Reference no: EM131648918

Ethical Debate

The work in operational psychology is challenging, dynamic, and never dull. For this assignment, you will assume the role of a forensic mental health professional. There are two parts to this assignment. After reading the scenario given here, complete the tasks in both parts of the assignment.

Your final submission should be a 6- to 8-page paper.

Scenario:

You are a survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE) certified mental health professional for the US Army and you hold a top-secret clearance. At 2100 hours on Sunday, you are informed that you are being deployed to Pakistan to support a combat search and rescue (CSAR) team. The team will be recovering a downed helicopter crew isolated for two days.

You will be tasked with conducting a Phase I repatriation upon the crew's recovery. You spend the following forty-six hours in transit over regions with which you are unfamiliar, and you are not always sure about the exact destination of the flights, other than that they are headed in the general direction of South Asia. You enter a crowded airport and arrive at a secured area to be briefed on your classified mission.

You and the CSAR team are to be escorted to a forward operating base (FOB) by a personnel security detail (PSD), and you are departing within the hour for the North-West Frontier Province. Satellite intelligence has information about a specific high-value target sighting in the area, and there is a great deal of enemy activity in the area.

During the journey, you get to know the members of the PSD quite well, particularly Sergeant Charles. Eventually, you run into significant insurgent trouble, and an improvised explosive device (IED) takes out one of the vehicles in the convoy.

Two members of the PSD are killed, and three are slightly wounded. One of the wounded, Sergeant Charles, is taken captive by the insurgents. The PSD captures two insurgents believed to be part of the contingent that captured Sergeant Charles.

The PSD senior staff sergeant (SSGT) believes the captured insurgents know where Sergeant Charles is being held. The PSD SSGT also believes the two insurgents are responsible for the IED blast and deaths of your team members. The PSD SSGT has asked you to assist in the interrogation by providing insight into how best to "get into their heads." You consider this a battlefield interrogation.

Tasks:

Part 1: An Esoteric Look at the Ethical Debate on a Forensic Mental Health Professional's Role in Interrogations

The ethical debate concerning the forensic mental health professional's role in interrogation is heavily weighted on both sides.

Create a 3- to 4-page paper describing each side of the ethical debate and then take a stand. There is no right or wrong side for the final part of this paper, but you must have strong arguments from the literature to support your position. You are encouraged to use the textbook and any outside resources you deem appropriate.

Part 2: Concrete Application of Ethical Practice in a Forensic Mental Health Professional's Role in Interrogations

On the basis of your analysis of the scenario above and the research you conducted using the module readings, the University online library resources, and the Internet, write a 3- to 4-page paper responding to the following:

Can you ethically assist with the above battlefield interrogation in any way? If so, how? If not, why?

Support your answers with appropriate citations from relevant peer-reviewed resources.