Murderers' and sexual offenders' experiences of police interviews and their inclination to admit or deny crimes

Abstract

This research concerns murderers' and sexual offenders' experiences of Swedish police interviews and their attitudes towards allegations of these serious crimes. The explorative study is based on a questionnaire answered by 83 men convicted of murder or sexual offences. Results show that when police officers interview murderers and sexual offenders, the individuals perceive attitudes that are characterized by either dominance or humanity. Logistic regression shows that police interviews marked by dominance are mainly associated with a higher proportion of denials, whereas an approach marked by humanity is associated with admissions. When suspects feel that they are respected and acknowledged, they probably gain more confidence and mental space, allowing them to admit criminal behaviour.

Empathy in the field: Towards a taxonomy of empathic communication in information gathering interviews with suspected sex offenders

“…Empathy was deemed absent if officers ignored conversations in which suspects appeared to be expressing underlying emotions they were feeling. Empathy was found not to impact upon the amount of information obtained during interviews, a finding that runs counter to those of others, and to theoretical accounts of empathy and cooperation (e.g., Balconi & Bortolotti, 2013;Holmberg & Christianson, 2002;Kebbell et al, 2006;Rumble, Van Lange, & Parks, 2009).…”

“…The use of empathy can foster the disclosure of information, and research suggests that some offenders may be more likely to admit their crimes when interviewers display empathic, non-judgmental behaviour (e.g., Holmberg & Christianson, 2002;Kebbell, Hurren, & Mazerole, 2006;Oxburgh & Ost, 2011). While admissions of guilt and/or information disclosure are important interview outcomes per se, the unique nature of sexual offences is such that the importance of these outcomes is heightened (Farrell & Taylor, 2000;Hanson, Broom, & Stephenson, 2004).…”

“…Hence, all too often police officers have only the account provided by a complainant to rely on when interviewing the person suspected of having committed the offence (see Gregory & Lees, 2012). Sex offenders may also be less likely to admit guilt and/or disclose information due to perceived shame, public disapproval, or sentence severity (Gudjonsson, 2006;Holmberg & Christianson, 2002;Kebbell et al, 2006). Further, the reporting of sexual offences in England and Wales (and elsewhere) is increasing (in 2012/13 in England & Wales 53,700 sexual offences were reported), yet convictions remain stubbornly low, at around 27% (Home Office, 2011).…”

Detecting deception via strategic disclosure of evidence.

“…There is no empirical data to support such a claim. Instead, Holmberg and Christianson (2002) found quite the opposite, that interrogations characterized by a dominant, condemning and confessionoriented style were associated with a higher proportion of denials, compared to when the interrogator communicated sincere respect and humanity.…”

“…Interrogations are considered to be one of the most important stages in a criminal investigation (Baldwin, 1993;Holmberg & Christianson, 2002;Sear & Williamson, 1999). The overarching goal of an interrogation is to obtain information about the crime in question from the person the police believe might be linked with the crime (Memon, Vrij, & Bull, 2003).…”