innovative methods and instruments can be used for psychological applications useful to fulfill social needs with full scientific validity. After an introduction (by the proponent) regarding the methodological issues aimed at challenging complexity, the contributions to the symposium will deal with different fields of psychological applied research, i.e.: 1. Applications of neurostimulation to enhance motor and cognitive rehabilitation, and to promote cognitive empowerment in adults and aging people. The growing use of brain stimulation in basic research and in clinical applications reflects its capabilities to modulate cerebral function in ways not feasible with other techniques (Jacobson et a., 2012; Peterchev et al., 2012). These recent methodologies will be presented and critically discussed. 2. Studies regarding the possibility of using technologies (e.g., smartphones, wearable sensors and virtual/augmented reality) to enhance mental and physical wellbeing. A new field called ‘Positive Technology’ has been developed (Botella et al. 2012), combining the objectives of Positive Psychology with advances in interaction design. 3. The problem of detecting liars in juridical contexts (Rogers, 2008) is very complex and difficult to manage with traditional techniques. Since deceiving is cognitively demanding (e.g., it is associated with activating executive brain center such as the prefrontal cortex), a dual task can be tested asking to resolve a spatial test when telling the lie, analyzing both verbal and not-verbal behaviors. 4. Another common and very intriguing problem in forensic assessment is the evaluation of suggestibility in cases of suspect child abuse (Ridley et al., 2012). The GSS2 scale proposed by Gudjonsson aims to evaluate both yield e shift suggestibility; recent studies have addressed the relations with cognitive and emotional-social aspects relevant for the juridical decision. The methodological advances and shortcomings in these different applied fields of psychology will be compared and discussed.