False confessions

Abstract

As illustrated by numerous cases in recent years, DNA exonerations of innocent individuals have cast a spotlight on the counterintuitive problem of false confessions. Studying the underlying psychology scientists have found that (1) innocent people are often targeted for interrogation because police make erroneous but confident judgments of deception; (2) certain interrogation techniques-namely, lengthy sessions, presentations of false evidence, and minimization themes that imply leniency-increase the risk that innocent people will confess; (3) certain individuals are particularly vulnerable to influence-notably, those with mental health problems or intellectual impairments, which render them overly compliant or suggestible, and children and adolescents, who exhibit 'immaturity of judgment'; (4) confession evidence is highly persuasive in court as a matter of common sense, increasing perceptions of guilt, even among judges and juries who see the confession as coerced, and even at times when the confession is contradicted by exculpatory information; (5) Miranda rights to silence and to counsel are not sufficiently protective, so proposals for reform have centered on the mandatory recording of interrogations, from start to finish, and a shift toward using investigative interviewing-a less confrontational, less deceptive means of questioning suspects. WIREs Cogn Sci 2017, 8:e1439. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1439 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.

Persons at risk during interrogations in police custody

“…The third type, an internalized false confession, occurs when suspects develop a profound distrust of their memory, for example, due to highly suggestive interrogation tactics, making them psychologically vulnerable to the influence of the interrogator. Suspects confabulate false memories during this process (Gudjonsson, 2003;Kassin, 2017).…”

“…In the past, researchers have addressed the following questions to investigate the nature of false confessions: why do police target innocent individuals as suspects, what types of interrogation techniques increase the risk that persons falsely confess, and what types of suspects are more vulnerable to falsely confess during interrogation (Kassin, 2017).…”

“…A study by Stevens and Verhoeven (2011) to stress in suspects. This is unnecessary and undesirable, because it may increase the chance of obtaining an unreliable account or even a false confession (Gudjonsson, 2010;Kassin, 2017). In the past, several scientists have questioned the appropriateness of the GIS (e.g., Boon et al, 2016;Duker & Stevens, 2009;Israëls & Horselenberg, 2010;Kortlever, 2011;Nierop, 2005;Odinot et al, 2015;Siemering & van der Laan, 2016;Stevens & Verhoeven, 2010Verhoeven & Duinhof, 2017;Van Koppen, 1998Vrij, 1998Vrij, , 2010), yet to date no empirical research has examined the potentially adverse effects of the GIS, and teachers at the Dutch Police Academy continue to use the Interrogation Manual to train police officers in interrogation techniques.…”

“…They also tend to confabulate more and face problems with memory capacity (Gudjonsson & Joyce, 2011). It has been demonstrated that in numerous cases suspects falsely confessed due to a failure of police officers to identify psychological vulnerabilities in suspects (Applebye, Hasel, & Kassin, 2013;Gudjonsson, 2010;Kassin, 2017;Kassin et al, 2010). Thus, it is important that police officers provide proper safeguards for a fair and effective police interview, for example, by adjusting interrogation methods, seeking assistance of a police psychologist, videotaping the interrogation, or ensuring a lawyer is present during the interrogations (Herrington & Roberts, 2012;Kassin, 2017).…”

“…Interrogating suspects is core business of the police and has gained more interest from researchers during the past years (Häkkänen, Ask, Kebbell, Alison, & Granhag, 2009). Research in the United Kingdom has shown that inappropriate interrogation techniques, such as confronting suspects with false evidence, minimization and maximization techniques, appealing to suspects' conscience and other tricks to deceive suspects, can make both guilty and innocent suspects confess (Gudjonsson, 2003(Gudjonsson, , 2010Kassin, 2017). However, until today it has remained relatively unknown how appropriate Dutch police interrogations are executed.…”