Guest editorial
The Journal of Forensic Practice, Volume 18, Issue 2, May 2016. (Source: Journal of Forensic Practice)
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
Developing a professional identity in a new work environment: the views of defendant intermediaries working in the criminal courts
In this study six intermediaries who have worked with defendants were interviewed using a semi-structured interview and the interview transcripts were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings – Intermediaries appeared to be trying to make sense of their developing identities as professionals in the courtroom and this theme is conceptualised through social identity complexity theory. Practical implications – Health and care professionals undertaking a new function in the criminal justice sector should receive training about the psychological processes underlying developing professional i...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
Deceiving suspects about the content of their alibis: consequences for truthful and untruthful suspects
The Journal of Forensic Practice, Volume 18, Issue 2, Page 143-154, May 2016. Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test how modifying one’s alibi statement interacts with exposure to deceptive interrogation techniques. Design/methodology/approach – In all, 90 participants walked about a university building for 15 minutes and either stole an envelope from a staff pigeonhole (guilty condition) or put the envelope there along the way (innocent condition). Subsequently, participants were asked to provide an alibi for the past 15 minutes. Guilty and half of the innocent participants were instructed to omit tha...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
Putting the Mr. Big technique back on trial: a re-examination of probative value and abuse of process through a scientific lens
The Journal of Forensic Practice, Volume 18, Issue 2, Page 131-142, May 2016. Purpose – A recent Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) ruling resulted in stricter rules being placed on how police organizations can obtain confessions through a controversial undercover operation, known as the Mr. Big technique. The SCC placed the onus on prosecutors to demonstrate that the probative value of any Mr. Big derived confession outweighs its prejudicial effect, and that the police must refrain from an abuse of process (i.e. avoid overcoming the will of the accused to obtain a confession). The purpose of this paper is to determine whe...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
The benefits of multiple recollection strategies on adolescents’ testimonies: quality versus within-statement consistency?
In conclusion, testimonies gathered with the MCI might be perceived as more complete and detailed than the ones gathered with the SI. Practical implications – The improvement of interview techniques helps solving criminal cases. Originality/value – The innovative aspect of this work is that the benefits of the cognitive interview (CI) and the absence of an effect of inconsistency on accuracy are now also seen among adolescents. (Source: Journal of Forensic Practice)
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
Question type and its effect on children ' s maintenance and accuracy during courtroom testimony
The Journal of Forensic Practice, Volume 18, Issue 2, Page 104-117, May 2016. Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of question type (open-ended, prompted, reverse order and chronological order recall) on children’s ability to maintain a truth or a lie in a two-part mock-courtroom study. Design/methodology/approach – In total, 96 children (M age=131.00 months) between 9 and 12 years of age were asked to testify about an interaction with a research assistant the week prior. They were assigned to one of four conditions (true/false×assertion/denial). Findings – Results indicat...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
A guide to clarifying evidence in Australian child forensic interviews
The Journal of Forensic Practice, Volume 18, Issue 2, Page 91-103, May 2016. Purpose – Interviewing victims of child sex abuse requires considerable care in order to minimise error. Due to children’s heightened suggestibility any question asked of a child could potentially incite error that could undermine the witness’s credibility. A focus group was conducted in order to facilitate the development of guidance for interviewers around the circumstances in which it is necessary to ask children follow-up questions in an interview. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – Seven Crown...
Source: Journal of Forensic Practice - April 21, 2016 Category: Forensic Medicine Source Type: research
