TY - JOUR
T1 - Awareness of forensic anthropology in Switzerland
T2 - a survey among forensic practitioners, police, and prosecutors
AU - Siebke, Inga
AU - Abegg, Claudine
AU - Fracasso, Tony
AU - Moghaddam, Negahnaz
AU - Obertová, Zuzana
PY - 2024/5
Y1 - 2024/5
N2 - Forensic anthropology (FA) as a specialized discipline has been practised in multi-lingual Switzerland for over a decade. A variety of expertise regarding osteological assessments as well as facial image comparison (FIC) is provided by different centres. Nevertheless, information is lacking about the awareness of FA and its benefits for forensic investigations among forensic stakeholders. Therefore, a survey was sent to Swiss anthropologists (AN) and related professions (police officers, prosecutors, and forensic pathologists) to assess three main aspects: (1) the experience of working (biological/forensic) anthropologists within FA; (2) how FA is perceived by other professions within the legal system; and (3) identify gaps (if any) in understanding of FA with the aim to suggest avenues for improvement if necessary. The results show that awareness of FA varies by occupation and cantonal regions. In areas where close collaborations between forensic anthropologists (FAs) and other stakeholders have been formally established, be it with focus on osteological analyses or FIC, the awareness of FA competencies was superior to areas where this was not the case. An overwhelming majority of forensic actors expressed interest in continuing education related to the role of FA. These findings indicate that facilitation of communication and collaboration leads to improvement in the awareness of the competencies of FAs and their contribution to forensic investigations.
AB - Forensic anthropology (FA) as a specialized discipline has been practised in multi-lingual Switzerland for over a decade. A variety of expertise regarding osteological assessments as well as facial image comparison (FIC) is provided by different centres. Nevertheless, information is lacking about the awareness of FA and its benefits for forensic investigations among forensic stakeholders. Therefore, a survey was sent to Swiss anthropologists (AN) and related professions (police officers, prosecutors, and forensic pathologists) to assess three main aspects: (1) the experience of working (biological/forensic) anthropologists within FA; (2) how FA is perceived by other professions within the legal system; and (3) identify gaps (if any) in understanding of FA with the aim to suggest avenues for improvement if necessary. The results show that awareness of FA varies by occupation and cantonal regions. In areas where close collaborations between forensic anthropologists (FAs) and other stakeholders have been formally established, be it with focus on osteological analyses or FIC, the awareness of FA competencies was superior to areas where this was not the case. An overwhelming majority of forensic actors expressed interest in continuing education related to the role of FA. These findings indicate that facilitation of communication and collaboration leads to improvement in the awareness of the competencies of FAs and their contribution to forensic investigations.
KW - Facial image comparison
KW - Forensic anthropology
KW - Forensic collaboration
KW - Human remains
KW - Legal medicine
KW - Questionnaire
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85176421839&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00414-023-03116-9
DO - 10.1007/s00414-023-03116-9
M3 - Article
C2 - 37964038
AN - SCOPUS:85176421839
SN - 0937-9827
VL - 138
SP - 1067
EP - 1077
JO - International Journal of Legal Medicine
JF - International Journal of Legal Medicine
IS - 3
ER -