Psy 610 help
IamSmart2
false_confessions.pptxPolice Interrogation and False Confessions
Lana Eliot
Psychology 610
Professor Unger
August 31,2017
Research Question & Hypothesis
This research is based on the psychological premise that people have a propensity to focus on short term consequences and thus give disproportionate consideration to proximal consequences.
The first research questions that will be investigated is “Do police interrogation techniques produce false confessions?”
The second research question is "Do police interrogation methods have an influence on the probability of a criminal suspect making a confession?”
The other research question will be ”Do criminal suspects confess to crimes in exchange for short term gains?’
The hypothesis of the study is “Criminal suspects display a short-sightedness that increases their probability for false confession.”
False confessions have aroused serious controversy in the USA criminal justice system as they play a big role in wrongful convictions. This is particularly the case when such confessions are coerced. This study draws on the psychological principle that proximal consequences have a bigger influence on behavior than distal consequences.
2
Importance of this topic
Obtaining a confession from a suspect is one of the most important aspect of law enforcement investigations
However, false confessions have become prevalent and the suspects are later exonerated.
False confessions are a serious problem in the criminal justice system of the United states
False confessions are estimated to play a role in a quarter of all wrongful convictions
This raises concerns about civil liberties of the suspects and the criminal justice system at large
It is therefore important to conduct research and identify possible solutions to the problem
Obtaining a confession is arguably one of the most important aspect of police investigations. However, instances of suspects being coerced into false confessions has gained prominence in the U.S criminal justice system. It is therefore important that stdies arecondcted in order to shed light on this topic.
3
Previous Studies
Previous studies have shed light on how police interrogation methods influence the confession that guilty and innocent make
They have also indicated that perceived uncertainty are a key factor in how individuals make decisions.
Previous studies have also indicated how the situation can be improved upon
This current study is aimed at investigating the psychological factors that affect the confession made by a suspect.
It specifically investigates which of immediate consequences and long term consequences are important when making a confession.
Previous studies have confirmed the psychological principal that proximal consequences influence behavior more as compared to distal consequences. They have also shown that shortsightedness and uncertainty are a risk factor in the decision making process of a criminal suspect. This study will build on this studies through an experimental research design.
4
Research Design
The research design for this study is an experiment
This will be used to test the hypothesis and test the relationships between the independent and the dependent variables
The type of design that will be used is between groups whereby different participants will be used.
The study will comprise of two experiments and a control group
The dependent variables are immediate and long term consequences
The independent variable are the confession decisions
The study will be carried out in a laboratory environment that simulates police investigation
The research design that will be adopted for this study is an experimental research design. The participants of the study will be allocated to the different conditions in order to test the hypothesis. There will also be a control group in which no change will be introduced.
5
Procedure
Two experiments will be conducted.
In the first experiment, the participants will be asked questions about their prior criminal behaviors
Two consequences will be designed: answering a series of routine questions as an immediate consequence of denial or admitting; and meeting a police officer after a few weeks as the delayed consequence
The participants will be divided into three groups of 81, 144 and 45 with one group serving as the control group
In the first experiment, the participants will be subjected to a series of repetitive questions
This study is expected to show that suspects consider immediate consequences of making a confession more significant than the long-term.
In this study, two experiments will be conducted. The first experiment, participants will answer repetitive questions about their prior criminal behaviors. In the second experiment will meet a police officer and answer the repetitive questions
6
References
Madon, S., Smalarz, L., & Scherr, K. (2013). How factors present during the immediate interrogation situation produce short-sighted confession decisions. Law Hum Behav. 3(1), 60-74.
Yang, Y., Madon, S., & Guyll, M. (2015). Short-sighted confession decisions: the role of uncertain and delayed consequences. Law Hum Behav. 39(1), 44-52.
