Myron Beard's Blog - Posts Tagged "psychology"
How can a psychologist solve crimes?
When you study successful sleuths in murder mysteries, you begin to see a pattern in their personalities and in their thinking. They are persistent and not usually dissuaded by challenges or roadblocks. They are not quick to be convinced by the obvious but look below the surface for answers. They are always working to connect seemingly unrelated activities and events. They think regularly about motive and seek the root cause of behavior. In fact, you might even view them as practicing psychology without a license!
What makes a psychologist particularly well-suited for solving crimes?
The very nature of being a psychologist is one of investigation and discovery. Psychologists spend their time probing and gathering information; following leads, separating the relevant from the irrelevant; making assumptions and testing them; creating hypotheses; paying attention to “gut checks,” and following their instincts. In fact, at its heart, the very fabric of being a psychologist is one of solving mysteries and bringing truth to light. It could be argued that police detectives and members of the CIA or FBI are really using psychological principles to “connect the dots” of the clues in their cases. They do this to create a complete picture of the crimes and criminals that they are seeking to understand.
In a sense, these professionals are practicing psychology much of the time. However, their training may lack the depth of understanding of the human mind, human interactions, personality, and psychopathology of the well-trained psychologist. In contrast, the training of the psychologist lacks the technology and forensic tools found in contemporary police work, such as DNA matching, finger printing, CCTV, crime databases, etc. Pairing a psychologist with a professional police investigator maximizes the capabilities of both.
Hence, in my book Santa Fe Deception, Scott Hunter, a psychologist with a deep understanding of human behavior, and Miguel Montez, a former FBI field agent and now a Police Detective, are integrating their joint knowledge to create a dynamic and highly effective duo for solving complex crimes in Santa Fe.
In the second Scott Hunter mystery, Dark Revelation, Scott uses his training in understanding psychopaths, and how they take advantage of the most vulnerable, to help solve the case. His ability to spot deception and identify alternative motivations paired with Miguel’s outstanding investigative skills help them identify the real villain.Dark Revelation: A Scott Hunter Mystery
What makes a psychologist particularly well-suited for solving crimes?
The very nature of being a psychologist is one of investigation and discovery. Psychologists spend their time probing and gathering information; following leads, separating the relevant from the irrelevant; making assumptions and testing them; creating hypotheses; paying attention to “gut checks,” and following their instincts. In fact, at its heart, the very fabric of being a psychologist is one of solving mysteries and bringing truth to light. It could be argued that police detectives and members of the CIA or FBI are really using psychological principles to “connect the dots” of the clues in their cases. They do this to create a complete picture of the crimes and criminals that they are seeking to understand.
In a sense, these professionals are practicing psychology much of the time. However, their training may lack the depth of understanding of the human mind, human interactions, personality, and psychopathology of the well-trained psychologist. In contrast, the training of the psychologist lacks the technology and forensic tools found in contemporary police work, such as DNA matching, finger printing, CCTV, crime databases, etc. Pairing a psychologist with a professional police investigator maximizes the capabilities of both.
Hence, in my book Santa Fe Deception, Scott Hunter, a psychologist with a deep understanding of human behavior, and Miguel Montez, a former FBI field agent and now a Police Detective, are integrating their joint knowledge to create a dynamic and highly effective duo for solving complex crimes in Santa Fe.
In the second Scott Hunter mystery, Dark Revelation, Scott uses his training in understanding psychopaths, and how they take advantage of the most vulnerable, to help solve the case. His ability to spot deception and identify alternative motivations paired with Miguel’s outstanding investigative skills help them identify the real villain.Dark Revelation: A Scott Hunter Mystery
Why Santa Fe for a mystery location?
Santa Fe is the second oldest city and the oldest capital in the United States. It was founded in 1610 as the government seat of Nuevo México in what was then called New Spain, established during the Spanish conquest of the Americas. Santa Fe is of particular interest because of its unique mixture of cultures. New Mexico is one of only six states with a non-Hispanic white population of under 50% and a high percentage of its population is of Hispanic, Latino, or Native American origin. The result is a culturally rich area with unique architecture, art, cuisine, music, and geography unlike anywhere else. In addition to its distinctive mixture of cultures, its climate typically offers over 300 days a year of sunshine. More distinctly, Santa Fe has long been a mecca for artists and photographers because of the deep blue skies and the contrasting shades of the Sangre de Cristo mountains. The clear, pure, and colder dry air allows for the richness of the colors and the typically beautiful landscapes, sunsets, and sunrises.
Santa Fe has distinctive architecture like no other city. Since 1957, its building codes allow only two historic architectural styles – Spanish-Pueblo Revival and Territorial in its historic districts. Earlier historic buildings such as Craftsman or Mission are grandfathered in.
The city’s setting in the foothills, its adobe buildings and unique city center plaza create a backdrop that is conducive to both romance and intrigue. With over 250 art galleries, Santa Fe has more galleries per capita than anywhere in the USA. There are also an abundance of amazing boutique shops and award-winning restaurants. Santa Fe citizens and tourists alike love the many hand-made items available, such as the beautiful ceramics and hand-woven shawls and stoles in a wide array of colors.
This confluence of three cultures – Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo, also encourages the blending, and experimenting, of both traditional New Mexico dishes and innovative Southwestern cuisine. The meeting of these cultures also creates opportunities for unusual relationships and events, intrigue, and sometimes tension. With cobblestone streets, dark alleys, unusual and unique people and establishments, the opportunities for great story telling abound!
Santa Fe has distinctive architecture like no other city. Since 1957, its building codes allow only two historic architectural styles – Spanish-Pueblo Revival and Territorial in its historic districts. Earlier historic buildings such as Craftsman or Mission are grandfathered in.
The city’s setting in the foothills, its adobe buildings and unique city center plaza create a backdrop that is conducive to both romance and intrigue. With over 250 art galleries, Santa Fe has more galleries per capita than anywhere in the USA. There are also an abundance of amazing boutique shops and award-winning restaurants. Santa Fe citizens and tourists alike love the many hand-made items available, such as the beautiful ceramics and hand-woven shawls and stoles in a wide array of colors.
This confluence of three cultures – Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo, also encourages the blending, and experimenting, of both traditional New Mexico dishes and innovative Southwestern cuisine. The meeting of these cultures also creates opportunities for unusual relationships and events, intrigue, and sometimes tension. With cobblestone streets, dark alleys, unusual and unique people and establishments, the opportunities for great story telling abound!
