Dr Sunghwan Kim

Lecturer

Health, Education, Policing and Sciences

Dr Sunghwan Kim is a lecturer in forensic and criminological psychology at the University of Staffordshire. His professional background includes analysing criminal behaviour at the Korean National Police Agency, studying investigative psychology at the University of Liverpool, and training police officers at the Institute of Policing.

Dr Kim's research explores psychological approaches to criminal investigations, particularly in cross-cultural contexts. His work focuses on individual differences in decision-making, rapport-based communication, and offending behaviour, aiming to enhance investigators' non-technical skills and develop intelligence strategies for serious crimes. His research utilizes various methods, from experimental studies to real-world observations. He is also keen to supervise doctoral students in this field.

Professional memberships and activities

The British Psychological Society
The Centre for Crime, Justice, and Security
The Higher Education Academy
The Korean Psychological Association

Academic qualifications

PhD in Investigative Psychology, University of Liverpool
MSc in Investigative Psychology, University of Liverpool
PgCert in Higher and Professional Education, University of Staffordshire
BA in Psychology, Jeonbuk National University

Research interests

Cross-cultural communication
Individual differences
Naturalistic decision-making
Rapport-based interpersonal techniques

Teaching

Forensic application of psychology
Pathways in forensic & criminological psychology
People behaving badly
Psychology in the justice system
Psychology of crime and serious offending
Psychology of social perception

Publications

Kim, S., & Alison, L. (2024, July 21-26). Observing Rapport-Based Interpersonal Techniques to improve victim engagement in police interviews. [Oral presentation]. 33rd International Congress of Psychology. Prague, Czech Republic.

Kim, S., Alison, L., & Christiansen, P. (2020). Observing Rapport-Based Interpersonal Techniques to Gather Information from Victims. Journal of Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 26(2), 166–175.

Kim, S., Alison, L., & Christiansen, P. (2020). The impact of individual differences on investigative hypothesis generation under time pressure. International Journal of Police Science and Management, 22(2), 171-182.

Kim, S., Almond, L., & Eyre, M. (2020). Profiling Korean sex crimes: Offender characteristics and crime scene actions. Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 17(1), 59-73.

Kim, S., & Park, Y. (2012, July 22-28). A case study: robbery-homicide on an elderly couple. [Poster presentation]. 97th International Educational Conference of the International Association for Identification. Phoenix, AZ, United States.

sunghwan.kim@staffs.ac.uk