Malaysian police officers’ perceptions of interrogations and confessions

Abstract

Published survey data on perceptions of interrogations and false confessions have come from Western European and North American countries and have tended to focus on jury-eligible citizens’ perceptions. The present study examined perceptions of police officers from the Royal Malaysia Police. Fifty-nine police officers reported their overall perceptions of confessions, perceptions of personal factors contributing to false confessions, and self-perceived likelihood of false confession. Findings reveal that the Malaysian police did not seem to be cognizant of the fact that false confessions can happen and the contributing risk factors. This emphasises the need to raise awareness in the country – both from the top-down and bottom-up.