Question

Describe the psychological processes that are involved in deception then explain the two approaches to interrogations. In your opinion, which approach would be more likely to result in a false confession? Does the possibility of a false confession mean that law enforcement should not use any such techniques? Or perhaps just not under certain circumstances? Why or why not?

Answer 1

Deception is simply defined as the act of misleading or wrongly informing someone about the true event of any situation.

Psychology of deception:

The studies states that lies can actually make it easier to get along with the people and study results showing that people regularly lie for others benefits. De Paulo found that it is common for people to lie for no other reason than to make other people make comfortable.

Charls Honts, a psychology professional at the university of Idaho, explained that most people do three things when they are trying to come across a honest. first, look thier conversation partner in the eye. second, stay calm and third, blink infrequently. However, threre are many people who do the opposite when they lie.

Approaches of Interrogations:

1. The Ried model of Interrogations- This techniques involves three components, such as factual analyisis, interviewing and interrogation.

Factual analysis refers to each individual supspect evaluated with respect to specific observations relating to the crime. applying factual analyis result in establishing an estimate of a particular suspect's probable guilt or innocence based on such things as the suspect's bio-social status such as gender, race and occupation ect, opportunity and access to commit the crime, their behavior before and after the crime, their motivations and propensity to commit the crime, and evaluation of physical and circumstantial evidence.Factual analysis also intented to identify the individuals motive and personality type.

Interview refers as a non accusatory questions and answers session, involving both standard investigative questions and structured behaviour provoking questions to elicit behaviour symptoms of the truth or lie from the person being interviewed.

Interogation means it should only occure when the investigator is reasonably certain of the suspects involvement in the issue under investigation. There are nine steps under investigation.

a) Positive Confrontation: The investigator tells the suspect that the evidence demonstrates the person's guilt.

b)Theme development: The investigator then presents a moral justification for the offense, such as placing the moral blame on someone else or outside circumstances.

c) Handling Denials: When the suspect asks for permission to speak at any stage likely to deny the accusations, the investigator should discourage allowing the suspect to do so.

d) Overcoming objections: When attempts at denial do not succeed, a guilty suspect often makes objections to support a claim of innocence. The investigator should generally accept these objections as if they were truthful, rather than arguing with the suspect, and use the objections to further develop the theme.

e) Procurement and retention of suspect's attention: The investigator must procure the suspect's attention so that the suspect focuses on the investigator's theme rather than on punishment.

f) Handling the suspect's passive mood: The investigator should intensify the theme presentation and concentrate on the central reasons he or she is offering as psychological justification and continue to display an understanding and sympathetic demeanor in urging the suspect to tell the truth.

g) Presenting an alternative question:  The investigator should present two choices, assuming the suspect's guilt and developed as a logical extension from the theme with one alternative offering a better justification for the crime.

h) Having the suspect orally relate various details of the offense: After the suspect accepts one side of the alternative, the investigator should immediately respond with a statement of reinforcement acknowledging that admission. The investigator then seeks to obtain a brief oral review of the basic events, before asking more detailed questions.

i) Converting an oral confession to a written confession: The investigator must convert the oral confession into a written or recorded confession.

2. PEACE Method:

The PEACE method, investigators allow a suspect to tell his or her story without interruption, before presenting the suspect with any inconsistencies or contradictions between the story and other evidence. Investigators are prohibited from deceiving suspects during an interview. The PEACE method involves, Preparation and Planning, Engage and Explain, Account, Closure and Evaluate (PEACE).

a) Preparation and Planning: Interviewers should create a written interview plan, focusing on issues such as the objectives of the interview and the order of interviews. Interviewers may need to consider practical arrangements, such as visiting the scene or the location of the interview.

b) Engage and Explain:The interviewers should engage the individual, including using active listening to establish a rapport with him or her. The interviewers should explain the reasons for the interview and its objectives. Interviewers should encourage the individual to state anything they believe is relevant.

c) Account: The interviewers should use appropriate questions and active listening to obtain the interviewee's account of events. Questions should be short and free of jargon, and can help to clarify and expand the account.

d) Closure:This stage should be planned to avoid an abrupt end to the interview. Among other things, the interviewers should summarize the person's account of events, allowing the person to make clarifications and ask questions.

e) Evaluate:The interviewers should evaluate the interview to assess how the interviewee's account fits with the investigation as a whole, determine if further action is needed, and reflect on their performance.

According to my openion among the above mentioned approaches the PEACE method may lead to false confession. Because in PEACE method it more of humanitarian and the method which is used lacks accuracy in information eliciting from the suspects.

So possibly of false confession doesn't mean we can't use these methods. But rather the investigators should have the competency and skills in using these techniques appropriatly to the suspects and the accuracy of information elicited from the suspects should be valid.