PSYC1001: FORENSIC

What is the current definition of forensic psychology?

The application of psychological knowledge and theories to all aspects of the criminal and civil justice systems, including the processes and the people.

What are the main topics studied in forensic psychology?

Criminal investigation, pre-trial processes, trial processes, post-trial processes, and the people involved.

Who is considered the 'father of forensic psychology'?

Hugo von Munsterberg.

What was the significance of Hugo von Munsterberg's work?

He questioned the accuracy of eyewitness memory and highlighted the importance of psychology in legal contexts.

What are estimator variables in eyewitness testimony?

Variables present at the time of the crime that cannot be changed, such as exposure time and lighting.

What are system variables in eyewitness testimony?

Variables that can be manipulated after the fact and impact the accuracy of witnesses.

What is the misinformation effect?

The phenomenon where a person's memory of an event is altered by misleading information presented after the event.

What is the Yerkes-Dodson law?

It states that memory performance is best at an optimum level of arousal.

What is the weapons focus effect?

The tendency for the presence of a weapon to draw attention and impair a witness's ability to identify a culprit.

What challenges do psychologists face when providing expert testimony?

Criticism of lack of ecological validity, potential loss of objectivity, and intrusion into legal processes.

What is the role of psychologists as expert witnesses?

To aid in understanding issues relevant to cases and provide informed opinions.

What factors increase susceptibility to the misinformation effect?

Age, hypnosis, suggestibility, credible sources of misinformation, and repetition of misinformation.

What is the false/repressed memory debate?

The discussion on whether people can create false memories for events that did not occur or if repressed memories can be accurately recovered.

What is recall memory?

The ability to report details of a previously witnessed event or person.

What is recognition memory?

The ability to determine whether what is currently being viewed or heard matches a previously witnessed event or person.

What are target-present lineups?

Lineups that contain the actual culprit.

What are target-absent lineups?

Lineups that contain an innocent suspect instead of the actual culprit.

What are some consequences of inaccurate identifications?

Guilty individuals may go free, and innocent individuals may be wrongfully convicted.

What is the role of eyewitness testimony in court?

It is one of the most persuasive forms of evidence for juries, but its reliability is often questioned.

What did James Cattell's research on eyewitness memory reveal?

People's recollections of everyday events were often inaccurate.

What did Alfred Binet's research on eyewitness memory demonstrate?

Misleading questions led to poor accuracy in eyewitness testimony.

What is the impact of emotional arousal on memory?

Highly aroused witnesses tend to remember central details better than peripheral details.

What is the significance of the Easterbrook hypothesis?

It suggests that emotional arousal can enhance memory for central details while impairing memory for peripheral details.

What is the importance of expert evidence in court?

It provides specialized knowledge that assists jurors in understanding complex issues.

What is the typical outcome of DNA exoneration cases related to mistaken identification?

A significant percentage of wrongful convictions are due to inaccurate eyewitness identifications.

What is the role of forensic psychologists in criminal investigations?

They assist police with investigations, provide expert advice, and help design treatment programs for offenders.

What is the purpose of a lineup in identification procedures?

To test the ability of the witness to identify the suspect when seen with multiple foils.

How many people are typically in a lineup in NSW?

Often 20 people.

What is the minimum number of foils required in a UK lineup?

A suspect plus 7 or more innocent foils of similar appearance.

What is 'unconscious transference' in the context of mugshot searches?

When witnesses remember a face but mistake the circumstances in which they saw that face.

What should lineup instructions emphasize to witnesses?

That the suspect may or may not be in the lineup.

What is a simultaneous lineup?

A lineup where all members are presented at the same time to the witness.

What is a sequential lineup?

A lineup where members are presented one at a time, and the witness must decide before seeing the next member.

What is a potential downside of live lineups?

They are expensive and difficult to arrange.

What is the Classical School of Criminology's main belief?

Lawbreaking occurs when people believe they can get away unpunished.

What does the Positivist School of Criminology emphasize?

Factors determining criminal behavior rather than free will.

What do sociological theories of crime focus on?

Social or cultural forces that are external to any specific individual.

What is a criticism of sociological theories of crime?

They do not explain why some people offend while others do not.

What does psychological theory suggest about crime?

Crime results from personality attributes possessed by the potential criminal.

What are the three components of personality according to Eysenck?

Extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism.

What characterizes antisocial personality disorder?

A long-term pattern of disregarding the rights, feelings, and safety of others.

What is the definition of sentencing?

The imposition of a penalty upon a person convicted of a crime.

What was the focus of Enlightenment philosophers regarding punishment?

Deterrence through rational punishment rather than severity.

What is retribution in the context of sentencing?

The act of taking revenge upon the criminal perpetrator.

What is the goal of incapacitation in sentencing?

To reduce the likelihood that an offender will commit future offenses.

What is specific deterrence?

Aims to prevent a particular offender from committing repeat offenses.

What does general deterrence seek to achieve?

To prevent others from committing similar crimes by making an example of the offender.

What is the goal of rehabilitation in sentencing?

To reform a criminal offender and reduce future crime.

What was the 'nothing works' philosophy in the 1970s?

A belief that rehabilitation efforts were ineffective.

What is the role of jurors in relation to eyewitness identification evidence?

Jurors often do not recognize problems with eyewitness identification evidence.

What can be done to improve juror understanding of identification evidence?

Educate jurors about biased lineups, lineup instructions, and the unreliability of confidence as an accuracy indicator.

What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)?

A widely employed form of psychotherapy that helps individuals understand the interaction between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

How does CBT impact recidivism in juveniles?

CBT reduces 18-month reincarceration rates by 32% for juveniles.

What is the goal of reparation/restoration in sentencing?

To restore the victim, primarily through restitution payments ordered from offenders.

What is Circle Sentencing?

A sentencing option available to Aboriginal offenders in some local courts in regional areas of NSW.

What are the five main goals of modern sentencing?

Retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and restoration.

What is criminal profiling?

A technique for identifying major personality and behavioral characteristics of an individual based on an analysis of their crimes.

What are the early attempts at criminal profiling?

Included texts from the late 1400s for identifying witches and profiling of 'Jack the Ripper' in 1888.

What is deductive criminal profiling?

Profiling based on evidence left at crime scenes by the offender, relying on logical reasoning.

What is inductive criminal profiling?

Profiling based on characteristics of known offenders from solved cases.

What is the Organized-Disorganized model in profiling?

A model developed by the FBI distinguishing between organized and disorganized crime scenes based on interviews with convicted murderers.

What is statistical profiling?

Analysis of data from solved crimes to reveal typologies, relying on the quality and size of the data set.

What is geographic profiling?

Analysis of crime scene locations to determine the probable area of the offender's residence.

What does a polygraph measure?

Physiological changes such as blood pressure, heart rate, respiration, and galvanic skin response.

What is the Relevant/Irrelevant test in polygraphy?

A test that asks both relevant and irrelevant questions, with the assumption that guilty individuals will respond more strongly to relevant questions.

What is the Control Question Test (CQT)?

A polygraph test that includes irrelevant, relevant, and control questions to reduce false positives.

What is the assumption behind polygraph testing?

That telling a lie is more stressful than telling the truth, leading to physiological changes.

What are common characteristics included in criminal profiling?

Demographics such as age, sex, educational history, and race.

What is the significance of the FBI's criminal profiling program?

It was developed in the 1970s and has influenced similar programs internationally.

What is the impact of CBT on adult offenders?

Adults who receive CBT are less likely to have a violent infraction while incarcerated and 59% less likely to reoffend in the first year after release.

What are the problems associated with the Organized-Disorganized model?

Lack of research supporting the model and inability to account for offenders with mixed characteristics.

What is the role of offender profiling in forensic psychology?

It is often perceived as a primary task, though very few psychologists are employed as profilers.

What is the historical significance of Lombroso in lie detection?

He proposed the idea of measuring physiological responses to detect lies in the 19th century.

What is the primary focus of modern rehabilitation efforts?

To reduce recidivism rates and help offenders reintegrate into society.

What is the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in CBT?

They interact in a way that changing thoughts can lead to changes in feelings and behaviors.

What is the main critique of statistical profiling?

The analysis is only as good as the data fed into it, and it can be unstable with small sample sizes.

What is the purpose of the pre-test interview in the CQT?

To formulate and discuss yes/no questions with the suspect before the test begins.

What is the primary goal of police interrogation?

To gain information that will further the investigation and obtain a confession.

What is the purpose of control questions in a polygraph test?

Control questions are general and vague, designed to embarrass both innocent and guilty suspects.

What is the Stimulation Test in polygraph testing?

A method to convince the suspect that the polygraph can detect lies, often involving a card trick.

What does the Guilty Knowledge Test (GKT) assess?

It assesses if the suspect has information that only the criminal would know.

What is the accuracy rate of polygraph tests in identifying guilty individuals?

84% to 92% of guilty individuals are correctly identified.

What are the phases of a polygraph test?

1. Control, relevant, and irrelevant questions are asked multiple times. 2. Scoring is done using global or numerical approaches.

What is the Inbau et al. model of interrogation?

A model that includes gathering evidence, conducting a non-accusatorial interview, and then an accusatorial interrogation.

What is the first step in the nine-step approach to interrogation?

Positive confrontation, where real or fictional evidence is presented to the suspect.

How does theme development work in interrogation?

Psychological themes are developed to justify the crime, varying based on the suspect's emotional state.

What is the purpose of handling denials during interrogation?

To stop the suspect from elaborating on their denials, making it easier to persuade them to tell the truth.

What does creating an opportunity to confess involve?

Presenting the suspect with two alternative explanations for the crime, one being more acceptable.

What is the significance of converting an oral confession into a written one?

It is important because suspects may later deny having made an oral confession.

What are the criticisms of the nine-step approach to interrogation?

1. Bias against suspects. 2. Use of trickery and deceit. 3. Potential for false confessions.

What is a voluntary false confession?

A confession made without police prompting, often for notoriety or to protect the real offender.

What is a coerced-compliant false confession?

A confession made to escape interrogation or gain a promised reward, despite knowing one is innocent.

What is a coerced-internalised false confession?

A confession that results from suggestive interrogations, where the confessor begins to believe they committed the crime.

What factors can lead to false confessions?

Desire for notoriety, inability to distinguish fact from fantasy, or a pathological need to be punished.

What is the role of psychological themes in interrogation?

They are developed to justify the crime and manipulate the suspect's emotional state.

What is the impact of interrogation techniques on innocent suspects?

Innocent suspects may experience strong feelings of resentment or PTSD from aggressive interrogation methods.

What is the significance of the interrogation environment?

A small, bare room with controlled conditions can make suspects feel isolated and out of control.

What is the role of eye contact in retaining a suspect's attention?

Maintaining eye contact helps to focus the suspect's attention and can increase pressure during interrogation.

What is the purpose of the 'bad cop' and 'good cop' approach?

To manipulate the suspect's emotional state by alternating between harsh and sympathetic questioning.

How does the nine-step approach aim to elicit a confession?

By progressively applying psychological pressure and creating opportunities for the suspect to confess.