Forensic Psychology Flashcards
top down
What is offender profiling
A tool used by police when solving crimes- with the main aim being to narrow down the field of enquiry and make a list of suspects by looking at the crime scene and evidence
top down
What is the top down approach
Originated from FBI
Used to solve the most severe violent cases by interviewing most serious sexually motivated killers including ted bundy and Charles Manson
Also referred to as ‘typology’ as offenders are organised into organised or disorganised offender categories
top down
What are characteristics LH organised offenders
Plan crime in advance
Precision
Highly controlled
Lack of evidence
Usually married
Socially sound
Above average intelligence
top down
What are some traits of disorganised offenders
Lack of planning
Evidence left
Low iq
Socially awkward
Usually unemployed
Little interest in crime
top down
What are the four main stages of constructing an FBI profile
Data assimilation- evidence is reviewed
Crime scene classification- see if organised or disorganised
Crime reconstruction- hypothesis of how crime happened
Profile generation- hypothesis about offender (stature/behaviour)
top down
What are the strengths of the top down approach?
Supporting evidence- Canter looked at 100 US serial killings by using a ‘smallest space analysis’ which matched characteristics to crimes which matched the FBI typologies
Good generalisability- Meketa (2017) found that in 3 US states there has been an increase of 85% in solving burglaries using top down approach. categories of interpersonal and opportunistic made for this
top down
What are the weaknesses of the top down approach
contrast- Godwin argued that many criminals overlapped categories. suggests organised or disorganised typology is more of a continuum
Low internal validity- canter argues that the sample used of 36 serial killers was too niche and they were all interviewed using unstructured interviews so all questions were different and not comparable. all committed at least two murders and 25 committed multiple
bottom up
What is the bottom up approach
‘British approach’
Uses past data from similar crimes to build a picture of an offender. Investigators will look at crime scene and compare to similar ones in the past. Does not use typologies and is ‘data driven’
bottom up
What are the two main components of the bottom up approach
Investigative psychology
Geographical profiling
bottom up
What is investigative psychology
Compare a currently investigated crime scene to those of the past to find out the type of person that committed the crime by establishing patterns of behaviour
bottom up
What are the three main parts of investigative psychology
Interpersonal coherence- the way the offender behaves at the scene and how they ‘interact’ with the victim
Significance of time and place- shows where the offender is living
Forensic awareness- see how mindful they are of covering their tracks, can show if they have been investigated before
bottom up
What is geographical profiling
Based on spatial consistency
An offenders operational base and never crime locations can be discovered through previous crimes
bottom up
What are the three main parts of geographical profiling
Spatial consistency- people commit crimes within a limited space
Crime mapping- maps previous crimes to find base of criminal
Modus operandi- a particular way of method or doing something
bottom up
Wag are the two types of geographical criminal and what does this mean
Marauder- operates close to home base
Commuter- travels distance from usual residence
bottom up
What are the strengths of the bottom up approach
Supporting evidence- Gary Copson surveyed 48 police departments and bottom up approach was deemed useful in 83% of cases
Supporting evidence- Ludigran and Canter investigated 120 murder cases and found that where killers disposed of bodies formed a circle around their home base, this was more noticeable in marauders. supports canters circle theory
bottom up
What are the weaknesses of the bottom up approach
Mixed results- Copson found that bottom up approach lead to identification of offender in only 3% of cases in 48 police departments surveyed
Significant failures- Rachel nickell was killed and sexually assaulted in Wimbledon park. Colin Stagg was suspect and tracked for 5 months. Case closed due to lack of evidence. Robert Napper arrested 16 years later and had been dismissed prior due to being taller than description of killer
historic explanations
What is atavistic from
An early biological explanation which suggests criminals are subspecies or genetic throwbacks. That rate distinguishable by facial and cranial features
historic explanations
What was Lombroso’s research
Studied over 4000 skulls of dead and alive criminals and concluded 40% of crimes could be accounted for by atavistic characteristics
historic explanations
What are some criminal characteristics?
Narrow, sloping brow
High cheekbones
Facial asymmetry
Dark skin
Prominent jaw
Extra toes, nipples and fingers
historic explanations
What is a Strength of atavism
Changed criminal psychology- Hollin described Lombroso as ‘The father of modern criminology’ This was because he moved crime research towards more scientific measures. Also shows links to offender profiling.
historic explanations
What are the limitations of atavistic explanations
Poorly controlled- lombroso did not compare criminal samples with control non criminal sample so he could not control confounding variables, such as class.
Bad implications- Delisl and other critics have shown how there were racist undertones in Lombroso’s work. For example criminals having curly hair and dark skin.
contradictory evidence- Goring studied 3000 criminals and 3000 non crimi9nals and found no correlation between cranial features and crime
biological explanations
What was Lange’s research into genetic explanations for offending
Studied 17 MZ twins and 13 DZ twins where one of the twins had served time in prison.
Found that 10 of the MZ twins and only 2 of the DZ twins had both spent time in prison
biological explanations
What was Christiansen’s research into genetic explanations for offending
Studied over 3500 twins between 1880 and 1910
Found concordance rates of 35% of MZ twins and found 13% for DZ twins
biological explanations
What did Tiihonen discover about candidate genes
Found that 5-10% off all severe violent crimes in Finland could be attributed to the MAOA and CDH13 genes.
Individuals with both genes were 13x more likely to have a history of violent behaviour.
biological explanations
What does the MAOA gene do
MAOA is a chemical that breaks down excess neurotransmitters such as serotonin. If this gene is defective then there will be less serotonin being broken down so there will be an excess which could result in aggression and risk taking
biological explanations
What is the CDH13 gene linked to
ADHD and substance abuse
biological explanations
What is a strength of genetic explanations for offending
Supporting evidence- Mednick studies 13000 Danish adoptees who committed petty offences. Found that if neither biological or adopted parents had a criminal record the percentage of adoptees that did was 13.5%. If one biological parent did this rose to 20% and if one biological and one adopted parents did this rose to 24.5%
biological explanations
What is a weakness off genetic explanations of offending
Lack of validity- MZ twins are more likely to have higher concordance rates because they look the same so are therefore treated notes similarly than DZ twins
biological explanations
What are neutral explanations for offending behaviour
Looking at brain structure and how offenders may differ. Much of these findings come from offenders with antisocial personality disorder.
biological explanations
What is antisocial personality disorder associated with.
Reduced emotional and lack of empathy. Psychopaths are also impulsive, self-centred and manipulative
biological explanations
What did Raine find about APD
Found an 11% reduction in the volume of gray matter in the PFC of people with APD compared to a control group.
PFC regulates emotion
Damage to PFC can result in lack of control over impulses
biological explanations
What did Keysers find about mirror neurons
Asked psychopaths to watch someone on film feel pain
They did not feel empathy until told to
biological explanations
What were the suggestions of Keysners research
Psychopaths are not completely without empathy and can turn it on and off
biological explanations
What is a Strength of neural explanations for offending
Kandel and Freed rescued people with frontal lobe damage including to the PFC. They found evidence for lack of control over impulses and emotional instability, this supports Raine’s study
biological explanations
What are the weaknesses of neural explanations for offending
Intervening variables- Farmington studied a group of men who scored high on a psychopathy test and found many of them had convict parents or were physically neglected
Problematic real world implications- suggests they are hardwired to do crimes so hard to convict
psychological theory (eysenck)
What is Eysneck’s explanation for offending.
Personality can be measured on two dimensions introversion/extroversion and neuroticism/stability. He later added psychotism
psychological theory (eysenck)
What are examples of traits of psychotism, neuroticism and extroversion
Psychotism- aggressive, manipulative
Neuroticism- anxious, low self esteem
Extroversion- sociable, dominant
psychological theory (eysenck)
What did Eysenck say about extroverts, neurotic individuals and psychotic individuals
Extroverts- underactive nervous system, so participate in more risk taking activity
Neurotic individuals- nervous, jumpy, unpredictable
Psychotic individuals- higher levels of testosterone, cold and aggressive
psychological theory (eysenck)
What is a strength of Eysneck’s personality as an explanation for offending
Supporting evidence- Sybil and Hans Eysneck compared 2070 inmates to a control group of 2422 non criminals. They found that the criminal sample scored much higher on psychotism neuroticism and extroversion
psychological theory (eysenck)
Quay are weakness of Eysnecks personality as a theory for offending
Contradictory evidence- Farrington concluded via a meta analysis that offenders scored higher on P but not on N or E. Kussner also said there was very little difference between an introvert and an extrovert on an EEG measurement.
Poor generalisability- Bartol and Holanchock investigated the personalities of Hispanic and African American inmates in a high security prison in New York. They were split into 6 groups depending on their crime and all 6 groups are found to be less extrovert than a non criminal control group
too simplistic- Moffitt suggested that offending in adolescence and offending consistently are different. suggested that if someone is offending through their later life it is due to personality AND environment.
psychological theory (cognitive)
What dilemma did Kohlberg come up with
The Heinz dilemma
psychological theory (cognitive)
What were the findings from the Heinz dilemma
A group of violent youths were much lower in moral development than non violent youths.
psychological theory (cognitive)
What were Kohlberg’s stages of morality
Preconventional Morality
Stage 1- punishment orientation: rules are obeyed to avoid punishment
Stage 2-personal gain orientation- rules are obeyed for personal gain
Conventional morality
Stage 3- good boy orientation: rules are obeyed for approval
Stage 4- maintenance of social order
Postconventional morality
Stage 5- rules obeyed if impartial but challenged if oppressive
Stage 6- individual establishes own set of rules which align with their beliefs
psychological theory (cognitive)
What is a strength of Kohlbergs theory of offending
Supporting evidence- palmer and hollin compared 126 offenders to a control group and found low levels of morality are associated with offending using the Socio moral reflection short form (SMR-SF)
psychological theory (cognitive)
What are weaknesses of Kohlbergs’s theory for offending
Poor generalisability- Thornton and Reid found that for burglary and other crimes for financial gain morality was lower but for impulsive crimes there wasn’t a lack of morality
Poor internal validity- Rosen argues the Heinz situation doesn’t work as children aren’t married so the dilemma lacks realism
psychological theory (cognitive)
What are cognitive distortions
Faulty ways of thinking where a persons perceptions do not match reality. This can lead to criminals wrongly deny or justify their actions
psychological theory (cognitive)
What is hostile attribution bias
When people misinterpret a person or situation as being confrontational when it is not
psychological theory (cognitive)
What evidence supports hostile attribution bias as a theory for offending
Schonenberg and Justye presented 55 violent criminals with emotionally ambiguous facial expressions and the violent control group were much more likely to view the expressions as hostile
psychological theory (cognitive)
What is minimalisation
When an offender downplays the severity of their crime to revert guilt or even blame the victim
psychological theory (cognitive)
What research supports the theory of minimalisation as a theory for offending
Bombaree found that out of 26 convicted rapists 54% devoted committing a crime and 40% minimalised the harm they caused
Pollock and Hushnall found that 35% of a sample of child molesters said what they did want sexual and 36% stated the victim consented
psychological theory (cognitive)
What is a strength of cognitive distortions as an explanation for offending
Real works application- developed a way to give therapy to sex offenders to get them to ‘face up’ to their crimes and stop down playing it
psychological theory (cognitive)
What are weaknesses of cognitive distortions as explanation for offending
Poor generalisability- Howitt and Sheldon found that minimalisation depended on crime. Non physical sex offenders were more likely too minimalise crime than physical sec offenders
psychological theory (differential association)
What is the differential association theory
Proposes that behaviours and attitudes are learnt through the people you associate with
psychological theory (differential association)
What are the two main factors of the DA theory
Learning attitudes
Learning techniques
psychological theory (differential association)
What is the equation for likelihood of offending
Frequency + intensity + duration = Limehouse of offending
psychological theory (differential association)
What was farringtons study of DA
441 boys were surveyed from a deprived area of south london
41% were convicted of at least one offence between 10-50
Factors that were looked at between 8-10 were family criminality risk taking poverty etc
7% were said to be chronic offenders
psychological theory (differential association)
What are the strengths of DA as a theory of offending
Good generalisability- Sutherland found that some crimes such as burglaries were more common in working class communities and white collar crime was more prevalent in middle classes
Moved criminology forwards- DA established in 1924, moved criminology away from harmful theories such as atavistic form
psychological theory (differential association)
What are the limitations of DA as a theory for offending
Hard so prove- based off someone’s pro crime attitudes outweighing their anti crime ones but it is impossible to measure this so cannot be proved
Harmful- ignores that people can choose not to offend even if from rough environment, can create harmful stereotypes about the working class
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
What is custodial sentencing
Making an individual spend time incarcerated
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
What are the four main aims of custodial sentencing
Deterrence
Incapacitation
Retribution
Rehabilitation
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
Worst are the psychological effects of custodial sentencing
Stress and depression
Institutionalisation
Prisonisation
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
What are the global recidivism rates
UK- 45%
Norway- 20%
US and Australia- 60%
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
What is a strength of custodial sentencing
Good effects- Vera institute of justice claims that offenders who take part in college programmes in prison are 43% less likely to reoffend and more likely to be employed
dealing with offending behaviour (custodial sentencing)
What are the limitations of custodial sentencing
Worse for offenders- prisons can act as ‘schools for crime’ which leads to high recidivism rates and could mean petty offenders move onto worse crimes
Negative impacts- Bartol suggested that suicide rates are 9 times higher in prison than in the outside world. 25% of women and 15% of men in prisons show signs of psychosis
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What are the two psychodynamic explanations of crime
The inadequate superego
Maternal deprivation theory
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What are the three types of inadequate superego and why do they occur
The weak superego- when a same sex parent is absent so child cannot overcome complex through identification
The deviant superego- if same sex parents is criminal child will pick up characteristics through internalisation
The over harsh superego- crippled by anxiety and guilt so commits criminal acts due to superego’s need for punishment
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What is the maternal deprivation theory
Bowlby says that affectionless psychopathy can result of lack of a warm mother figure (IWM)
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What study supports theory of maternal deprivation as resulting in criminal activity
Bowlby’s 44 thieves study
14 classed as affectionless psychopaths
12/14 had been separated from their mothers a lot during first 2 years of their lives
Of a non criminal control group only 2 suffered from maternal deprivation
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What is a strength of psychodynamic explanations for offending
Supporting evidence- Goreta studied 10 criminals referred from psychiatric facilities and found all of them suffered from ‘disturbance in superego formation’ and all reported guilt and need for punishment
psychological theory (psychodynamic)
What are the weaknesses of the psychodynamic explanation for offending
Gender bias- Freud’s theory assumes that women have a weaker superego than men because they don’t have the fear of castration and therefore lack morals meaning they should be more prone to crime- 90% of people in prisons are males
Lack of evidence- psychodynamic approach relies on subconscious thoughts which cannot be tested to be wrong so is a ‘pseudoscience’
contrasting evidence- Lewis analysed interviews with 500 young people and found maternal deprivation played a limited role in future offending. if this was the case hard to establish cause and effect as mother being absent may link to poverty
dealing with offending behaviour (behaviour modification in custody)
What Are the strengths of token economy systems
Easy to use- can be implemented by anyone as training isn’t needed. Also very cheap and cost effective
Supporting evidence- Hobbs and Holt found that young offenders displayed more positive behaviour after using token economy system. Field supports this if reads were frequent and immediate
dealing with offending behaviour (behaviour modification in custody)
What are the limitations of token economy systems
Not rehabilitative- doesn’t look at why poor behaviour occurs so won’t fully change behaviour. Inmates can comply in prison but because of no rewards outside of prison they don’t behave well
Inconsistent approach- Basset and Blanchard found that all positive effects were lost if applied inconsistently. This was due to lack of staff training and high staff turnover.
Unethical- Moya and Achtenburg say the withdrawal of prisoners rights is unethical
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
How is anger management programmes a form of CBT
Patient is taught how to recognise cognitive factors that causes anger and techniques to combat it.
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
What are the aims of anger management
Short term aim of cutting down on anger and aggression in prisons
A long term aim of rehabilitation to reduce recidivism
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
What are the three stages of anger management
Cognitive preparation- offender thinks back to times they got angry and therapist gets them to see this was irrational.
Skill acquisition- offenders introduced to techniques to reduce anger including: positive self talk (cognitive), better communication (behavioural), meditation for relaxation (physiological)
Application- role play in carefully controlled environment
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
What did Keen find about anger management
Studied offenders between 17-21 who did 8 two hour sessions over 3 weeks
Offenders reported increased awareness of their anger and better self restraint
Some were said to not take it seriously and would forget diaries and forget routines etc
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
What is a strength of anger management
Long term- identifies cognitive causes of anger so offender can reinforce anger management outside of prison
dealing with offending behaviour (anger management)
What are the weaknesses of anger management
Short term- use of role play is artificial and downs reflect real life. May suggest why there is little evidence treatment works in the long term (blackburn)
Expensive- has to be carried out by highly trained specialists. This means that many prisons can’t afford this so many people can’t get help
doesnt work for everyone- Howells found that there was little impact when compared to control group except for those who showd intense levels of anger or showed willingness to change- where there was significant improvement
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What is restorative justice
A system of dealing with offender behaviour which focuses on the rehabilitation of offenders through reconciliation with the victim. This enables the offender to see the impact of their crime and gives the victim a voice.
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What are the 5 things restorative justice provide victims with
An opportunity to explain the impact of the crime
An acknowledgement of the harm caused
A chance to ask questions
Acceptance of responsibility
Active not passive involvement from both
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What did braithwait say about restorative justice
‘Crime hurts, justice should heal’ restorative justice is now about reparation than retribution
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What features does a restorative justice programme have
Trained mediator
Non courtroom setting
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
How does restorative justice effect sentencing
Can reduce time served
Can lead to community service not prison
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What are the three types of restitution
Financial
Practical
Emotional
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What are the strengths of restorative justice
Supporting evidence- Shapland found 85% of victims were satisfied, 78% would recommend it, 60% said it made them feel better, 2% said they felt worse.
Long term help- Strang conducted a meta analysis and found a drop in recidivism in criminals who took part in RJ. Bain found the same thing
dealing with offending behaviour (restorative justice)
What are the weaknesses of restorative justice
Not always effective- Van Gijsegham suggests offenders only do it for personal gain. This means it is not always effective and can be the opposite
Cannot be done by everyone- cannot be done by domestic abuse victims due to a power imbalance and pressure on the victim
bottom up
what is the ‘cente of gravity’
an area established by profilers when investigating thye area in which a criminal has worked
bottom up
what is Canter’s circle theory
when the offedners base and where their crimnes occurred are circled to show if they are a maurauder or a commuter
historical explanations
what features did lombroso say murderers had
bloodshot eyes
curly hair
long ears
historical explanations
what features did lombroso say sexual deviants had
glinting eyes
fleshly lips
projecting ears
historical explanations
what features did lombroso say fraudsters had
thin and reedy lips
biological explanations
what model is thought to play a part in genetic causes of offending
diathesis-stress
eysenck
what did eysenck believe about the role of socialisation
offenders are devlopmentally immature and demand instant gratification
socialisation is when children learn to delay instant gratification
E believed those with high E and N scores had nervous systems which made them difficult to condition
eysenck
how did eysenck measure criminal personality
eysenck personality questionnaire (EPQ)
kohlberg
what morality level are offenders more likely to be in
1 and 2
kohlberg
how does chandlers research support kohlbergs theory
found offenders are often more egocentric and have poorer perspective-taking skills than non offenders
differential association
what did sutherland say he wanted to develop
a set of scientific principles that could explain all types of offending.
differential association
how does socialisation in prison affect DA
explains why people reoffend upon release
they learn new techniques and attitudes from observation, tuition etc
psychodynamic
how does the superego play a part in morals
develops at end of phallic stage
works on moprality principle
it punishes id with guilt and rewrads it with pride
psychodynamic
how does the supergo explain offending
if it is somehow deviant then the id has free rein
custodial sentencing
what does prisonisation mean
when a person adopts an ‘inmate code’ which may reward them inside an institution but is seen as unacceptable in the real world
custodial sentencing
what does institutionaliosation mean
when a person adapts to the norms of life inside so much they cannot function on the outside
token economy
what approach do tojken economy systems take on
behaviourist
token economy
what form of conditioning is tokjen economy systems an exampke of
operant
token economy
what are the tokens in a token economy system
secondary reinforcers
token economy
how do token economy systems achieve target behaviours
through operationalised target behaviours- breaking target behaviours into smaller pieces
token economy
how should tokens outnumber pubnishments
4-1 (Gendreau)
token economy
what is the masin aim of training staff for token economy systems
make sure it is standardised
restoratative justice
what are the two main focusus’ of restoratative justice
help the ‘survivor’ of the crime to recover
help the offender to recover
restoratative justice
what is the restoratative justice council
an independant body which establishes clear standards for restoratative justice and aids survivors and proffesionals in the field
