WHO AM I?

Dr. Kristine Peace, Professor, Department of Psychology, MacEwan University

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND

I believe that my interest in Forensic Psychology was a natural extension of growing up with a father who was a Forensic Scientist in the RCMP. However, I found I was more curious about the psychological aspects of crime and criminal behaviour relative to the features of a crime scene. Throughout my undergraduate degree at the University of Lethbridge, I was inspired by several faculty members and developed an interest in eyewitness memory and trauma, as well as deviant criminality. This lead me to pursue my Masters of Science and then Ph.D. at Dalhousie University.

I joined the faculty at MacEwan University in 2006, and have further developed my teaching (see below) and research interests. In particular, I enjoy conducting research within several core areas of forensic psychology, including: interpersonal violence, perceptions of violence, courtroom biases, memory, psychopathy, emotional processing, trauma, and credibility/deception/malingering.

COURSES TAUGHT

I teach a variety of courses within the Department of Psychology, and am continually challenging myself to develop new topics for courses, content, and try different methods of teaching. Here is a listing of the courses I generally teach:

- PSYCHOLOGY 104: INTRODUCTORY PSYCHOLOGY 1
- PSYCHOLOGY 241: SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
- PSYCHOLOGY 337: FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY
- PSYCHOLOGY 350: HUMAN MEMORY
- PSYCHOLOGY 437: ADVANCED TOPICS IN FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY
- PSYCHOLOGY 398/498: INDEPENDENT STUDIES
- PSYCHOLOGY 499A/B: HONOURS THESIS

For Psychology 437, I have developed and taught a number of specialty topics for this course, including Case Analysis, Courtroom Bias, Forensic Aspects of Memory, Detection of Deception, Psychopathy, and Eyewitness Memory. Currently I am developing a few new topics for the coming years, including Stalking and Interpersonal Violence (NEW Winter 2024!) and Wrongful Convictions. In the future, I hope to have the opportunity to teach topics courses on Amnesia, PTSD, and Malingering Psychological Disorders.

words of advice to students ...

Tips for students:

Where you end up may not be where you thought
You are never too old to learn
While there are standards that you need to meet if you want to advance in the field of psychological study, practice, or research, the path that any individual student takes to get there may vary widely
Study hard but also be well-rounded
Engage in experiential learning (whether through course opportunities or volunteering on- or off-campus)

A PERSONAL TOUCH ...

Aside from life as an academic, my interests are diverse. I love to cook, and always believed that if I hadn't had such a passion for forensic psychology, I would have become a chef. That said, I apply the experimental method to cooking whenever I can. My kitchen is a forum for "I've never done this before, but why not try!".

I have two young children who are, almost literally, the apples of my eyes. They keep me on my toes and are a priority for me in creating a work-life balance. Ironically, I have discovered that creative pallets in the kitchen are not genetic and it pains my soul at each request I receive for 'plain noodles' :)

Apart from parenting and cooking, I love to play recreational slow pitch, gardening, reading, board/card games, and apply psychological principles to 'reality' TV programs.

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