Research methods in forensic psychology

Students wishing to undertake research on a forensic-relevant topic often have no difficulty coming up with interesting, novel and worthwhile research ideas; however, these ideas often are beyond the scope of what would be considered 'do-able' for a fourth year, or even Masters level, thesis. Often, the research topics that forensic students are initially interested in would take years to design, implement and analyse, or would never get past a university ethics committee! Some examples of the latter include studying psychopathic characteristics in children and the influence of memory-enhancing techniques on rape-victims' experience of trauma; examples of the former include the big question: Why do people commit crimes?