Criminal Psychology Flashcards
How can brain injury lead to criminality
- Phineas Gage
- Damage to the Frontal Lobe affect our ability to consider alternative behaviour and consider consequences
- William et al found that 60% of young offenders have brain damage
How does Amygdala effect criminality
- Damage to the amygdala leads less control over aggression and impulse
- Leads to people misinterpreting stimulus as threats
- Charles Whitman
What is XYY how does it lead to criminality
- Genetic condition where men have an extra Y chromosome which leads to men being more aggressive and have low impulse control
- Brown ‘65 found that 314 patients have XYY and suggested hospitalising them
What is the Warrior Gene and how does it effect criminality
- Causes low MAO-O production
- A correlation has been found between MAO and Agg.
- High dopamine = Reward feeling when aggressive
- Low serotonin = impulsive behaviours
- High Noradrenaline = overreaction to threats
How does Hormones effect criminality
- There is a correlation between testosterone and aggression
- Explains why women who have high testosterone levels are more aggressive
- Explains why steroids increase aggression
Who is Raine et al
- Conducted a study on 41 NGRI
- Used PET Scans of Hippocampus, thalamus, corpus collosum (CC), amygdala and prefrontal cortex (PFC)
- Found low activity in PFC
- Found asymmetrical activity in amygdala
- Low activity in the CC
What is Eysenck’s Personality
- Extraversion = Risk Taking
- Neuroticism = Stability
- Psychotic = respect for authority
- Individuals that have a high PEN score are more likely to commit crime
How does IQ impact criminality
- Prison Population consistently show low scores in IQ tests
What is a Formal and Informal Label
- A formal label is a label given by the justice system
- An informal label is a label given by someone who doesn’t have authority to distinguish deviant and deviant behaviours
Examples of a Formal and Informal label
- Formal: Criminal
- Informal: Troublemaker
What does Matsuda ‘92 say about Labelling Theory
- Sense of one’s self is formed based on interactions with other people
- Being convicted leads to a social stigma lead to a person being isolated
What is Labelling Theory
- belief that labels assigned by can effect an individual and their behaviour
What does Becker et al ‘63 say about Labelling theory
- Devience is a natural part of adolescence
- label can be internalise and overtake someone’s identity
How does Racial Profiling effect criminality
- 38% of ethnic minorities are suspected of shoplifting
- 24% of black drivers have been stopped and searched
- 5% of white drives have been stopped and searched
What is Self Fulfilling Prophecy
- Others will behave towards us according the our labels
- we internalise labels we are given and behave as accordingly
What is Social Learning Theory
- Bandura ‘63 tested vicarious reinforcement
- Argues even if the behaviour observed isn’t replicated they would have still learnt the behaviour
- Attention > Retention > Reproduction > Motivation
- Seeing criminals will make us want to do criminal behaviour as well
What is External and Internal Motivations of crime
- External motivation is being paid for a crime
- Internal motivation is fulfilling a need by committing crime
What is the REID Technique
- Widely used in USA which is criticised for being coercive leading to failed confessions
- Does this by asking questions like alternative questions which are based on implicit assumptions of guilty
What is wrong with Police Interviews
- Criticised for being ineffective
- Cognitive Psychology explains that’s wrongful convictions can be made as there is room for faulty schemas to effect the evidence given by witnesses
What is a Cognitive Interview
- Fisher ‘92
- Witness should be allowed to talk without interruption
1. Report everything
2. Reinstate key points
3. Reverse the order
4. Change the perspective
What is an Ethical Interview
- Gray ‘04 offers alternative ways police can conduct interviews
- Following ethical guidelines and laws with right to not answer and informed consent
What is the PEACE Framework
- 1992
- Suspect are more inclined to cooperate if they feel relaxed and not threatened
What does the P in PEACE mean
- Plan and Prepare
- Must take into account available information key issue and objective
- Take into account characteristics of interviewees
What does the first E in PEACE mean
- Engage
- Active listening helps establish and maintain rapport ( a understanding relationship)
- Objectives of the interviews should be outlined
What does the A stand for in PEACE
- Account clarification and challenge
- Five question types interviewee can be asked
- Open ended
- Specific closed ended
- Forced choice
- Multiple choice
- Leading
What does the C in PEACE mean
- Closure
- Interview shouldn’t not end abruptly
- The officer and the interviewee can ask any questions
- Interviewee will be told what will happen next
What does the last E stand for PEACE
- Evaluate
- Interviewer must evaluate:
- Whether any further action is necessary
- How the interviewees story fits into the events
What are 2 Strengths of Cognitive and Ethical Interviews
- Chrstianson ‘02 found that interviews which involved intimidation usually resulted in less confessions
- Cognitive Interviews are more effective in the recall of crime that the standardised methods now
What are 2 Weaknesses of Cognitive and Ethical Interviews
- Cognitive Interviews lead to more inaccurate information to be given Kohnken ‘99 found CL increased info by 80% but 60% of the information was inaccurate
- Bull ‘10 found that many officers did not know how to used PEACE effectively and only 63% of interviews using the framework was satisfactory
What is Psychological Formulation
- The framework which connects an individuals characteristics, experiences and behaviour can be understood
What is Psychology Formulation useful
- It created a hypothesis as to why individuals initially committed and maintained behaviours
- It also helps with establishing treatment for these individuals to create the most effective chance
What is an Offence Analysis
- Gains an insight into the motivations of the crime
- Determining the risk of reoffending
- What changes can be made in the offenders life to reduce the risk
What is the function of offending
- Was the reason for offending to fulfil a need
- What purpose does it serve the offender
What does John Bowlby ‘44 say about offending
- Maternal Deprivation
- 44 thieves study found that 17/44 had prolonged separation from before 5 years
What does social psychology say about offending
- Criminals grew up in rough areas
- They may view other criminals and gangs in the area as a “tribe”
- Social Identity Theory
What is the application to treatment of psychological formation
- Big overlap between criminality and mental health disorders
- An intervention and rehabilitation needs to be offered which looks into how to reduce reoffending and how likely is the person to complete the whole program
What is Paraphilia
- Intense sexual desires for objects, situations and individuals
How can SSRI be used to treat sex offending
- Serotonin increases impulse control
- SSRI have a side effect of reduced sex drive
- Sex offenders have intrusive thoughts similar to OCD which is also treated with SSRI
How can Anti-androgens be used to treat sex offenders
- Blocks the actions of testosterone
- Kaye ‘99 found that hormone blockers reduce paedophilla thoughts and increase arousal towards consenting adults
How can Chemical Castration be used to treat sex offenders
- Reduces testosterone to the point of a prepubescent child
- Patient need to keep taking the medication
- As effective as surgical castration
What is an alternative Biological Treatment for offenders
- Studies show a correlation between diet and mental health
- Gesch ‘02 gave young males prisoners with violent behaviour multivitamins minerals and essential fatty acids
- Violent offences fell by a third
How is CBT used to treat offenders
- Gains insight into their thought patterns causing them to behave like a criminal
- Changes cognition and behaviour’s patterns of offenders to act and think more pro social
How does CBT Reasoning and Rehabilitation work
- Offenders have not acquired the basic cognition and social skills necessary for resolving life problems in pro social ways
- 36 2 hours sessions
- Targets groups of young offenders, drug users and violent offenders
- Does not work on psychopaths or offenders with high levels of emotional intelligence
- Supported by Norway who focuses on rehabilitation and has 20% recidivism rates
How does CBT Anger Management work
- Offenders cannot control anger
- Novaco ‘75 some offenders perceive situations as threatening
- Triggers aggressive thoughts and behaviour
How does CBT Reasoning Enhanced Thinking
- Gets offenders to reflect on situations that have caused anger in the past
- Teachers to rationalise and revaluate behaviour
How does CBT Social Skills work
- Teaching social skills to control emotions instead of letting emotions control them
What is the Good Lives Model and how is it used to treat offenders
- Ward ‘02
- Gets offenders to identify what they want from life
- Then learn how to achieve these without hurting themselves or others
What are 2 Strengths of Non-biological Treatments
- Supported by Norway 20% recidivism rates
- Holbrook ‘97 compared desired for revenge before and after CBT and saw a significant reduction
What are 2 Weaknesses of Non-biological Treatments
- In order for CBT to be effective offenders need to be motivated to see the treatment through
- Its a form of social control as it doesn’t cure the offender it just moulds the offender to society rules and views
What is an Eyewitness Testimony
- When someone is a victim/witness to crime they can provide an EWT
- May be vital when apprehending someone
- UK cannot prosecute someone solely on based on EWT
What is a Schema
- A mental representation of the world and how we understand it
What is Post Event Information
- 1992 loftus called this “misinformation acceptance”
- After an event individuals accept happens when there is a longer period of time between the event and giving the statement
What is Weapon Focus
- Loftus ‘87
- 36 students watched 18 scenes
- Experimental group watched a customer take a gun
- Eye movements were tracked
- Asked to pick out the customer from 12 heads and 11% got it right
Eye-witness Testimony: Credibility
- Supported by study done by Loftus and Messo ‘87 which provides evidence that language and weapons change memories
Eye-witness Testimony: Objection
- The explanation for EWT is not fully understood as it is still being debated whether it is due to unusualness or arousal
Eye-witness Testimony: Differences
- EWT is not an objective accurate form of evidence so a conviction should not be made solely based on EWT instead should use DNA evidence as it is more accurate and objective
Eye-witness Testimony: Application
- In January 2022 385 people were exonerated by DNA testing since 1981 which 21 being sentenced to death
Criminal: Classic Study Generalisability
- Not very generalisable because PP are made up of 45 universities students who most of do not have driving experience
Criminal: Classic Study Reliability
- Very reliable as the test can be replicated by anyone as it has a clear standardised procedure
Criminal: Classic Study Application
- Applied to questions of accuracy of EWT in court cases as an expert witness
Criminal: Classic Study Validity
- Lack of ecological validity because there the PP did not witness the incidents in person meaning they have a lack of emotional connection to the event unlike eye witnesses
Criminal: Classic Study Ethics
- No ethical issues as it passed the ethics research board
- The implications of this study undermines and negatively impacts credible testimonies given
Criminal Contemporary Study: Generalisability
- Data was taken from actual trials in 4 states over 2 years
- Can be generalised to real cases which are similar to these
Criminal Contemporary Study: Reliability
- Data was taken from actual trials unlike many other studies based on court rooms which use mock trials
- It is difficult to replicate but more reliable than mock trials
Criminal Contemporary Study: Application
- Jury make-up had and influence on black defendant conviction
- Can be applied to juries in many cases
Criminal Contemporary Study: Validity
- Based on real trials meaning ecological validity
Criminal Contemporary Study: Ethics
- Deception- jurors do not know that they would be analysed
What was the Aim of the Classic Study
- To test their hypothesis that the language used in eyewitness testimonies an alter memories
What is the Procedure of the Classic Study
- 45 American students
- Lab exp / Opportunity sampling
- 5 conditions- smashed, hit, collided, bumped and contacted
- 7 films of traffic accidents presented in a random order
- PP asked to describe what happened as if they were an eye witness
- asked how fast the car was going
What was the IV of the Classic Study
- Wording of the question
What was the DV of the Classic Study
- Speed Reported
What are the Result of the Classic Study
- Smashed estimated 9mph faster than collided
- later asked if there was broken glass a week later
What are the Conclusions of the Classic Study
- Estimated speed was affected by the verb used
- The verb implied information about the speed which affected the PP memory of the accident
What are the Implications of the Classic Study
- Eyewitness Testimonies might be biased by the way they’re questioned
- Verbs changes a persons perception on the accident
What is a Jury
- UK 12 members
- A range of ages, ethnicity and gender are used to create a fair representation
- They observe and hear the arguments from both the defence and prosecution
- They have to reach a unanimous decision
How can Attractiveness effect Jury Decision making
- You’re more likely to be a proven innocent if you’re more attractive
- Jacobson ‘81 found that attractive rapist are likely to be given less harsh sentences
How can Gender effect Jury Decisions making
- Men are 4 times more likely to commit a crime
- In cases of sexual abuse 95% men 5% women
- Leads to bias schemas that men are guilty and women aren’t criminals
- If a female commits crime involving their femininity are likely to receive harsher sentences
How can Race effect Jury Decision making
- African Americans are more likely to be found guilty that White Americans defendants
- More likely to receive the death penalty
How can Accent effect Jury Decision making
- Dixon ‘02 found found rating of guilty is significantly higher for the birmingham accent
What is Pre-trial Publicity
- If jurors hear about the case before the trial starts it can lead to them already deciding a defendants innocence or guilty
- Example OJ Simpson
- If PTP can’t be removed court will have to reschedule with a new jury
- Holin ‘89 suggests juries are supposed to be representative of the community so knowing the defendant is defendant
Credibility: Juries Decision making
- Majority of juries decision are based on mock trials
- Dixon ‘02
Objection: Juries Decision making
- Reductionist as there are additional factors such as pressure or deliberation times
Difference: Juries Decision making
- Party ‘08 found that jurors who discuss the trials with others are more likely to find an attractive defendant guilty
Application: Juries Decision making
- Shows the importance of the system decisions to carefully seek jury memebers
- USA defence attorney can ask to have certain jurors changed
- Importance of the decision made by the jury highlighted
Contemporary Study: Aims
- To see if a majority of white or hispanic jury will be more likely to convict a black defendant
Contemporary Study: Procedure
- Secondary data taken from real trials
- Only trials with black defendants were used because they make up 60% of the cases
- Opportunity sampling
- Data Analysis: Correlation but will norminal data
What is the IV and DV of the Contemporary Study
- IV: Race of Jury
- DV: Result of the conviction
What is the CV of the Contemporary Study
- 7 CV
- Quality of evidence
- Length of trials
- Length of deliberation
What is the Findings and Conclusions of the Contemporary Study
- Black defendant are less likely to be convicted by juries with a black majority
- Juries with mostly white jurors were more kiels to convict black defendants
- None of the control variables had a significant influence on convictions
