Standardizing Advanced Training in Forensic Anthropology: Defining a Clear Path to Achieve Forensic Specialization in Biological Anthropology

Abstract

The skillset of a biological anthropologist is applicable to medico legal death investigation. Among the specialists that examine the human body in a forensic context, biological anthropologists are uniquely skilled to derive information from the scarcest of physical materials. Given the high level of skill and experience required, the forensic specialization within biological anthropology necessitates an extended course of education and training especially pertaining to the interpretation of skeletal trauma, scientific identification, and recovery methods. In addition to providing guidance for trainees and educators, published standards legitimize the specialization and facilitate the evaluation of forensic anthropology expertise by peer professionals (e.g., forensic pathologists, law enforcement, and judges). A young discipline, forensic anthropology was only acknowledged as a specialization by the American Academy of Forensic Sciences in 1972. Over the past 50 years, forensic anthropologists have worked to professionalize the discipline, including standardization of education and training requirements. Achieving consensus on these standards has, and will continue to be, a dynamic process as improved technology and research improve practice. This manuscript presents the current state of the discipline and the varied ways forensic anthropology practitioners have been educated and trained. We argue that there is a consensus on minimum education and training requirements for a forensic anthropologist, especially with respect to analytical skills. However, the discourse around professionalism and personal growth is less robust. In a position that requires intensive inter-disciplinary communication and collaboration, a lack of attention to training in professionalism writ large is a serious gap; therefore, we propose immersive postdoctoral fellowships and other similar training in the Medical Examiner/Coroner setting to gain expertise in this specialization. Supervision of a senior forensic anthropologist is necessary not only to hone analytical skills and gain experience through exposure to a variety of cases but also to teach professionalism. Over time, we expect that this model will promote the value of forensic anthropological expertise and, by extension, their integration in the offices of the Medical Examiner in the future. Thus, the Forensic Anthropology Postdoctoral Fellowship is introduced here as a model for advanced training in forensic anthropology.