The effect of gender on the outcome of forensic psychiatric assessment in Sweden: A case vignette study

Abstract

We found no evidence of gender bias in determining appropriateness of a hospital disposal of an offender with mental disorder. The difference in assessment of recidivism according to sex of the patient was only in relation to mental retardation; further research would be needed to able to interpret this. As researchers in other countries have reported gender bias in disposals from court, our findings may provide support for a centralised forensic psychiatric assessment board and formal, on-going training. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Perceptions of Mental Health Conditions in Criminal Cases: A Survey Study Involving Swedish Lay Judges

“…Of note, data from the current study are inconsistent with a recent survey of evaluators ( n = 26) at the NBFM in Sweden which demonstrated that all participants considered schizophrenia to be associated with SMD, while no participants assigned SMD to the ASPD condition (Sygel et al, 2017). This suggests a disconnect between forensic evaluators and lay judges in determining the appropriateness of an ASPD diagnosis for an SMD designation.…”

“…These specific conditions were chosen based on their different degree of association with the SMD concept in the Swedish legal system. Schizophrenia is strongly associated with SMD, whereas ASPD with psychopathic traits is unrelated to SMD (Sygel et al, 2017). Furthermore, the association between ID and SMD is generally contingent on degree of severity and disability.…”

“…Based on the Swedish legislation regarding SMD, as well as previous research (Sygel et al, 2017), we hypothesized that participants would perceive schizophrenia to be positively associated with SMD and negatively associated with comprehending the meaning of the criminal act. In contrast, we hypothesized that participants would perceive ASPD with psychopathic traits to be negatively associated with SMD, and positively associated with comprehending the meaning of the criminal act.…”

“…To our knowledge, only one study has examined perceptions of mental health conditions and the Swedish concept of SMD. Sygel et al (2017) utilized a vignette-based study to explore the impact of psychiatric diagnosis and gender in people charged with a crime, when forensic evaluators deliver their opinions regarding the SMD designation. Researchers recruited 26 evaluators (i.e., forensic psychiatrists, forensic psychologists, and forensic social workers) conducting FPEs at the NBFM and provided a description of a fictitious person accused of serious assault with varying psychiatric diagnoses (i.e., schizophrenia; borderline personality disorder; substance-induced psychotic disorder; Asperger syndrome; ASPD; intellectual disability).…”

Decision-Making Within Forensic Psychiatric Investigations: The Use of Various Information Sources by Different Expert Groups to Reach Conclusions on Legal Insanity

“…In sum, a vast amount of information can be acquired when conducting an FPI, and by having three professional groups considering the information both separately in their respective reports and together during the team meetings, an FPI is indeed a highly complex decision-making process that, as such, can be vulnerable to various kinds of bias. As previously mentioned, there has been some international research illustrating the case and/or assessment context’s influence on the expert’s conclusions regarding (a) legal insanity [see ( 36 , 37 )] and (b) SMD (i.e., the approximate equivalent to legal insanity in Sweden) ( 38 , 39 ). However, to the best of our knowledge, no previous research has explored what kind of information forms the basis for these decisions, thus shaping the decision-making process of FPIs in Sweden either in a general manner or when the case context is varied.…”