Lecture 4 - Forensic Assesment Flashcards
What is the biopsychosocial model?
Biopsychosocial Model
Biology:
● Physical health considerations.
● Genetic vulnerabilities.
● Effects of drugs or substances.
Psychological:
● Coping skills assessment.
● Social skills evaluation.
● Family relationships examination.
● Evaluation of self-esteem and mental health.
Social:
● Assessment of peer relationships.
● Consideration of family circumstances.
● Examination of family relationships.
How does the brain develop?
● Continues into adulthood.
● Prefrontal cortex (front brain) undergoes development into the 20s and 25s, controlling behavior.
● Development rates vary among individuals, akin to variations in speech or walking abilities at ages 1-3.
How does the development of the brain differ in brain areas?
Social Emotional System (Amygdala):
● Fully develops around ages 16-20.
● Concentrated emotional activity during adolescence.
● Adolescents are highly engaged in emotions, peer relations, and social perception.
Cognitive Control System:
● Still in the process of development.
● Active emotional control system vs. developing cognitive control system.
● Risk-taking behavior in young adults and adolescents due to the imbalance; desire for high-risk activities without full control.
How does the development of the brain differ in brain areas relate to delinquent behavior?
Discussion: Is maturation of cognition related to delinquent behavior?
Consideration of its importance for certain types of criminal behavior.
Accidents and Peer Influence
● Examples of risky behavior influenced by brain development.
● Accidents, non-fatal self-inflicted injuries, unintentional drownings linked to risk-taking.
● Friends play a significant role, especially for adolescents and young adults.
● Graphs illustrate the impact of peer influence on risk-taking behavior.
What is reward sensitivity?
Adolescents show higher sensitivity to larger rewards, more willing to work for significant incentives.
How does Dutch Law look at delayed development?
Since April 1st 2014 there is a limit for applying juvenile criminal law from 21 years to 23 years BUT only when development is delayed
What is persistent aggressive behaviour in relation to the brain?
Deficiencies in
● Emotion regulation and empathy (amygdala)
● Reward sensitivity (amygdala and prefrontal cortex)
● Executive functioning (prefrontal cortex)
People who are tempted to commit crimes have a decreased amygdala response. They have problems with empathy, understanding that their actions have consequences, they may use others for their own benefit, more toward psychopathic behavior. The amygdala and prefrontal cortex have to work together to show normal reward sensitivity, in adolescence the reward sensitivity is really high and the punishment sensitivity is rather low. They think about the rewards they get, and not the punishment that is related to their behavior in the future. Problems with executive functioning (controlling behavior, shifting behavior), changing between different behaviors is not really something they are well capable of doing. These mechanisms may drive them to more criminal behavior.
How to asses empathy?
Mimicking facial expressions, matching muscle contractions; with lack of empathy you won’t do this as quickly as an empathic person.
What is unhealthy reward sensitvity?
The persisters do not seem to have a response that tells them they should stop with their behavior
What is the Impulsivity Graph?
More prone to do things that they should not do, but when they commit crimes most of them are under the influence of some kind of drugs or alcohol, which elevates their impulsivity. When you test them without the drugs the differences are not that big, it is just an additional factor.
