Forensics Flashcards
(100 cards)
1
Q
What is forensic psychology?
A
This is the application of psychological principles to different stages of the criminal justice system. It explains the causes of criminal behaviour, effective punishing and eye witness testimony.
2
Q
What are the issues with defining crime?
A
Crime is relative so it differs between cultures and over time. For example in the UK polygamy is illegal but in other countries like Saudi Arabia. Homosexuality used to be illegal in the UK until 1967 when it was legalised.
3
Q
What are the ways of measuring crime?
A
- Official statistics
- victim surveys
- offender surveys
4
Q
What is crime?
A
An act that violates the law and is punishable by the state.
5
Q
What are official statistics?
A
These are government records of the total number of crimes reported to police and is recorded in official figures and are published by the Home Office annually. They are a snapshot of numbers across the country and in regions.
6
Q
Advantage of official statistics. (1)
- prevention
A
- it allows the development of crime prevention strategies and policing initiatives to be put in place. It also allows resources to be directed to where they’re most needed.
7
Q
Disadvantage of official statistics. (1)
- dark
A
- the dark figure of crime is ignored which is the unrecorded or unreported crimes that don’t come under official statistics. 75% of all crime is the dark figure of crime.
8
Q
What are victims surveys?
A
This is when peoples experiences of crime over a specific period of time is recorded. An example is the CSEW which asks people to document crimes they were victims of in the past year. 50,000 households are randomly selected each year to take part in this so the Office for National Statistics can produce statistics. These statistics are published annually.
9
Q
Advantage of victims surveys. (1)
- unreported
A
- it is more likely to include unreported crime. Official statistics and victims surveys were compared and it was found that official statistics had a 2% decrease in crime and victim surveys had a 3% increase in 2006/7.
10
Q
Disadvantage of Victim Surveys. (1)
- telescoping
A
- telescoping is when people remember incidents like they happened in the past year but actually happened many years ago.
11
Q
What are offender surveys?
A
This is when individuals volunteer details of a number and types of crimes they committed. They are given to groups that are likely to be offenders based on risk factors like age, social background and reoffending. The Offender Crime and Justice Survey is an example. It was the first national self reporting survey in England and Wales and looked at indicators of repeat offending, trends, drugs and alcohol use, the role of co offender and the relationship between the perp and the victims.
12
Q
Advantage of offender surveys. (1)
- insight
A
- an insight can be gained into the number if people that committed crimes and why.
13
Q
Disadvantage of offender surveys. (1)
- collar
A
- white collar crime is ignored and other crimes are over represented, like burglary and theft.
14
Q
What is offender profiling?
A
This aims to narrow down the field of enquiry and list of likely suspects. It works on the idea that characteristics of an offender can be deduced from the crime and crime scene. Profilers work alongside the police and it involves careful scrutiny of the crime scene and analysis of evidence to generate a hypothesis about the characteristics of an offender.
15
Q
What is the top-down approach?
A
This originated in the USA by the FBI Behaviour Science Unit in 1970s. It was drawn from data gathered from in depth interviews with 36 sexually motivated serial killers like Ted Bundy and Charles Manson. It uses the evidence from the crime scene and details of the crime, victim and context to match the offender to the a pre existing template. Murderers and rapists are classified into either organised for disorganised.
16
Q
What are organised offenders?
A
With organised offenders there is evidence of planning the crime in advance. The victim is deliberately targeted, often revealing the offender has a preference for certain types of victims. They maintain a high level of control so there is little evidence left at the crime scene and operate with surgical precision. They have above average intelligence, in a skilled or professional occupation but are socially and sexually incompetent. They are often married with children.
17
Q
What are disorganised offenders?
A
There is little evidence of planning and the crimes were very spontaneous. The scene tends reflect the impulsive nature of the attack; the body is left and there is little control shown over trying to hide evidence. They tend to have lower intelligence, in unskilled work or are unemployed, have a history of sexual dysfunction and failed relationships. They tend to live alone and be close to where the crime took place.
18
Q
How is an FBI profile constructed?
A
- Data Assimilation- the profiler reviews the evidence.
- Crime Scene Classification- the crime is classified as organised or disorganised
- Crime Reconstruction- profiler generated a hypothesis about the events.
- Profile Generation- the profiler generates a hypothesis related to the likely offender.
19
Q
Disadvantages of the top-down approach. (6)
- crimes
- assumption
- 100
- four
- sample
- killers
A
- it only applies to certain types of crime like murder and rape and not others like burglary
- it is based on the assumption that the offender has left behind patterns of behaviour and motivations but this is based on outdated models that link traits to behaviour.
- psychologist analysed 100 murderers in the UK and found no evidence for a distinct disorganised type of offender.
- it is too simplistic as there four types of serial killers. Visionary (God/Devil tells them to, Mission (eradicate an undesirable group), Hedonistic (for thrill) and Power (for control).
- this is based on a small sample and interviews have social desirability
20
Q
What is the bottom up approach?
A
This was developed in the UK and generates a picture of the offender using a systematic analysis of the crime scene. It doesn’t begin with fixed categories.
21
Q
What is investigative psychology?
A
It aims to establish behaviours likely to occur at certain crime scenes. It is done to create a statistical database which acts as a baseline for comparison. Specific details of the crime are matched against this. This reveals statistically probable details of the offender and determines whether multiple offences are linked to or committed by the same person. It uses the idea of interpersonal coherence. The significance of the time and place could indicate where the offender lives. It also highlights forensic awareness.
22
Q
What is interpersonal coherence?
A
This is when the way in which the offender behaves at a crime scenes, including the interaction with the victims, may reflect their behaviour in everyday situations.
23
Q
What is forensic awareness?
A
This is when the offenders attempted to cover up the crime means they may have their DNA on the system.
24
Q
What is geographical profiling?
A
This is the study of spatial behaviours in relation to the crime and offender. It focuses on the location of the crime being used as a clue to where the offender lives, works or socialises. Serious offenders restrict their activity to areas that are familiar to them and the earlier the crimes, the closer to the base they are. As they get more confident they go further out. They may be a marauder and a commuter. These crimes then form general patterns around the home. This tells the police if crimes are planned or opportunistic, if they’ve used a mode of transport, their employment or status, or their age, etc.
25
Advantages of the bottom up approach. (3)
- content
- top
- variety
- a content analysis was done on 66 sexual assault cases and several common characteristics were found
- this is much more detailed than the top down approach
- this can be applied to many different types of crimes.
26
Disadvantages of the bottom up approach. (3)
- Wimbledon
- police
- chemistry
- in 1992 in Wimbledon, 21 y/o Rachel was sexually assaulted and stabbed 47 times in a frenzied attack. Robert Napper was convicted but he had been ruled out earlier on because he was several inches taller that the offender profile
- 48 police forces were surveyed and it showed profiler advice was useful in 83% of cases but only 3% lead to accurate identification
- chemistry students produced more accurate offender profiles than experiences senior detectives so common sense is needed.
27
What is the historical approach to offending?
In 1876 Lombroso suggested that criminals were a genetic throwback or primitive sub species, so they are biologically different from us. Offenders lack evolutionary development. They are a savage and untamed species so they find it difficult to adjust to society. Criminal behaviour is a natural tendency.
28
What are atavistic characteristics?
Criminal sub species are characterised by set of particular physiological characteristics linked to their crimes. They have atavistic and biologically determined features that make them look different. He then examined the skulls of 338 dead and 3839 living Italian convicts and determined that 40% of criminal acts could be accounted for by atavistic features.
29
What are the features of criminals in general?
They have narrow sloping brows, a strong prominent jaw, high cheekbones and facial asymmetry, dark skin and extra toes, nipples or fingers. Other characteristics include an insensitivity to pain, use of criminal slang, tattoos and unemployment.
30
What are the atavistic features of murderers?
Bloodshot eyes, curly hair and long ears.
31
What are the atavistic features of sexual deviants?
Glinting eyes, swollen or fleshy lips and projecting ears.
32
What are atavistic feature of fraudsters?
Thin and reedy lips.
33
What does atavistic mean?
A reversion to something ancestral.
34
Advantage of atavistic characteristics. (1)
| - modern
- he is the father of modern psychology because he is credited for shifting emphasis of committing crimes to scientific discussions.
35
Disadvantages of atavistic characteristics. (5)
- racist
- intelligence
- control
- psychological
- poverty
- there are racial undertones, for example dark skin and curly hair is common among Africans and he is suggesting they are uncivilised, savage and primitive.
- 3000 criminals were compared to 3000 non criminals and there was no evidence of facial or cranial characteristics but there was below average intel length among the criminals.
- Lombroso didn’t compare to a control.
- the criminals he studies had a history of pathological disorders, which is a confounding variable.
- facial and cranial features can be affected by poverty and poor diet
36
What is the genetic explanation of offending behaviour?
Criminals inherit genes or a combination of genes that cause them to commit crimes. Criminal behaviour could be polygenic so many candidate genes are responsible.
37
What was the first twin study conducted to study criminal behaviour?
They used 13 MZ and 17 DZ and at least one of them had served time in prison. 10 of the MZ twins had both spent time and 2 out of the DZ both spent time in prison. This suggests that criminal behaviour does have a genetic disposition especially for MZ twins.
38
What are the genes responsible for criminal behaviour?
A genetic analysis of over 900 offenders found abnormalities in two genes. The MAOA gene which controls dopamine and serotonin is linked to aggressive behaviour. The CDH13 gene is linked to substance abuse and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). Individual with this high risk combination are more likely to have a history of violent behaviour than a control.
39
What is the diathesis stress model?
This is explanation that genetics influence criminal behaviour but is moderated by the effects of the environment. So it is a combination of these factors.
40
What is the neural explanation for offending behaviour?
Antisocial personality disorder (APD) is associated with reduced emotional responses and a lack of empathy. It is a condition that characterises many convicted criminals. Several dozen brain imaging studies show that people with APD have an 11% reduction in grey matter in the prefrontal cortex, which regulates emotions compared to a control.
41
How do criminals with APD experience empathy?
They can experience empathy but more sporadically. A study was done where they were asked to empathise with a person on a film in pain and their empathy reaction was activated, but only if they were asked to. This is controlled by mirror neurons in the brain. They have a neural switch which needs to be turned on. In a normal brain it is permanently switched on.
42
Disadvantages of the biological explanation for offending behaviour. (5)
- twin
- adopted
- reductionism
- determinism
- early twin studies were poorly controlled and the judgement between identical and non identical was based on appearance. Twins are usually brought up in similar environments, concordance rates are never 100% and they use small samples that done usually represent the population.
- criminal behaviour (having at least one court conviction) in adopted children was compared to their biological and adopted parents. If neither then the chance the adoptees had was 13%, one biological was 20% and both was 24%.
- there is biological reductionism
- there is biological determinism which creates issues with punishing.
43
What is the Eysencks general personality theory?
He suggested that behaviour could be represented along two dimensions, introversion/extroversion and neuroticism/stability. These combine to form a variety of personality traits. He latter added another dimension, psychoticism. Personality traits, like a criminal personality, are innate. They come about through the nervous system we inherit.
44
What are extroverts?
They have an under active nervous system and constantly seek excitement, stimulation and risky behaviour. They are difficult to condition and do not learn from their mistakes.
45
What are neurotics?
They are nervous, jumpy, over anxious and generally unstable. They are difficult to control.
46
What is the criminal personality type?
They are neurotic extraverts, so a combination of both characteristics. A typical offender will score highly on psychoticism. During socialisation they were developmentally immature so they were selfish and concerned with immediate gratification. Normally children are taught to delay gratification and be more socially oriented. They have nervous systems that is difficult to condition and they don’t learn to respond to their antisocial impulses with anxiety. They are more likely to act anti socially.
47
What is Eysencks personality test?
It is a psychological test that locates respondents along extraversion and neuroticism dimensions to determine their personality type. Later he added a scale to measure psychoticism.
48
What is psychoticism?
They are control, unemotional and prone to aggression.
49
Advantage of the criminal personality theory by Eysenck. (1)
| - prisoners
- The scores of 2070 male prisoners on the EPI were compared to those of 2422 male controls. It found the prisoners scored higher on extraverion, neuroticism and psychoticism.
50
Disadvantages of criminal personality theory by Eysenck. (4)
- psychoticism
- reductionist
- Five
- cultural
- several studies were reviewed and it was found that offenders tend to score higher on psychoticism and not extraversion/neuroticism.
- reductionist because people’s personality changes on a daily basis
- the Five Factor Model suggest openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness are included with extraversion and neuroticism, so there are multiple combinations.
- there are cultural differences. Hispanic and African American offenders in a maximum security prison in NY were divided into 6 groups based on their criminal history and nature of offences. All of the groups were less extraversion than the non criminal control group.
51
What is moral reasoning?
This is when an individual draws on their own value system to determine whether an action is right or wrong. The quality of this can be determines by the stage theory of moral development, which is based on people’s responses to moral dilemmas. Having a high moral reasoning means a person can sympathise with the right of others and display more honesty and generosity.
52
What is the stage theory of model development?
This is based on people’s responses to moral dilemmas. The preconventional stage is avoiding punishment, focusing on the consequences and having the best interest of oneself. The conventional stage is the good girl or boy attitude and having social obedience. The post conventional stage is learning that others have different values, that laws are dependent on culture and develop internal moral principles.
53
What stage of moral development are criminals?
They are pre conventional because they are punishment and reward oriented so they have immature reasoning. They are more egocentric and they have poorer social perspective taking skills.
54
What are cognitive distortions?
This is irrational and faulty ways of thinking that make people perceive themselves, other people, or the world inaccurately and negatively. This includes hostile attribution bias and minimalistion.
55
What is hostile attribution bias?
This is the tendency to judge ambiguous situations or actions of others as aggressive or threatening when in reality they are not. Non negative cues are misread, triggering a disproportionate or violent response. 55 violent offenders were presented with emotionally ambiguous faces and it was found that they were more likely to perceive those images as hostile and angry than the control. These roots may lie in childhood.
56
What is minimalisation?
This is when a criminal believes that their crime was trivial and downplays the impact of the crime on the victims. This is a strategy used to avoid guilt. They may use euphemisms like doing a job for a robbery. Among 26 incarcerated rapists, 54% believed they committed a crime and 40% minimalised the harm done.
57
Advantages of cognitive distortions. (1)
| - CBT
- it is beneficial in the treatment of criminal behaviour. CBT is the main approach used for sex offenders. It challenges the cognitive distortions of offending and reduces the risk of reoffending.
58
Disadvantage of cognitive distortion. (4)
- Western
- type
- insight
- scientific
- the post conventional stage is culturally bias towards Western culture and doesn’t represent a natural maturational stage of cognitive development
- the stage a criminal fits into depends on the offence. Crimes with financial gain have pre conventional reasoning and impulsive crimes like assault have no reasoning
- it is not scientific as it cannot be observed or measured.
59
What is the differential association theory?
This is the idea that individuals learn values, attitudes, techniques and motives for criminal behaviour from their interactions with others. When they are socialised into a group, they learn new norms and values. If a number of pro criminal attitudes outweighs the number of anti criminal attitudes, then this leads to offending behaviour. The learning process is the same whether the person is learning criminality or conformity to the law. Learning occurs through imitation, vicarious reinforcement, direct reinforcement or direct tuition. This suggests that it is mathematically possible to predict the likelihood with knowledge of frequency, intensity and duration of the exposure to criminal and non criminal norms and values. Potential criminals may also learn new techniques for committing crime. This may explain the reason why criminals are likely to reoffend when they are released
60
Advantages of the differential association theory. (3)
- crimes
- environment
- realistic
- it takes all types of crime into account
- it draws attention towards dysfunctional social characteristics and the environment.
- it offers a more desirable and realistic solution to offending.
61
Disadvantages of the differential association theory. (2)
- scientific
- will
- it cannot be measure scientifically as it is built on assumption when the pro outweighs anti.
- it ignores free will because not all people exposed to criminality go on to commit crime.
62
What is the inadequate superego theory?
The superego is the last aspect of personality to form. Blackburn suggested that internalising a deficient/inadequate superego leads to criminal behaviour, because the id is not well controlled. A weak, deviant or over harsh superego could be internalised.
63
What is a weak superego?
This happens when there is an absent same sex parent during the phallic stage. This means the child cannot internalise a fully formed superego as there is no opportunity for identification. This leads to offending behaviour.
64
What is a deviant superego?
This is internalising immoral or deviant values which leads to offending behaviour.
65
What is an over harsh superego?
This is excessively punitive. It causes a person to be crippled with guilt and anxiety. This leads to offending behaviour to satisfy the need for punishment.
66
Disadvantages of inadequate superego. (4)
- girls
- parent
- genetics
- cover
- it is not true that girls develop a weaker superego and this leads to offending behaviour. Statistically girls are better at resisting temptation than boys.
- there is little evidence that supports the idea that children raised without a same sex parent leads to them being less law abiding
- genetics or learning may be the issue not the superego. People may be raised with deviant values.
- many offenders try and cover up their crimes so they don’t have an unconscious desire for punishment.
67
What is the maternal deprivation theory?
He argued that the maternal bond is vital for a child’s well being, emotional development and ability to form meaningful relationships. A failure to establish this bond leads to affectionless psychopathy, which is a lack of empathy and guilt. He conducted a study on 88 children, 44 of which were thieves.
68
What were the findings from Bowlby’s thieves study?
14 of the 44 thieves were found to be affectionless psychopaths. 12 of these 14 had experienced frequent early separations from their mothers, compared to only 5 of the 30 that weren’t affectionless psychopaths. Almost none of the control group had experienced frequent early separations from their mothers.
69
Disadvantages of the maternal deprivation theory. (2)
- privation
- genetics
- it failed to acknowledge the difference between privation and deprivation. Privation is much more severe.
- genetics is ignored
70
What are the aims of custodial sentencing?
- deterrence
- incapacitation
- retribution
- rehabilitation
71
What is custodial sentencing?
This involves a convicted offender spending time in prison or another closed institution.
72
What is deterrence?
This is the idea that an unpleasant experience will put off people from offending. General deterrence sends a broad message to society and individual deterrence prevents reoffending.
73
What is incapacitation?
This is when the offender is taken out of society to protect society.
74
What is retribution?
This is when society enacts revenge. The punishment should be proportionate to the crime.
75
What is rehabilitation?
This is the idea of making prisoners better adjusted to society when they are released so they receive treatment.
76
What is recidivism?
This is reoffending.
77
What are the psychological effects of custodial sentencing?
- psychological disorders
- institutionalisation
- brutalisation
- labelling
78
What are psychological disorders?
There are usually high incidences of mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, self harm, suicide and low self esteem. This was proven by Zimbardo.
79
What is institutionalisation?
Prisoners have a lack of autonomy and conform to the prisoner role. They have a dependency on criminal culture.
80
What is brutalisation?
Prison is a school for crime and reinforces criminal norms and lifestyle. This leads to high recidivism. 70% of young offenders reoffend writhing 2 years of release.
81
What is labelling?
Offenders lose touch with previous social contacts and find it difficult to gain employment as they are labelled as criminals.
82
Advantage of custodial sentencing. (1)
| - danger
- it provides justice and limits danger. Offenders can get training so they can get employed when they are released. They can also receive treatment through rehabilitation.
83
Disadvantages of custodial sentencing. (4)
- suicide
- tricks
- government
- prevention
- prison is brutal. Suicide rates are 15X higher in prisons than in the general public. The most at risk are young, single males in the first 24 hours of there conviction.
- young criminals are put with hardened criminals so the learn the tricks of the trade, which undermines the rehabilitation programs.
- the government exaggerates the benefits to appear tough on crime so please the public but really they do little to deter it.
- crime prevention is more effective as it avoids labelling and the severe negative consequences.
84
What is the behaviourist approach?
This suggests that behaviour can be unlearn. Behaviour modification programs are designed to reinforce desirable and punish undesirable behaviours, which will eventually become extinct.
85
What is token economy?
Desirable behaviour is reinforced with a token, which can be exchanged for rewards. The tokens are secondary reinforcers as they become associated with the rewards. The rewards vary from prison to prison and should be made clear. Tokens are withheld when non compliance or disobedience is performed. This is negative punishment. The desirable behaviour is identified and broken down into increments. It is overseen by public officials who monitor the effectiveness.
86
What is selective reinforcement?
This is when particular prisoners are rewarded for particular actions.
87
Advantages of token economy. (2)
- easy
- suits
- it is easy to administer and doesn’t require expert professionals or special equipment. It is more cost effective and easy to follow.
- young offenders were on a scheme where rewards were more frequent and immediate which showed positive results. This shows that it can be adapted to suit certain individuals.
88
Disadvantages of token economy. (3)
- staff
- released
- unethical
- staff are not consistent. They lack appropriate training and there is high staff turnover, which makes consistency a problem.
- positive behavioural changes are usually lost once the criminal is released because they won’t get rewards immediately in the real world. Also they may have just been playing an act to get rewards.
- it is unethical because participation is obligatory and the withdrawal of privileges causes physical and psychological harm.
89
What is CBT?
Cognitive factors trigger emotional arousal such as aggression. Their anger is quick to surface especially in situations they perceive as threatening but they are not.
90
What is anger management?
This is when offenders are taught how to recognise they are losing control. It encourages them to develop techniques to bring conflict resolution to avoid violence.
91
What are the stages of anger management?
- cognitive preparation
- skills acquisition
- applied practice
92
What is cognitive preparation?
This is when the person learns to identify their triggers for anger. They reflect on events in the past and consider if the way they acted was rational. The offender learns to redefine situations as non threatening.
93
What is skills acquisition?
The person is introduced to a range of techniques to handle situations rationally. These could be cognitive, like positive self talk leading to calmness, behavioural, like assertiveness training so they are able to communicate, and physiological, like relaxation and meditation.
94
What is applied practice?
This is the opportunity to practise the skills in a carefully monitored environment. Role play maybe used to reenact situations. The offender must be serious and the therapist must be brave. If there is successful negotiation then this could be met with positive reinforcement.
95
Advantage of anger management. (1)
| - multidisciplinary
- it is a multidisciplinary approach because it takes cognitive, behavioural and social aspects into account.
96
Disadvantages of anger management. (4)
- recidivism
- Harold
- expensive
- uncooperative
- there is little evidence of reduced recidivism in the long term. Role play may be too artificial.
- Harold Shipman murdered over 215 of his patient as a GP as he believed he was alleviating their suffering.
- it is expensive and highly trained specialists are needed. Many prisons don’t have the resources to run this.
- prisoners may be uncooperative or apathetic.
97
What is restorative justice?
This places the emphasis on the victims needs as they are encouraged to take on an active role in the punishment of the offender.offenders are required to take responsibility and face up to their crime. The process of managed collaboration is based on the principles of healing and empowerment. A trained mediator facilitates the meeting in a non court room setting and the victims and offender are face to face. It is an alternative to custodial sentencing and can be paired with community service. An incentive to reduce the existing sentence is given.
98
What happens in a managed collaboration programme?
The victims is given the opportunity to confront the offender and tell them how the crime affected them. The offender is confronted with these consequences. It focuses on acceptance of responsibility and positive change. There is active involvement for both and positive outcomes. Some make financial restitution for physical and emotional damage or may even repair the damage.
99
Advantage of restorative justice. (1)
| - flexible
- it is flexible in the way it’s administer and can be tailored to the needs of the victim.
100
Disadvantages of restorative justice. (5)
- expensive
- offender
- victim
- domestic
- soft
- it is expensive and it requires specialist and highly trained professionals.
- offenders may only sign up to avoid prison or to reduce their sentence. This explains the high drop out rates as the offenders change their minds because they were never committed in the first place.
- victims may just was to take revenge on the offenders
- Women’s Aid has called for an end to the use of this on domestic abuse cases because abusers can exploit, convince and have power on the victims in a way that the mediator may not be able to notice.
- it is seen as a soft option so politicians are unwilling to support it to seem tough on crime.
