40 Questions
What percentage of prisoners who were later exonerated by DNA evidence made false confessions?
27%
What percentage of inmates in an Icelandic prison claimed to have made a false confession during a police interview?
12%
How many types of false confessions are identified by Gudjonsson (2003)?
3
What is a common reason for making a voluntary false confession?
To protect the real offender
What is the main characteristic of a coerced-compliant false confession?
The confessor wants to escape further interrogation
What is the outcome of a coerced-internalised false confession?
The confessor believes they committed the crime
Why might someone make a false confession to protect another person?
To protect a friend or family member
What is the relationship between coerced-compliant and coerced-internalised false confessions?
Coerced-internalised is a type of coerced-compliant
What is the purpose of providing suspects with two alternative explanations for the crime?
To give the suspect an opportunity to provide an explanation or excuse
What is the goal of minimisation and maximisation techniques in the 9-Step Approach?
To create a more positive attitude towards confession
Why is it important to convert an oral confession into a written one?
To provide a formal record of the confession
What is a concern with the 9-Step Approach?
Officers may enter the interrogation with an assumption of guilt
What is a potential consequence of pressing suspects to confess?
The suspect becomes less cooperative
Why is it a concern that police officers may think it's okay to bluff in other circumstances?
It undermines trust in police
What is a potential risk for vulnerable suspects who undergo the 9-Step Approach?
They may experience PTSD
What is a limitation of the 9-Step Approach?
Police officers may not be able to accurately detect deception
What is the primary goal of the 9-step process in an accusatorial interrogation?
To obtain a confession from the suspect
What is the purpose of the initial positive confrontation in an accusatorial interrogation?
To present real or fictional evidence and accuse the suspect of the crime
What is the goal of theme development in an accusatorial interrogation?
To develop psychological themes to justify the crime
How do innocent suspects typically respond to denials in an accusatorial interrogation?
They do not allow their denials to be cut off
What is the purpose of the small, bare room setting in an accusatorial interrogation?
To control the lighting and environment
What is the goal of overcoming objections in an accusatorial interrogation?
To show understanding and return to the conversation theme
What is the purpose of the interrogator's physical movement in retaining the suspect's attention?
To move physically closer to the suspect and maintain eye contact
What is the purpose of handling the suspect's mood in an accusatorial interrogation?
To exhibit signs of sympathy and urge the suspect to tell the truth
What is a potential drawback of using persuasive techniques to obtain confessions?
All of the above
According to the SUE technique, what can help distinguish truthtellers from liars?
Late disclosure of evidence
What is a benefit of videotaping interrogations?
It protects police against false allegations of abuse
Why do detectives often assume suspects are guilty?
Because of the pressure to solve crimes quickly
What percentage of suspects confess?
49-61%
What is a significant predictor of confession?
All of the above
What is a common misconception about suspects?
They always deny involvement in crimes
What is the benefit of recording interviews with suspects in Australia?
It protects police against false allegations of abuse
Who are more susceptible to false confessions?
People with learning disabilities
What is compliance in the context of false confessions?
Tendency to go along with people in authority
What was the purpose of the study by Kassin and Kiechel (1996)?
To investigate the effects of false evidence on confessions
What was the outcome of the study by Kassin and Kiechel (1996) when participants were presented with false evidence?
The percentage of false confessions increased
What was the criticism of Kassin and Kiechel's study (1996) by Horselenberg et al. (2003)?
The participants did not suffer any negative consequences for confessing
What was the outcome of the study by Horselenberg et al. (2003)?
The results were similar to Kassin and Kiechel's study
What is a factor that increases the risk of false confessions?
The presentation of false evidence
What is confabulation in the context of false confessions?
Filling in gaps in memory with fictional information
Study Notes
The 9-Step Approach to Conduct an Accusatorial Interrogation
- The approach involves 9 steps to break down the suspect's resistance:
- Positive confrontation: Direct presentation of real or fictional evidence and repetition of accusation
- Theme development: Developing psychological themes to justify the crime, differing depending on the suspect's emotional state
- Handling denials: Stopping the suspect's repetition or elaboration of denials
- Overcoming objections: Showing understanding and returning to the conversation theme
- Retaining suspect's attention: Physically moving closer, leaning in, and maintaining eye contact
- Handling the suspect's mood: Focusing the suspect's mind on possible reasons for committing the crime and exhibiting sympathy
- Creating an opportunity to confess: Giving suspects two alternative explanations for the crime to choose from
- Oral confession: Developing the initial confession that discloses the circumstances, motives, and details of the crime
- Converting an oral confession into a written one: Ensuring the suspect's written confession is obtained
Concerns with the 9-Step Approach
- Officers may enter the interrogation with the assumption of guilt, leading to biases
- Trickery and deceit are unlawful in several countries and unethical
- Pressing suspects to confess may result in the opposite effects (the "boomerang effect")
- Guilty suspects may catch on to bluffing and not believe anything told
- Police may think it's okay to bluff in other circumstances
- Vulnerable suspects may get PTSD
- Brief responses from suspects might not give the whole, accurate story
- Assumptions about police detecting deception are not supported by evidence
- Technique may lead to false confessions
False Confessions
- Definition: Confessing to a crime they did not commit or exaggerating their involvement in a crime they did commit
- Statistics: 27% of prisoners later exonerated by DNA evidence had given false confessions
- Types of false confessions:
- Voluntary: Without being prompted by the police, often due to a desire for notoriety or to protect the real offender
- Coerced-compliant: In response to a desire to escape further interrogation, gain a promised reward, or avoid a threatened punishment
- Coerced-internalised: Results from highly suggestive interrogations, leading the confessor to believe they committed the crime
Compliance and Suggestibility
- Two psychological constructs important in understanding false confessions:
- Compliance: Tendency to go along with people in authority
- Suggestibility: Tendency to internalise information communicated during questioning
False Confessions in the Laboratory
- Experiment by Kassin and Kiechel (1996): Participants accused of pressing the "Alt key" when told not to, with manipulated vulnerability and presence of false evidence
- Results: Compliance, internalisation, and confabulation increased with vulnerability and presence of false evidence
Current Practices
- In Australia, all interviews with suspects must be recorded using Electronic Recording of Interviews with Suspects (ERISP)
- Videotaping interrogations is becoming more common, with benefits including protecting police against false allegations and protecting citizens from police coercion
- However, the confession culture may persist due to pressure to solve crimes quickly and the perceived benefits of confessions in prosecution
Learn about the 9-step process to obtain a confession from a suspect, including positive confrontation, theme development, and handling denials.
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