Understanding Police Interrogation

Understanding Police Interrogation

Author: William Douglas Woody

Publisher: NYU Press

Published: 2020-03-03

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13: 147985736X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Uses techniques from psychological science and legal theory to explore police interrogation in the United States Understanding Police Interrogation provides a single comprehensive source for understanding issues relating to police interrogation and confession. It sheds light on the range of factors that may influence the outcome of the interrogation of a suspect, which ones make it more likely that a person will confess, and which may also inadvertently lead to false confessions. There is a significant psychological component to police interrogations, as interrogators may try to build rapport with the suspect, or trick them into thinking there is evidence against them that does not exist. Also important is the extent to which the interrogator is convinced of the suspect’s guilt, a factor that has clear ramifications for today’s debates over treatment of black suspects and other people of color in the criminal justice system. The volume employs a totality of the circumstances approach, arguing that a number of integrated factors, such as the characteristics of the suspect, the characteristics of the interrogators, interrogation techniques and location, community perceptions of law enforcement, and expectations for jurors and judges, all contribute to the nature of interrogations and the outcomes and perceptions of the criminal justice system. The authors argue that by drawing on this approach we can better explain the likelihood of interrogation outcomes, including true and false confessions, and provide both scholars and practitioners with a greater understanding of best practices going forward.


The Psychology of False Confessions

The Psychology of False Confessions

Author: Gisli H. Gudjonsson

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2018-07-23

Total Pages: 552

ISBN-13: 1119315670

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Provides a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the development of the science behind the psychology of false confessions Four decades ago, little was known or understood about false confessions and the reasons behind them. So much has changed since then due in part to the diligent work done by Gisli H. Gudjonsson. This eye-opening book by the Icelandic/British clinical forensic psychologist, who in the mid 1970s had worked as detective in Reykjavik, offers a complete and current analysis of how the study of the psychology of false confessions came about, including the relevant theories and empirical/experimental evidence base. It also provides a reflective review of the gradual development of the science and how it can be applied to real life cases. Based on Gudjonsson’s personal account of the biggest murder investigations in Iceland’s history, as well as other landmark cases, The Psychology of False Confessions: Forty Years of Science and Practice takes readers inside the minds of those who sit on both sides of the interrogation table to examine why confessions to crimes occur even when the confessor is innocent. Presented in three parts, the book covers how the science of studying false confessions emerged and grew to become a regular field of practice. It then goes deep into the investigation of the mid-1970s assumed murders of two men in Iceland and the people held responsible for them. It finishes with an in-depth psychological analysis of the confessions of the six people convicted. Written by an expert extensively involved in the development of the science and its application to real life cases Covers the most sensational murder cases in Iceland’s history Deep analysis of the ‘Reykjavik Confessions’ adds crucial evidence to understanding how and why coerced-internalized false confessions occur, and their detrimental and lasting effects on memory The Psychology of False Confessions: Forty Years of Science and Practice is an important source book for students, academics, criminologists, and clinical, forensic, and social psychologists and psychiatrists.


Confessions in the Courtroom

Confessions in the Courtroom

Author: Lawrence S. Wrightsman

Publisher: SAGE Publications

Published: 1993-05-28

Total Pages: 179

ISBN-13: 1452254028

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

When the prosecution introduces confession testimony during a criminal trial, the effect is usually overwhelming. In fact, jurors′ verdicts are affected more by a confession than by eyewitness testimony. While eyewitness studies are massive in numbers, the topic of confession evidence has been largely ignored by psychologists and other social scientists. Confessions in the Courtroom seeks to rectify this discrepancy. This timely book examines how the legal system has evolved in its treatment of confessions over the last half century and discusses, at length, the U.S. Supreme Court′s decision regarding Arizona v. Fulminante which caused a reassessment of the acceptability of confessions generated under duress. The authors examine the causes of confessions and the interrogation procedure used by the police. They also evaluate the process for determining the admissability of confession testimony and provide excellent research on jurors′ reactions to voluntary and coerced confessions. Social scientists, attorneys, members of the criminal justice system, and students will find Confessions in the Courtroom to be an objective and readable treatment on this important topic. "In this short volume, the authors seek "to describe and evaluate what we know about confessions given to police and their impact at the subsequent trial." It is a comprehensive review of the social psychological literature and legal decisions surrounding confessions. One of the primary strengths of the manuscript is the interplay between social science and law fostered by the authors′ clear understanding of the boundaries between these disciplines and appreciation of the substantive areas they share. . . . [The authors] have produced a comprehensive and imminently readable legal and psychological treatise on confessions, valuable for established scholars and for students." --Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice


The Psychology of Evidence and Trial Procedure

The Psychology of Evidence and Trial Procedure

Author: Saul Kassin

Publisher: SAGE Publications, Incorporated

Published: 1985-05

Total Pages: 382

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Kassin and Wrightsman's book concentrates on the single most important determinant of verdicts -- the evidence and court procedure. It is divided into four parts: (1) an overview and historical perspective; (2) seven substantive topics like eyewitness accounts, confessions, and character evidence; (3) an examination of the major stages of trial procedure; and (4) a provocative discussion of the role that psychology does, and should, play in the judicial process. Written in non-technical language, this book should have a broad appeal to students, researchers and litigants alike. `Chapters are extremely well written and documented. The work is highly recommended for advanced undergraduates, graduate students and legal profess


Kids, Cops, and Confessions

Kids, Cops, and Confessions

Author: Barry C. Feld

Publisher: NYU Press

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 0814727778

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Juveniles possess less maturity, intelligence, and competence than adults, which heightens their vulnerability in the justice system. For this reason, states try juveniles in separate courts and use different sentencing standards than for adults. Yet, when police bring kids in for questioning, they use the same tactics they use for adults to elicit confessions or to produce incriminating evidence to use against them. In Kids, Cops, and Confessions, the author offers the first report of what actually happens when police question juveniles. Analyzing interrogation tapes and transcripts, police reports, juvenile court filings, and probation and sentencing reports, he describes in rich detail what actually happens inside the interrogation room.


Handbook of Moral Development

Handbook of Moral Development

Author: Melanie Killen

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2022-07-26

Total Pages: 682

ISBN-13: 1000604470

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Handbook of Moral Development is the definitive source of theory and research on the origins and development of morality in childhood and adolescence. It explores morality as fundamental to being human and enabling individuals to acquire social norms and develop social relationships that involve cooperation and mutual respect. Since the publication of the second edition, groundbreaking approaches to studying moral development have invigorated debates about how to conceptualize and measure morality in childhood and adolescence. The contributors of this new edition grapple with these questions from different theoretical perspectives and review cutting-edge research. The handbook, edited by Melanie Killen and Judith G. Smetana, includes chapters on parenting and socialization, values, emergence of prejudice and social exclusion, fairness and access to resources, moral reasoning and children’s rights, empathy, and prosocial behaviors. Morality is discussed in the context of families, peers, schools, and culture. Thoroughly updated and expanded, the third edition features new chapters on the following: Morality in infancy and early childhood Cognitive neuroscience perspectives on moral development Social responsibility in the context of social and racial justice Conceptions of economic and societal inequalities Stereotypes, bias, and discrimination Victimization and bullying in peer contexts Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the study of moral development, this edition contains contributions from sixty scholars in developmental science, social neuroscience, comparative and evolutionary psychology, and education, representing research conducted around the world. This book will be essential reading for scholars, educators, and students who are in the field of moral development, as well as social scientists, public health experts, and clinicians who are concerned with children and development.


The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions

The Psychology of Interrogations and Confessions

Author: Gisli H. Gudjonsson

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2003-05-27

Total Pages: 704

ISBN-13: 0470857943

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This volume, a sequel to The Psychology of Interrogations, Confessions and Testimony which is widely acclaimed by both scientists and practitioners, brings the field completely up-to-date and focuses in particular on aspects of vulnerability, confabulation and false confessions. The is an unrivalled integration of scientific knowledge of the psychological processes and research relating to interrogation, with the practical investigative and legal issues that bear upon obtaining, and using in court, evidence from interrogations of suspects. * Accessible style which will appeal to academics, students and practitioners * Authoritative integration of theory, research, practical implications and vivid case illustration * Coverage of topical issues like confabulation, false memory, and false confessions Part of the Wiley Series in The Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law


Why Torture Doesn’t Work

Why Torture Doesn’t Work

Author: Shane O'Mara

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2015-11-30

Total Pages: 333

ISBN-13: 0674743903

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Torture is banned because it is cruel and inhumane. But as Shane O’Mara writes in this account of the human brain under stress, another reason torture should never be condoned is because it does not work the way torturers assume it does. In countless films and TV shows such as Homeland and 24, torture is portrayed as a harsh necessity. If cruelty can extract secrets that will save lives, so be it. CIA officers and others conducted torture using precisely this justification. But does torture accomplish what its defenders say it does? For ethical reasons, there are no scientific studies of torture. But neuroscientists know a lot about how the brain reacts to fear, extreme temperatures, starvation, thirst, sleep deprivation, and immersion in freezing water, all tools of the torturer’s trade. These stressors create problems for memory, mood, and thinking, and sufferers predictably produce information that is deeply unreliable—and, for intelligence purposes, even counterproductive. As O’Mara guides us through the neuroscience of suffering, he reveals the brain to be much more complex than the brute calculations of torturers have allowed, and he points the way to a humane approach to interrogation, founded in the science of brain and behavior. Torture may be effective in forcing confessions, as in Stalin’s Russia. But if we want information that we can depend on to save lives, O’Mara writes, our model should be Napoleon: “It has always been recognized that this way of interrogating men, by putting them to torture, produces nothing worthwhile.”