Keynotes
Prof. Dr. Michael Seto is a registered clinical and forensic psychologist and currently a research director with the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group, as well as Professor in Psychiatry at the University of Ottawa. Prof. Dr. Seto has published extensively on pedophilia, sexual offending against children and online sexual offending. He has written well-reviewed books on pedophilia and sexual offending against children (2008, second edition in 2018) and on internet sex offenders (2013), all published by the American Psychological Association. Psychological Risk Factors for Sexual Offending Against Children Social science research has consistently identified a set of factors associated with sexual offending against children, including both online and in-person forms. Knowledge about these risk factors inform contemporary explanations of sexual offending against children and are important for assessment and intervention. In this talk, I briefly review this evidence using the motivation-facilitation model, which highlights particular motivations such as pedophilia (sexual attraction to prepubescent children) and facilitation factors such as antisocial personality. Prof. Dr. Seto's keynote speech will take place on September 22nd, 2021 in English. |
Dr. Taina Laajasalo, Chief Specialist is adjunct professor (Title of Docent) in Forensic Psychology and has research expertise in themes related to child abuse, child abuse investigations, and child behavioural disorders. Her other interests are evidence based mental health promotion and prevention, early intervention and psychological wellbeing of children and families. Currently she works as a chief specialist at the Finnish Institute of Health and Welfare, aiming to develop child-friendly, evidence-based justice procedures as well as interventions and services for children who have experienced violence. Previously, she has worked several years as part of a multidisciplinary team, assisting the police and the judicial system in investigations of child sexual and physical abuse as well as consulting and teaching professionals on these matters.
The Barnahus-model and experiences from Finland The Barnahus (Children’s House) is an interdisciplinary and multi-agency unit designed to serve child victims and witnesses in a child-friendly and efficient way. Barnahus has gained popularity among politicians and professionals alike, and in recent years the model has spread from the Nordic countries to several other European countries. This presentation describes the core elements of the model. It also sheds light on the local adaption of the model in Finland, where connecting the work of the Barnahus units to the academia as well as utilising evidence-based methods have become some of the central tenets of the work. These are considered necessary for successful implementation of the Barnahus-model and full consideration of Children’s Rights. The presentation will also touch upon the dilemmas, challenges and different perspectives that are encountered and need to be considered when implementing the model. Dr. Laajasalo's keynote speech will take place on September 23rd, 2021 in English. |
Prof. Dr. Matthias Gamer is a Professor for Experimental Clinical Psychology at the Julius-Maximilians-University of Würzburg since 2015. Previously, he was head of the research group "Social and Applied Psychophysiology" at the Department of Systems Neuroscience at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. His research is embedded in the field of cognitive neuroscience with a special focus on social and emotional processes. Additionally, he is interested in forensic psychology with respect to basic as well as applied research questions such as deception detection or credibility assessment.
Can we realiably remember traumatic experiences? Confrontation with traumatic events, such as violent or sexual offenses, has substantial influences on the autonomic nervous system, the release of stress hormones, and the function and structure of the brain. These physiological adaptations also modulate the encoding and consolidation of memory traces. Based on these findings, it has been argued that victims of serious crimes have substantial problems to recall circumstances of the offense in great detail. This presentation will provide an overview of neurobiological, psychological, and clinical aspects of the impact of traumatic experiences on memory. In particular, it will be highlighted how different phases of the stress response affect memory encoding, consolidation, and retrieval. These findings will be discussed with respect to the credibility of eyewitness testimony and practical recommendations for interviewing victim witnesses will be derived. Prof. Dr. Gamer's keynote speech will take place on September 24th, 2021 in German. |
Psychologische Hochschule Berlin
Am Köllnischen Park 2
10179 Berlin
https://www.psychologische-hochschule.de/
[email protected]
Am Köllnischen Park 2
10179 Berlin
https://www.psychologische-hochschule.de/
[email protected]