Showing papers in "Law and Human Behavior in 2015"

A false dichotomy? Mental illness and lone-actor terrorism.

Abstract: We test whether significant differences in mental illness exist in a matched sample of lone- and group-based terrorists. We then test whether there are distinct behavioral differences between lone-actor terrorists with and without mental illness. We then stratify our sample across a range of diagnoses and again test whether significant differences exist. We conduct a series of bivariate, multivariate, and multinomial statistical tests using a unique dataset of 119 lone-actor terrorists and a matched sample of group-based terrorists. The odds of a lone-actor terrorist having a mental illness is 13.49 times higher than the odds of a group actor having a mental illness. Lone actors who were mentally ill were 18.07 times more likely to have a spouse or partner who was involved in a wider movement than those without a history of mental illness. Those with a mental illness were more likely to have a proximate upcoming life change, more likely to have been a recent victim of prejudice, and experienced proximate and chronic stress. The results identify behaviors and traits that security agencies can utilize to monitor and prevent lone-actor terrorism events. The correlated behaviors provide an image of how risk can crystalize within the individual offender and that our understanding of lone-actor terrorism should be multivariate in nature.

Changes in dynamic risk and protective factors for violence during inpatient forensic psychiatric treatment: Predicting reductions in postdischarge community recidivism

Abstract: Empirical studies have rarely investigated the association between improvements on dynamic risk and protective factors for violence during forensic psychiatric treatment and reduced recidivism after discharge. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of treatment progress in risk and protective factors on violent recidivism. For a sample of 108 discharged forensic psychiatric patients pre- and posttreatment assessments of risk (HCR-20) and protective factors (SAPROF) were compared. Changes were related to violent recidivism at different follow-up times after discharge. Improvements on risk and protective factors during treatment showed good predictive validity for abstention from violence for short- (1 year) as well as long-term (11 years) follow-up. This study demonstrates the sensitivity of the HCR-20 and the SAPROF to change and shows improvements on dynamic risk and protective factors are associated with lower violent recidivism long after treatment.

Predicting recidivism among adult male child pornography offenders: Development of the Child Pornography Offender Risk Tool (CPORT).

Abstract: In this study, we developed a structured risk checklist, the Child Pornography Offender Risk Tool (CPORT), to predict any sexual recidivism among adult male offenders with a conviction for child pornography offenses. We identified predictors of sexual recidivism using a 5-year fixed follow-up analysis from a police case file sample of 266 adult male child pornography offenders in the community after their index offense. In our 5-year follow-up, 29% committed a new offense, and 11% committed a new sexual offense, with 3% committing a new contact sexual offense against a child and 9% committing a new child pornography offense. The CPORT items comprised younger offender age, any prior criminal history, any contact sexual offending, any failure on conditional release, indication of sexual interest in child pornography material or prepubescent or pubescent children, more boy than girl content in child pornography, and more boy than girl content in other child depictions. The CPORT was significantly associated with any sexual recidivism, with moderate predictive accuracy, and thus has promise in the risk assessment of adult male child pornography offenders with further cross-validation.

Stereotype threat and racial differences in citizens' experiences of police encounters.

Abstract: We conducted 2 studies to investigate how cultural stereotypes that depict Blacks as criminals affect the way Blacks experience encounters with police officers, expecting that such encounters induce Blacks to feel stereotype threat (i.e., concern about being judged and treated unfairly by police because of the stereotype). In Study 1, we asked Black and White participants to report how they feel when interacting with police officers in general. As predicted, Blacks, but not Whites, reported concern that police officers stereotype them as criminals simply because of their race. In addition, this effect was found for Black men but not Black women. In Study 2, we asked Black and White men to imagine a specific police encounter and assessed potential downstream consequences of stereotype threat. Consistent with Study 1, Black but not White men anticipated feeling stereotype threat in the hypothetical police encounter. Further, racial differences in anticipated threat translated into racial differences in anticipated anxiety, self-regulatory efforts, and behavior that is commonly perceived as suspicious by police officers. By demonstrating that Blacks might expect to be judged and treated unfairly by police because of the negative stereotype of Black criminality, this research extends stereotype threat theory to the new domain of criminal justice encounters. It also has practical implications for understanding how the stereotype could ironically contribute to bias-based policing and racial disparities in the justice system.

Double-blind photo lineups using actual eyewitnesses: an experimental test of a sequential versus simultaneous lineup procedure.

Abstract: Eyewitnesses (494) to actual crimes in 4 police jurisdictions were randomly assigned to view simultaneous or sequential photo lineups using laptop computers and double-blind administration. The sequential procedure used in the field experiment mimicked how it is conducted in actual practice (e.g., using a continuation rule, witness does not know how many photos are to be viewed, witnesses resolve any multiple identifications), which is not how most lab experiments have tested the sequential lineup. No significant differences emerged in rates of identifying lineup suspects (25% overall) but the sequential procedure produced a significantly lower rate (11%) of identifying known-innocent lineup fillers than did the simultaneous procedure (18%). The simultaneous/sequential pattern did not significantly interact with estimator variables and no lineup-position effects were observed for either the simultaneous or sequential procedures. Rates of nonidentification were not significantly different for simultaneous and sequential but nonidentifiers from the sequential procedure were more likely to use the “not sure” response option than were nonidentifiers from the simultaneous procedure. Among witnesses who made an identification, 36% (41% of simultaneous and 32% of sequential) identified a known-innocent filler rather than a suspect, indicating that eyewitness performance overall was very poor. The results suggest that the sequential procedure that is used in the field reduces the identification of known-innocent fillers, but the differences are relatively small.

Does the evidence support the case for mental health courts? A review of the literature.

Abstract: Mental health courts divert offenders with mental illness away from incarceration in return for participation in monitored mental health treatment. Since their inception in the late 1990 s, the proliferation of these problem-solving courts has outpaced the research on their effectiveness. A review of the literature was conducted, yielding 20 articles from peer-reviewed journals. Mental health courts were evaluated for their ability to improve psychiatric symptoms, connect individuals with behavioral health services, improve overall quality of life, and reduce recidivism rates. A majority of articles reported favorable recidivism outcomes for participants, with few evaluating their impact on therapeutic outcomes. At the present time, mental health courts represent an emerging practice, but have not yet reached the level of an evidence-based model. Existing studies of mental health courts suffer from methodological limitations, specifically, a lack of experimental design, use of nonrepresentative samples, and assessment over short timeframes. Moreover, the inherently idiosyncratic nature of these courts and the variance in reporting of court-specific eligibility criteria make cross-article comparison more difficult. It is recommended that future mental health court research examine the impact of available community services, as well as consider the effect of criminogenic risk factors, on therapeutic and recidivism outcomes.

Reporting guidance for violence risk assessment predictive validity studies: the RAGEE statement

Abstract: Available reporting guidelines for prognostic and diagnostic accuracy studies apply primarily to biological assessment and outcomes, overlooking behavioral issues with major public health and safety implications such as violence. The present study aimed to develop the first set of reporting guidance for predictive validity studies of violence risk assessments: the Risk Assessment Guidelines for the Evaluation of Efficacy (RAGEE) Statement. A systematic search of 8 electronic databases prior to September 2012 identified 279 reporting guidelines for prognostic and diagnostic accuracy studies. Unique items were extracted and modified to make them relevant to risk assessment. A 4-wave Delphi process involving a multidisciplinary team of 37 international experts resulted in a 50-item reporting checklist. The panelists endorsed the RAGEE Statement checklist as being highly satisfactory and as indicating study features that should be reported routinely in manuscripts. Use of these proposed standards has the potential to improve the quality of the risk assessment literature.

Eyewitness identification: Bayesian information gain, base-rate effect equivalency curves, and reasonable suspicion.

Abstract: We provide a novel Bayesian treatment of the eyewitness identification problem as it relates to various system variables, such as instruction effects, lineup presentation format, lineup-filler similarity, lineup administrator influence, and show-ups versus lineups. We describe why eyewitness identification is a natural Bayesian problem and how numerous important observations require careful consideration of base rates. Moreover, we argue that the base rate in eyewitness identification should be construed as a system variable (under the control of the justice system). We then use prior-by-posterior curves and information–gain curves to examine data obtained from a large number of published experiments. Next, we show how information–gain curves are moderated by system variables and by witness confidence and we note how information–gain curves reveal that lineups are consistently more proficient at incriminating the guilty than they are at exonerating the innocent. We then introduce a new type of analysis that we developed called base-rate effect–equivalency (BREE) curves. BREE curves display how much change in the base rate is required to match the impact of any given system variable. The results indicate that even relatively modest changes to the base rate can have more impact on the reliability of eyewitness identification evidence than do the traditional system variables that have received so much attention in the literature. We note how this Bayesian analysis of eyewitness identification has implications for the question of whether there ought to be a reasonable-suspicion criterion for placing a person into the jeopardy of an identification procedure.

Multidimensional Evaluation of a Mental Health Court: Adherence to the Risk-Need-Responsivity Model

Abstract: The current study examined the impact of a mental health court (MHC) on mental health recovery, criminogenic needs, and recidivism in a sample of 196 community-based offenders with mental illness. Using a pre-post design, mental health recovery and criminogenic needs were assessed at the time of MHC referral and discharge. File records were reviewed to score the Level of Service/Risk-Need-Responsivity instrument (Andrews, Bonta, & Wormith, 2008) to capture criminogenic needs, and a coding guide was used to extract mental health recovery information at each time point. Only mental health recovery data were available at 12 months post-MHC involvement. Recidivism (i.e., charges) was recorded from police records over an average follow-up period of 40.67 months post-MHC discharge. Case management adherence to the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model of offender case management was also examined. Small but significant improvements were found for criminogenic needs and some indicators of mental health recovery for MHC completers relative to participants who were prematurely discharged or referred but not admitted to the program. MHC completers had a similar rate of general recidivism (28.6%) to cases not admitted to MHC and managed by the traditional criminal justice system (32.6%). However, MHC case plans only moderately adhered to the RNR model. Implications of these results suggest that the RNR model may be an effective case management approach for MHCs to assist with decision-making regarding admission, supervision intensity, and intervention targets, and that interventions in MHC contexts should attend to both criminogenic and mental health needs.

Criminogenic factors, psychotic symptoms, and incident arrests among people with serious mental illnesses under intensive outpatient treatment

Abstract: Although research robustly indicates that general or "criminogenic" factors predict various measures of recidivism, there is controversy about the extent to which these factors, versus untreated symptoms, lead to justice involvement for people with mental illnesses. Based on a sample of 183 people in intensive outpatient treatment followed for an average period of 34.5 months, the present study tested whether criminogenic factors (i.e., factor-analytically derived proxies of some of the "Central Eight"; Andrews & Bonta, 2010) and psychotic symptoms were independently associated with arrest. The study also compared the predictive utility of these domains. In the fully adjusted model, the antisocial subscale and male sex were associated with increased arrest rates, whereas psychosis and age were associated with decreased arrest rates. Criminogenic factors and psychotic symptoms had comparable predictive utility. We conclude that criminogenic factors-chiefly arrest history-and psychotic symptoms predict arrest rates. Both sets of variables appear useful for assessing risk of arrest among people with mental illnesses who are not under current correctional supervision.

The DSM-5 with limited prosocial emotions specifier for conduct disorder among detained girls.

Abstract: The new DSM-5 specifier 'with Limited Prosocial Emotions' (LPE) is expected to provide greater information about impairment of children and adolescents with conduct disorder (CD). This study examin ...

Interviewing strategically to elicit admissions from guilty suspects.

Abstract: In this article we introduce a novel interviewing tactic to elicit admissions from guilty suspects. By influencing the suspects’ perception of the amount of evidence the interviewer holds against them, we aimed to shift the suspects’ counterinterrogation strategies from less to more forthcoming. The proposed tactic (SUE-Confrontation) is a development of the Strategic Use of Evidence (SUE) framework and aims to affect the suspects’ perception by confronting them with statement-evidence inconsistencies. Participants (N 90) were asked to perform several mock criminal tasks before being interviewed using 1 of 3 interview techniques: (a) SUE-Confrontation, (b) Early Disclosure of Evidence, or (c) No Disclosure of Evidence. As predicted, the SUE-Confrontation interview generated more statementevidence inconsistencies from suspects than the Early Disclosure interview. Importantly, suspects in the SUE-Confrontation condition (vs. Early and No disclosure conditions) admitted more self-incriminating information and also perceived the interviewer to have had more information about the critical phase of the crime (the phase where the interviewer lacked evidence). The findings show the adaptability of the SUE-technique and how it may be used as a tool for eliciting admissions.

Lay understanding of forensic statistics: Evaluation of random match probabilities, likelihood ratios, and verbal equivalents.

Abstract: Forensic scientists have come under increasing pressure to quantify the strength of their evidence, but it is not clear which of several possible formats for presenting quantitative conclusions will be easiest for lay people, such as jurors, to understand. This experiment examined the way that people recruited from Amazon's Mechanical Turk (n = 541) responded to 2 types of forensic evidence--a DNA comparison and a shoeprint comparison--when an expert explained the strength of this evidence 3 different ways: using random match probabilities (RMPs), likelihood ratios (LRs), or verbal equivalents of likelihood ratios (VEs). We found that verdicts were sensitive to the strength of DNA evidence regardless of how the expert explained it, but verdicts were sensitive to the strength of shoeprint evidence only when the expert used RMPs. The weight given to DNA evidence was consistent with the predictions of a Bayesian network model that incorporated the perceived risk of a false match from 3 causes (coincidence, a laboratory error, and a frame-up), but shoeprint evidence was undervalued relative to the same Bayesian model. Fallacious interpretations of the expert's testimony (consistent with the source probability error and the defense attorney's fallacy) were common and were associated with the weight given to the evidence and verdicts. The findings indicate that perceptions of forensic science evidence are shaped by prior beliefs and expectations as well as expert testimony and consequently that the best way to characterize and explain forensic evidence may vary across forensic disciplines.

Static-99R Reporting Practices in Sexually Violent Predator Cases: Does Norm Selection Reflect Adversarial Allegiance?

Abstract: We surveyed experts (N = 109) who conduct sexually violent predator (SVP) evaluations to obtain information about their Static-99R score reporting and interpretation practices. Although most evaluators reported providing at least 1 normative sample recidivism rate estimate, there were few other areas of consensus. Instead, reporting practices differed depending on the side for which evaluators typically performed evaluations. Defense evaluators were more likely to endorse reporting practices that convey the lowest possible level of risk (e.g., routine sample recidivism rates, 5-year recidivism rates) and the highest level of uncertainty (e.g., confidence intervals, classification accuracy), whereas prosecution evaluators were more likely to endorse practices suggesting the highest possible level of risk (e.g., high risk/need sample recidivism rates, 10-year recidivism rates). Reporting practices from state-agency evaluators tended to be more consistent with those of prosecution evaluators than defense evaluators, although state-agency evaluators were more likely than other evaluators to report that it was at least somewhat difficult to choose an appropriate normative comparison group. Overall, findings provide evidence for adversarial allegiance in Static-99R score reporting and interpretation practices.

Predicting reoffense in pedophilic child molesters by clinical diagnoses and risk assessment.

Abstract: A Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)-based diagnosis of pedophilia has so far failed to predict sexual reoffense in convicted child molesters, probably because of its broad and unspecific conceptualization. In this study, therefore, we investigated the prognostic value of the subtype exclusive pedophilia and a series of customary risk assessment instruments (SSPI, Static-99, Stable-2007, VRS:SO) and the PCL-R in a sample of prison released pedophilic sexual offenders. First, we examined the convergent validity of risk assessment instruments (N = 261). Then, we calculated the predictive accuracy of the measures and diagnosis for sexual recidivism by ROC analyses and subsequent Cox regression (N = 189). Also, predictive values with more clinical immediacy were calculated (sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV). The VRS:SO, the SSPI, and the Static-99 significantly predicted sexual recidivism, as did a diagnosis of exclusive pedophilia. Also, the VRS:SO predicted sexual reoffense significantly better than the Stable-2007, the Static-99/Stable-2007 combined score, and the PCL-R. When used combined, only the VRS:SO and a diagnosis of exclusive pedophilia added incremental validity to each other. Our findings support that the clinical diagnosis of an exclusive pedophilia based on DSM criteria and VRS:SO defined risk factors can reliably discriminate higher from lower risk offenders, even within the select subgroup of pedophilic child molesters.

Callous-unemotional traits and adolescents' role in group crime

Abstract: The current study examined the association of callous-unemotional (CU) traits with group offending (i.e., committing a crime with others; gang involvement) and with the role that the offender may play in a group offense (e.g., being the leader). This analysis was conducted in an ethnically and racially diverse sample (N = 1,216) of justice-involved adolescents (ages 13 to 17) from 3 different sites. CU traits were associated with a greater likelihood of the adolescent offending in groups and being in a gang. Importantly, both associations remained significant after controlling for the adolescent's age, level of intelligence, race and ethnicity, and level of impulse control. The association of CU traits with gang membership also remained significant after controlling for the adolescent's history of delinquent behavior. Further, CU traits were associated with several measures of taking a leadership role in group crimes. CU traits were also associated with greater levels of planning in the group offense for which the adolescent was arrested, although this was moderated by the adolescent's race and was not found in Black youth. These results highlight the importance of CU traits for understanding the group process involved in delinquent acts committed by adolescents. They also underscore the importance of enhancing the effectiveness of treatments for these traits in order to reduce juvenile delinquency.

Psychopathic traits as predictors of future criminality, intimate partner aggression, and substance use in young adult men

Abstract: This study examined the prospective relation between Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI) scores and various negative outcomes in a community sample of young men. Official criminal records and self-reported outcomes, including criminality, physical and relational aggression against intimate partners, and excessive substance use, were obtained on average 5.4 years (records) and 3.5 years (self-reports) after the YPI assessment. Results showed that psychopathic traits measured with the YPI (approximately at age 25) did not significantly contribute to the prediction of future official criminal charges and self-reported crime, physical aggression against intimate partners, and excessive alcohol and marijuana use, after controlling for several covariates. However, results also showed that men with higher scores on the YPI were more likely to commit future acts of relational aggression against their partner, even after controlling for prior relational aggression. This novel finding needs replication, though, and-for now-does not jeopardize the overall conclusion that psychopathic traits as measured with the YPI hardly predict over and above prior criminality and aggression. Altogether, the findings of the present study and their consistency with past research suggest that one should rethink the role of psychopathy measures for risk assessment purposes, at least when these measures do not index prior criminality.

The (Ir)relevance of Procedural Justice in the Pathways to Crime

Abstract: Process-based approaches to compliance argue that normative considerations, such as procedural justice and legitimacy, have the potential to reduce offending. This perspective was formalized with Tyler’s (1990, 2003) Model of Procedural Justice and subsequently was evaluated among adult and adolescent offenders alike. However, extant evaluations do not consider whether and how individual offending histories affect the relevance of the concepts of procedural justice and legitimacy on offending behavior. This void is problematic given the growing concern that judgments of procedural justice and perceived legitimacy may not always be relevant with respect to compliance (Tyler & Jackson, 2013). This research integrates a developmental perspective with the procedural justice model to evaluate the effects of procedural justice and legitimacy on offending among early-onset and adolescent-onset offenders. Using a sample of convicted adolescent offenders, evidence suggests that the relevance of the procedural justice model varies across age of onset. The normative considerations of procedural justice and legitimacy are unrelated to recidivism among early-onset offenders, yet they affect subsequent offending among adolescent-onset offenders, although not always in the direction specified by theory.

One angry woman: Anger expression increases influence for men, but decreases influence for women, during group deliberation.

Abstract: We investigated whether expressing anger increases social influence for men, but diminishes social influence for women, during group deliberation. In a deception paradigm, participants believed they were engaged in a computer-mediated mock jury deliberation about a murder case. In actuality, the interaction was scripted. The script included 5 other mock jurors who provided verdicts and comments in support of the verdicts; 4 agreed with the participant and 1 was a "holdout" dissenter. Holdouts expressed their opinions with no emotion, anger, or fear and had either male or female names. Holdouts exerted no influence on participants' opinions when they expressed no emotion or fear. Participants' confidence in their own verdict dropped significantly, however, after male holdouts expressed anger. Yet, anger expression undermined female holdouts: Participants became significantly more confident in their original verdicts after female holdouts expressed anger-even though they were expressing the exact same opinion and emotion as the male holdouts. Mediation analyses revealed that participants drew different inferences from male versus female anger, which created a gender gap in influence during group deliberation. The current study has implications for group decisions in general, and jury deliberations in particular, by suggesting that expressing anger might lead men to gain influence, but women to lose influence over others (even when making identical arguments). These diverging consequences might result in women potentially having less influence on societally important decisions than men, such as jury verdicts.

From the shadows into the light: How pretrial publicity and deliberation affect mock jurors' decisions, impressions, and memory.

Abstract: This 2-part study explored how exposure to negative pretrial publicity (Neg-PTP) influences the jury process, as well as possible mechanisms responsible for its biasing effects on decisions. Study Part A explored how PTP and jury deliberations affect juror/jury verdicts, memory, and impressions of the defendant and attorneys. One week before viewing a criminal trial mock-jurors (N = 320 university students) were exposed to Neg-PTP or unrelated crime stories (No-PTP). Two days later deliberating jurors came to a group decision, whereas nondeliberating jurors completed an unrelated task before making an individual decision. Neg-PTP jurors were more likely to vote guilty, make memory errors, and rate the defendant lower in credibility. Deliberation reduced Neg-PTP jurors' memory accuracy and No-PTP jurors' guilty verdicts (leniency bias). Jurors' memory and ratings of the defendant and prosecuting attorney significantly mediated the effect of PTP on guilt ratings. Study Part B content analyzed 30 mock-jury deliberations and explored how PTP influenced deliberations and ultimately jury decisions. Neg-PTP juries were more likely than No-PTP juries to discuss ambiguous trial evidence in a proprosecution manner and less likely to discuss judicial instructions and lack of evidence. All Neg-PTP juries mentioned PTP, after instructed otherwise, and rarely corrected jury members who mentioned PTP. Discussion of ambiguous trial evidence in a proprosecution manner and lack of evidence significantly mediated the effect of PTP on jury-level guilt ratings. Together the findings suggest that judicial admonishments and deliberations may not be sufficient to reduce PTP bias, because of memory errors, biased impressions, and predecisional distortion.

Does evidence really matter? An exploratory analysis of the role of evidence in plea bargaining in felony drug cases.

Abstract: The majority of cases in the United States are disposed of through plea bargaining; however, this important discretionary point has received relatively little attention from researchers compared with trial and jury proceedings, and other discretionary points such as arrest and sentencing. Additionally, although evidence is considered an important factor in determining case outcomes, its influence on prosecutors' decisions regarding plea offers is less clear. In this study, we examined the potential impact of evidentiary factors, as well as other legal and extralegal factors, on two plea bargaining decisions, plea-to-a-lesser-charge offers and sentence offers, using data on felony drug cases processed by the New York County District Attorney's office. We found that prosecutors made more punitive charge offers when they had audio/video evidence, eyewitness identification(s), prerecorded buy money used by an undercover officer in a buy-and-bust operation, or had recovered currency. Of all evidence factors analyzed, only the recovery of currency predicted sentence offers. By contrast, three other factors-defendants' detention status, the presence of multiple plea offers, and prior prison sentence-had a much greater impact on charge and sentence offers. Although additional research is needed, it is possible that evidence has a greater impact at the initial stages of a case, particularly on the decision about whether to accept a case for prosecution, than it does on subsequent prosecutorial decisions.

Juveniles' Miranda comprehension: Understanding, appreciation, and totality of circumstances factors.

Abstract: This study examined juvenile justice-involved youths' understanding and appreciation of the Miranda warnings' rights to silence and legal counsel using the Miranda Rights Comprehension Instruments (Goldstein, Zelle, & Grisso, 2012). It also examined the relationships between totality of circumstances factors and understanding and appreciation of rights. Data were collected from 183 youths (140 boys) in pre-and postadjudication facilities in 2 states. Overall, youths demonstrated greater difficulty on measures of appreciation than understanding, with particular deficits in their abilities to comprehend the abstract concept of the right to silence. RESULTS varied slightly by instrument, highlighting the importance of a multimodal assessment of these complex abilities. Examination of totality of circumstances factors identified relationships between some factors (e.g., age, verbal IQ, academic achievement) and Miranda comprehension, but revealed that other factors (e.g., gender, number of previous arrests) were not significantly related to Miranda understanding or appreciation. The findings support a nuanced conceptualization of Miranda rights comprehension that acknowledges the complexity of understanding and appreciating the warnings. Empirical analyses also support the continued use of some totality of circumstances factors and abandonment of others. FINDINGS underscore the necessity of multimodal assessment and interpretation when conducting capacity to waive Miranda rights evaluations. Language: en

Psychopathy and violence: Does antisocial cognition mediate the relationship between the PCL: YV factor scores and violent offending?

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine whether proactive and reactive antisocial cognition mediate the effect of Factors 1 (core personality features) and 2 (behavioral deviance) of the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV; Forth, Kosson, & Hare, 2003) on violent offending. In this study Bandura et al.'s (1996) Moral Disengagement (MD) scale and the Impulse Control (IC) scale of the Weinberger Adjustment Inventory (WAI; Weinberger & Schwartz, 1990) served as proxies for proactive and reactive antisocial cognition, respectively. It was hypothesized that proactive antisocial cognition (MD) would mediate the Factor 1-violence relationship and that both proactive antisocial cognition and reactive antisocial cognition (IC) would mediate the Factor 2-violence relationship. A 3-wave path analysis of data from 1,354 adjudicated delinquents produced results consistent with the first part of the hypothesis (i.e., proactive antisocial mediation of the Factor 1-violence relationship) but inconsistent with the second part of the hypothesis (i.e., only proactive antisocial cognition mediated the Factor 2-violence relationship). Whereas the direct path from Factor 1 to violent offending was no longer significant when MD and IC were taken into account, the direct path from Factor 2 to violent offender remained significant even after MD and IC were included as mediators. This suggests that whereas proactive antisocial cognition plays a major role in mediating the Factor 1-violence relationship, the Factor 2-violence relationship is mediated by proactive antisocial cognition and variables not included or not adequately covered in the current study.

The Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interests (SSPI): construct, predictive, and incremental validity.

Abstract: This study of 410 adult male sex offenders against children, using data from the Dynamic Supervision Project (Hanson, Harris, Scott, & Helmus, 2007), examined the construct, predictive, and incremental validity of the Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interests (SSPI; Seto & Lalumiere, 2001), a brief proxy measure of phallometrically assessed sexual response to children that is based on sexual victim characteristics. As predicted, the SSPI was significantly related to the Deviant Sexual Interests item on the STABLE-2007 (Hanson et al., 2007), a dynamic risk measure encompassing multiple domains, and with the Deviant Sexual Interests item from its predecessor, the STABLE-2000 (Hanson et al., 2007). The SSPI was unrelated (or more weakly related) to items measuring general antisociality. In addition, the SSPI significantly predicted sexual recidivism, defined as new charges or convictions for sexual offenses, and a broader sexual recidivism outcome that included breaches of community supervision conditions that might involve sexually motivated behavior (e.g., being in the presence of children unsupervised). The SSPI did not add to the predictive accuracy of 2 actuarial risk measures, the Static-99R and Static-200R (Helmus, Thornton, Hanson, & Babchishin, 2012), but it did add to the predictive accuracy of the STABLE-2007. Additional analyses suggest the SSPI can serve as a substitute for the STABLE-2007 Deviant Sexual Interests item, if necessary (e.g., in archival research), when assessing sexual offenders against children.

Risk of violence by inmates with childhood trauma and mental health needs.

Abstract: Inmates who experienced childhood trauma have higher rates of institutional violence. However, the potential intermediate roles of co-occurring mental health and substance use needs and early justice involvement have not previously been considered. The current study examined the relationships between trauma, mental health, substance abuse, youth criminal charges, and institutional violence during the first 180 days of incarceration. As secondary aims, we explored whether these associations differed by sex or differed for inmates of Aboriginal ethnicity. Secondary data from prison records for all 5,154 inmates admitted to a federal prison during 2011 were collected. Path analysis was used to estimate the direct and indirect associations between trauma and institutional violence. Approximately 45% of inmates reported childhood trauma, which was associated with a higher prevalence of co-occurring mental health and substance abuse needs, and youth criminal charges. Although mental health, substance abuse, and youth criminal charges interacted with one another in predicting violence, their associations were similar for those with and without histories of trauma. A direct association between trauma and institutional incidents remained (Relative Risk [RR] = 1.38, 95% CI [1.07, 1.78]) after accounting for indirect associations through these co-occurring risk factors. There was insufficient evidence to suggest that these associations differed between men and women or between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal inmates. Given the high co-occurrence of multiple health and behavioral risk factors for inmates with traumatic histories, clarifying which factors are causally associated and reversible is needed to inform effective trauma informed care.

The relationship between officer orientation and supervision strategies in community corrections.

Abstract: Community corrections (i.e., probation and parole) officers play a crucial role within criminal justice agencies: They have the onerous task to balance the competing demands of rehabilitating offenders while protecting the community. Field studies have suggested that officers' effectiveness depends, in part, on the relative emphasis they place on these demands (i.e., their orientation toward their roles). However, the extent to which officers' orientations toward rehabilitation versus community safety affect their decisions for individual offenders is not clear. We examined the relationship between officer attitudes and supervisory decisions using a quasi-experimental design. In the first stage of the study, we revised a promising measure of officers' role orientation. In the second stage, we examined the revised scale's psychometric properties, and tested how officers' self-reported orientations related to the strategies they used in hypothetical supervision scenarios. The majority of officers reported a balanced approach of control and support, whereas 29.7% reported a preference for one over the other. Regardless of self-reported orientation, officers approached supervision with similar strategies for an offender's first incident of noncompliance, but when an offender showed continued noncompliance, both officers who emphasized control and those who emphasized a balanced approach toward supervision were more likely to use punitive methods to gain compliance than officers who reported emphasizing rehabilitation. This research furthers our understanding of the relationship between self-reported orientation and supervision strategy. Findings will inform agencies' selection and training of community corrections officers. (PsycINFO Database Record

DSM-5 antisocial personality disorder: predictive validity in a prison sample.

Abstract: Symptoms of antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), particularly remorselessness, are frequently introduced in legal settings as a risk factor for future violence in prison, despite a paucity of research on the predictive validity of this disorder. We examined whether an ASPD diagnosis or symptom-criteria counts could prospectively predict any form of institutional misconduct, as well as aggressive and violent infractions among newly admitted prisoners. Adult male (n = 298) and female (n = 55) offenders were recruited from 4 prison systems across the United States. At the time of study enrollment, diagnostic information was collected using the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV; APA, 1994) Axis II Personality Disorders (SCID-II; First, Gibbon, Spitzer, Williams, & Benjamin, 1997) supplemented by a detailed review of official records. Disciplinary records were obtained from inmates' respective prisons covering a 1-year period following study enrollment and misconduct was categorized hierarchically as any (general), aggressive (verbal/physical), or violent (physical). Dichotomous ASPD diagnoses and adult symptom-criteria counts did not significantly predict institutional misconduct across our 3 outcome variables, with effect sizes being close to 0 in magnitude. The symptom of remorselessness in particular showed no relation to future misconduct in prison. Childhood symptom counts of conduct disorder demonstrated modest predictive utility. Our results offer essentially no support for the claim that ASPD diagnoses can predict institutional misconduct in prison, regardless of the number of adult symptoms present. In forensic contexts, testimony that an ASPD diagnosis identifies defendants who will pose a serious threat while incarcerated in prison presently lacks any substantial scientific foundation.

Supportive housing and forensic patient outcomes.

Abstract: In Canada, Review Boards are mandated to evaluate individuals found Not Criminally Responsible on Account of Mental Disorder (NCRMD) on an annual basis and render 1 of 3 dispositions: (a) custody, (b) conditional discharge, or (c) absolute discharge. To promote social reintegration, conditional discharge can be ordered with the condition to live in supportive housing. However, NCRMD accused face great barriers to housing access as a result of the stigma associated with the forensic label. The goal of this study was to evaluate the role of housing in the clinical and criminal trajectories of forensic patients as they reintegrate into the community. Data for this study were extracted from a national study of individuals found NCRMD in Canada (Crocker, Nicholls, Seto, Cote, et al., in press). The present study focuses on a random sample of NCRMD accused in the province of Quebec, who were under a conditional discharge disposition during the study period (n = 837). Controlling for sociodemographic, clinical, and criminal variables, survival analysis showed that individuals placed in independent housing following a conditional discharge from the Review Board were 2.5 times more likely to commit a new offense, nearly 3 times more likely to commit an offense against a person, and 1.4 times more likely to be readmitted for psychiatric treatment compared with individuals residing in supportive housing. These results point to the influence housing can have on the trajectories of forensic patients, above and beyond a range of clinical, criminological, and sociodemographic factors.

Suspect filler similarity in eyewitness lineups: a literature review and a novel methodology.

Abstract: Eyewitness lineups typically contain a suspect (guilty or innocent) and fillers (known innocents). The degree to which fillers should resemble the suspect is a complex issue that has yet to be resolved. Previously, researchers have voiced concern that eyewitnesses would be unable to identify their target from a lineup containing highly similar fillers; however, our literature review suggests highly similar fillers have only rarely been shown to have this effect. To further examine the effect of highly similar fillers on lineup responses, we used morphing software to create fillers of moderately high and very high similarity to the suspect. When the culprit was in the lineup, a higher correct identification rate was observed in moderately high similarity lineups than in very high similarity lineups. When the culprit was absent, similarity did not yield a significant effect on innocent suspect misidentification rates. However, the correct rejection rate in the moderately high similarity lineup was 20% higher than in the very high similarity lineup. When choosing rates were controlled by calculating identification probabilities for only those who made a selection from the lineup, culprit identification rates as well as innocent suspect misidentification rates were significantly higher in the moderately high similarity lineup than in the very high similarity lineup. Thus, very high similarity fillers yielded costs and benefits. Although our research suggests that selecting the most similar fillers available may adversely affect correct identification rates, we recommend additional research using fillers obtained from police databases to corroborate our findings.

Dispositional sources of sanction perceptions: Emotionality, cognitive style, intolerance of ambiguity, and self-efficacy.

Abstract: This study contributes to efforts to identify the sources of arrest risk perceptions and ambiguity (or lack of confidence) in such perceptions. Drawing on dual-process theories of reasoning, we argue that arrest risk perceptions often represent intuitive judgments that are influenced by cognitive heuristics and dispositional attributes. Multivariate regression models are estimated with data from 3 national surveys to test 6 hypotheses about the relationships between specific dispositional attributes and perceived arrest risk and ambiguity. We find evidence that dispositional positive affect and intolerance of ambiguity are both positively related to perceived arrest risk, and are also both negatively related to ambiguity. We also find evidence that cognitive reflection and general self-efficacy are, respectively, positively and negatively associated with ambiguity. Mixed evidence emerges about whether cognitive reflection is related to risk perceptions, and about whether either dispositional negative affect or thoughtfully reflective decision making correlate with ambiguity. Taken together, the results provide partial support for each of our hypotheses, and suggest that dispositional attributes are important sources of perceptions of arrest risk as well as of ambiguity in such perceptions.