Police interviewing and psychological vulnerabilities: predicting the likelihood of a confession

Pearse, John; Gudjónsson, Gisli H.; Clare, Isabel C. H.; Rutter, S.

doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-1298(199801/02)8:1<1::aid-casp435>3.0.co;2-d

Cited by 89 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…In the United States, however, interrogation can proceed only if police inform suspects of their Miranda rights to remain silent and to consult an attorney (based on the Supreme Court's Miranda v. Arizona case of 1966), and suspects then waive these rights. The act of suspects' invoking their Miranda rights forestalls interrogation, and research shows that consulting an attorney dramatically decreases the likelihood of a confession (Pearse, Gudjonsson, Clare, & Rutter, 1998;Moston, Stephenson, & Williamson, 1992). However, research suggests that investigators are skilled at influencing suspects to waive their Miranda rights, and the majority do (Leo, 1996;Leo & White, 1999).…”

Section: Relevant Criminological and Psychological Research On Confesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suspect Confession of Child Sexual Abuse to Investigators

et al. 2010

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Increasing the number of suspects who give true confessions of sexual abuse serves justice and reduces the burden of the criminal justice process on child victims. With data from four communities, this study examined confession rates and predictors of confession of child sexual abuse over the course of criminal investigations (final N ¼ 282). Overall, 30% of suspects confessed partially or fully to the crime. This rate was consistent across the communities and is very similar to the rates of suspect confession of child sexual abuse found by previous research, although lower than that from a study focused on a community with a vigorous practice of polygraph testing. In a multivariate analysis, confession was more likely when suspects were younger and when more evidence of abuse was available, particularly child disclosure and corroborative evidence. These results suggest the difficulty of obtaining confession but also the value of methods that facilitate child disclosure and seek corroborative evidence, for increasing the odds of confession.

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Section: Relevant Criminological and Psychological Research On Confesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suspect Confession of Child Sexual Abuse to Investigators

et al. 2010

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“…In a follow-up study to that carried out by Gudjonson, Clare, Rutter, and Pearse (1993) for the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice, Pearse, Gudjonsson, Clare, and Rutter (1998), found that of a number of psychological and context variables analysed, one predicted a confession and two predicted a denial. The factor that predicted a confession was if the suspect reported having taken illicit drugs within 24 hours of the interrogation.…”

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confidence: 91%

Confessions and denials and the relationship with personality

Gudjónsson¹,

Sigurðsson

Bragason

et al. 2004

Legal Criminol Psychol

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Purpose. The main aim of the study was to examine the reasons and personality factors associated with confessions and denials. It was hypothesized that antisocial personality traits and active involvement in criminal behaviour would distinguish true confessors and true deniers from false confessors and false deniers.Method. The participants were 1,080 students in further education in Iceland. Each was asked about false admissions made to teachers and parents in the past, as well as about confessions or denials (true and false) made to the police during questioning, and the reasons for having responded in the way they did. The participants also completed questionnaires relating to offending, personality and self-esteem.Results. One-quarter (25%) of the participants stated that they had in the past been interrogated by the police in relation to a suspected offence, of whom 59% said they had confessed. A small minority of those interrogated (3.7%; 1% of the total sample) claimed to have made false confessions to the police, whereas 10% claimed to have made false confessions to teachers or parents. Males were signi cantly more likely to report false confessions than females. False confessions and false denials were signi cantly associated with antisocial personality traits, with Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Psychoticism being the single best predictor. Those participants who made true confessions and true denials were most normal in their personality. Conclusions.Personality is a signi cant predictor of who makes false confessions and false denials. It is only in recent years that much research has been carried out into the psychological aspects of confessions (Gudjonsson, 2001). Gudjonsson (2003) reviewed five theories of what makes suspects confess to crimes they have committed during police questioning. These, combined with the empirical evidence (Moston, Stephensen, & Williamson, 1992), suggested that there are three main reasons why suspects confess to crimes they have committed (Gudjonsson & Sigurdsson, 1999;Sigurdsson & Gudjonsson, 1996a). These are suspects' perceptions of the strength of the evidence against them, external pressure (e.g. pressure during interrogation, fear of custody) and internal pressure (e.g. wanting to 'clear their conscience'). Usually more than one of these factors are present when suspects confess, but the empirical evidence suggests that it is the perception of the evidence against them that is the most powerful reason for suspects confessing to the offence. As far as false confessions are concerned, these are psychologically more complicated than true confessions. Kassin and Wrightsman (1985) and Wrightsman and Kassin (1993) suggest three psychologically distinct types of false confession, which they refer to as 'voluntary', 'coerced-compliant' and 'coerced-internalised' types. More recently, Ofshe and Leo (1997a, 1997b) have proposed a modified five-level model which distinguishes between coerced and noncoerced compliant and persuaded confessions. The model, as presented b...

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“…Comparing these rates is difficult because several legal, judicial, and methodological factors can influence these confession rates (Gudjonsson, 2003;Kassin & Gudjonsson, 2004;St-Yves, 2004). Whereas some of the US studies have revealed confession rates varying 42-47% (Cassell & Hayman, 1998;Leo, 1996), studies conducted in the UK revealed confession rates varying 55-59% (Moston & Stephenson, 1994;Pearse et al, 1998;Phillips & Brown, 1998; see, however, Moston, Stephenson, & Williamson, 1992 Gudjonsson, 2003;St-Yves & Landry, 2004;Williamson, 1992).1 Sampling criteria and the types of cases studied can also influence the confession rate.2 Gudjonsson (2003) raised the possibility that the method selected to collect information about confessions (e.g., observation, police records, survey) might influence the confession rate. To our knowledge, no study has shown that one method is superior 1 In the UK, the law permits no ruses or persuasive techniques to be used during the interrogation.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies revealed mixed results as to the role of age on the offender's decision to confess, with several studies reporting a negative relationship between the suspect's age and the likelihood of a confession (Baldwin & McConville, 1980; Beauregard, Deslauriers-Varin, & St-Yves, under review;Pearse et al, 1998;Phillips & Brown, 1998;Softley, 1980), whereas other studies revealed no relationship (Leo, 1996;Mitchell, 1983;Moston et al, 1992;Neubauer, 1974;St-Yves, 2002). Mixed results have also been reported for the role of ethnicity, as some researchers reported evidence that Caucasians were more likely to confess compared to non-Caucasians (Leo, 1996;Phillips & Brown, 1998;St-Yves, 2002).However, two studies failed to replicate this finding (Pearse et al, 1998;Wald, Ayres, Hess, Schantz, & Whitebread, 1967). Only one study looked at the impact of the offender's civil status CONFESSING THEIR CRIME 6 on the confession rate (St-Yves, 2002).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…More specifically, other contextual factors might be moderating the link between guilty feelings and confession. In this regard, empirical studies have consistently shown that offenders who request access to legal advice are significantly less likely to confess during police interrogation (Leo, 1996;Moston et al, 1992;Pearse et al, 1998;Phillips & Brown, 1998). This can be explained by the fact that lawyers tend to recommend to their clients not to collaborate with police investigators in order to avoid making incriminating statements.…”

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Confessing their Crime: Factors Influencing the Offender’s Decision to Confess to the Police

Deslauriers‐Varin¹,

Lussier²,

St‐Yves³

2009

Justice Quarterly

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Confessions are crucial to successful police investigations but scholars have significantly overlooked factors that contribute to an offender's decision to confess a crime. This study aims to examine a large array of factors that play a role in the offender's decision to confess a crime to the police and potential interaction effect among them. A total of 221 adult males incarcerated in a federal Canadian penitentiary were recruited. Correctional files, police reports, and offenders' self-reported data were collected and analyzed. Controlling for sociodemographic, criminological, and contextual factors, a series of logistic regression analyses were conducted. Findings highlighted the predominant role of police evidence over and above other factors analyzed. Furthermore, sociodemographic and criminological factors played a more important role in the offender's decision to confess when police evidence was weak. Findings are discussed in light of the current scientific literature on the determinants of offenders' decision to confess their crime.Keywords police interrogation; confession; police evidence; adult offenders; police investigation Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Nadine Deslauriers-Varin, Criminology Program, School of Social Work, Université Laval, Pav. Charles-de Koninck, 1030, Av. Des Sciences-Humaines, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, G1V 0A6. E-mail: nadine.deslauriers-varin@svs.ulaval.ca CONFESSING THEIR CRIME 2 Confessing their Crime: Factors Influencing the Offender's Decision to Confess to the Police Police interrogation and the offender's confession are two important components of successful police investigations. The offender's confession has been a essential component in a substantial number of cases where criminal charges were laid against a suspect and a number of police interrogations included confessions that were crucial to the corroboration of incriminating facts and findings from the crime scene (Baldwin, 1993;Imbau, Reid, Buckley, & Jayne, 2001;Phillips & Brown, 1998). For example, in the USA, Leo (1996) found that in 33% of the 182 interrogation cases analyzed, evidence was too weak to justify laying charges without the suspect's confession. As well, Phillips and Brown (1998) also found that in 11% of cases reviewed, additional confessions from the suspects contributed to solving crimes for which the suspects had not been arrested. The offender's confession is vital in laying criminal charges and also in proving guilt. For example, in 13% of cases reviewed by McConville (1993) in the UK, the only court evidence was a suspect's confession. However, considering its importance to the success of police interrogations, scholars and researchers have largely overlooked closer examination of the suspect's confession, and only limited empirical studies exist that reveal its prevalence and associated factors. Recent studies have mainly focused on the phenomena of false confession and police investigators' ability to detect deception and false confessions (Blair,...

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Police interviewing and psychological vulnerabilities: predicting the likelihood of a confession

Cited by 89 publications

References 25 publications

Suspect Confession of Child Sexual Abuse to Investigators

Suspect Confession of Child Sexual Abuse to Investigators

Confessions and denials and the relationship with personality

Confessing their Crime: Factors Influencing the Offender’s Decision to Confess to the Police

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