Journal of Criminal Psychology

Sigurdardóttir, Tinna Dögg; West, Adrian; Gudjonsson, Gisli Hannes

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-07-2023-0043

This study aims to examine the scope and contribution of Forensic Clinical Psychology (FCP) advice from the National Crime Agency (NCA) to criminal investigations in the UK to address the gap in current knowledge and research.Design/methodology/approachThe 36 FCP reports reviewed were written between 2017 and 2021. They were analysed using Toulmin’s (1958) application of pertinent arguments to the evaluation process. The potential utility of the reports was analysed in terms of the advice provided.FindingsMost of the reports involved murder and equivocal death. The reports focused primarily on understanding the offender’s psychopathology, actions, motivation and risk to self and others using a practitioner model of case study methodology. Out of the 539 claims, grounds were provided for 99% of the claims, 91% had designated modality, 62% of the claims were potentially verifiable and 57% of the claims were supported by a warrant and/or backing. Most of the reports provided either moderate or high insight into the offence/offender (92%) and potential for new leads (64%).Practical implicationsThe advice provided relied heavily on extensive forensic clinical and investigative experience of offenders, guided by theory and research and was often performed under considerable time pressure. Flexibility, impartiality, rigour and resilience are essential prerequisites for this type of work.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to systematically evaluate forensic clinical psychology reports from the NCA. It shows the pragmatic, dynamic and varied nature of FCP contributions to investigations and its potential utility.

Stevens, Kay Lynn; Mojtahedi, Dara; Austin, Adam

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-09-2023-0059

This study aims to examine whether country of residence, sex trafficking attitudes, complainant gender, juror gender and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) influenced juror decision-making within a sex trafficking case.Design/methodology/approachJury-eligible participants from the USA and the UK participated in an online juror experiment in which an independent group design was used to manipulate the complainant’s gender. Participants completed the juror decision scale, the sex trafficking attitudes scale and the RWA scale.FindingsSex trafficking attitudes predicted the believability of both the defendant and complainant. Greater negative beliefs about victims predicted greater defendant believability and lower complainant believability. US jurors reported greater believability of both the complainant and defendant, and RWA was associated with greater defendant believability. However, none of the other factors, including complainant and juror gender, predicted participants’ verdicts. The findings suggest juror verdicts in sex trafficking cases may be less influenced by extra-legal factors, although further research is needed, especially with a more ambiguous case.Originality/valueThis is one of the few cross-cultural comparison studies in the area of jury decision-making, specifically regarding sex trafficking cases. The findings indicated that US participants held more problematic attitudes about sex trafficking than their UK counterparts, although all participants held problematic attitudes about sex trafficking. However, those attitudes did not affect verdict formation about either a male or female complainant. Participants who were more knowledgeable about sex trafficking reported greater complainant believability, suggesting that educational interventions may provide greater support for victims in court.

Pechorro, Pedro; Gomide, Paula; DeLisi, Matt; Simões, Mário

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-09-2023-0056

Recent developments in the psychometric assessment of youth psychopathic traits suggest that the inclusion of a conduct disorder (CD) factor to the traditional three factors of the psychopathy construct may improve the incremental validity of these measures. The purpose of the current study is to examine whether the addition of a CD factor incrementally improves the ability of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory Short version (YPI-S) to predict criminal recidivism.Design/methodology/approachA longitudinal quantitative research design was used with a sample detained male youth (N = 214, Mage = 16.4 years, SDage = 1.3 years).FindingsResults using the area under the curve analysis suggest that the inclusion of a CD factor slightly improves the capacity of the YPI-S to predict one-year general criminal recidivism, but it does not significantly increase its capacity to predict violent criminal recidivism. Results also indicate that a CD scale outperforms the YPI-S, even with an additional CD factor included, in terms of predicting one-year general and violent recidivism.Practical implicationsSelf-reported youth psychopathic trait measures, even those that include a CD factor as a fourth factor, should be used with caution when the aim is to predict youth criminal recidivism.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study using a self-reported youth psychopathic traits measure with a CD factor to examine youth criminal recidivism.

Conmy, Eileen; Prentice, Garry; Hannigan, Barbara; Trimble, Timothy James

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-10-2023-0065

This study aims to explore the experiences of non-offending partners (NOPs) of men who perpetrated contact and non-contact sexual offences.Design/methodology/approachIn-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out with eight women and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis.FindingsFindings yielded two superordinate themes, eight subordinate themes and an overarching theme. The first superordinate theme “Paying for their Husband’s Transgressions” captured many ways in which the women’s lives were impacted by their husbands offending. The second superordinate theme “Navigating the Darkness” encompassed the women’s experiences of trying to adapt to their new lives. The overarching theme “A Contaminated Life” pertained to the shared experiences of the women who all described encountering instant and profound consequences. This research highlighted the need for immediate signposting to support services for NOPs. The value of a humanistic counselling approach paired with forensic expertise was also identified. Future research with cross-cultural samples and same sex-couples would enrich the current understanding of this experience.Practical implicationsThis research highlighted the need for immediate signposting to support services for NOPs. The value of a humanistic counselling approach paired with forensic expertise was also identified.Originality/valueQualitative research on the experiences of NOPs of men who perpetrated sexual offences is sparse. Furthermore, existing research focuses on the experiences of women who’s own children were abused, with the partners of men who have perpetrated extra-familial or non-contact offenses remaining largely neglected.

Ishfaq, Nimrah; Kamal, Anila

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-09-2023-0057

This study aims to differentiate crime-related characteristics (such as the number of cases filed against current convictions and criminal history) based on the criminal thinking prevailing among convicts. However, because of the low reliability of subscales and poor structural validity of indigenous and translated versions of international instruments, a new instrument criminal attitude measure (CAM) was extracted to measure criminal thinking patterns among convicts incarcerated in central prisons of Punjab.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional research design was used. Data was collected from 1,949 male convicts (extracting mutually exclusive data from 649 respondents for EFA and 1,300 respondents for confirmatory factor analysis [CFA]). Both data samples were collected from convicts incarcerated in the nine (all) central jails of Punjab, Pakistan.FindingsThe results of this study showed poor model fit for both the indigenous criminal thinking scale and the translated version of criminogenic cognition scale. CAM was extracted through principal component analysis and proposed as a 15-item questionnaire with five factors extracted through varimax rotation. Those five factors are power orientation, mollification, entitlement, mistrust toward authorities and short-term orientation. The results of CFA for CAM confirmed the proposed five-factor structure for the construct. Findings based on MANOVA further found that CAM differentiates between the thinking patterns of recidivists, convicts with multiple charges filed against them in current convictions and convicts with a familial criminal record. The findings of this study showed that CAM is a practical, valid and reliable instrument for measuring criminal thinking among convicts.Research limitations/implicationsIn this study, using the survey method was inevitable because of the restrictions imposed by the granted permission. However, this time duration was extended because of the courtesy of the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent of each jail. This study is focused on a male sample only, and the findings cannot be generalized to females. The phenomena proposed (based on large data sets) in this study can further be elaborated using qualitative research designs and methods (using a small sample with an in-depth study). So, it is also suggested to test this new instrument on a comparative study between prisoners and non-prisoners to explore whether scale can differentiate between these two groups.Practical implicationsA short-scale and easy-to-administer instrument was developed for assessing major criminogenic needs among convicts for prison management, i.e. assigning barracks, allocating treatment and also detecting changes in attitude after imprisonment.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first study to explore and validate the construct of criminal attitudes among convicts using both the EFA and CFA. A small and valid instrument facilitates the measurement of criminogenic needs among prisoners. Data was collected from all central jails in Punjab. This study explored comparatively less researched crime characteristics in a relatively large sample.

Ochterbeck, Doris; Berryessa, Colleen M.; Forberger, Sarah

2024 Journal of Criminal Psychology

doi: 10.1108/jcp-11-2023-0071

Neuroscientific research on addictions has prompted a paradigm shift from a moral to a medical understanding – with substantial implications for legal professionals’ interactions with and decision-making surrounding individuals with addiction. This study complements prior work on US defense attorney’s understandings of addiction by investigating two further perspectives: the potential “next generation” of legal professionals in the USA (criminal justice undergraduates) and legal professionals from another system (Germany). This paper aims to assess their views on the brain disease model of addiction, dominance and relevance of this model, the responsibility of affected persons and preferred sources of information.Design/methodology/approachViews of 74 US criminal justice undergraduate students and 74 German legal professionals were assessed using Likert scales and open-ended questions in an online survey.FindingsNeuroscientific research findings on addictions and views that addiction is a brain disease were rated as significantly more relevant by American students to their potential future work than by German legal professionals. However, a majority of both samples agreed that addiction is a brain disease and that those affected are responsible for their condition and actions. Sources of information most frequently used by both groups were publications in legal academic journals.Practical implicationsIn the USA, information for legal professionals needs to be expanded and integrated into the education of its “next generation,” while in Germany it needs to be developed and promoted. Legal academic journals appear to play a primary role in the transfer of research on addiction into legal practice.Originality/valueThis study complements prior work on US defense attorney’s understandings of addiction by investigating two further perspectives.