by CrimePsych | Dec 9, 2019 | Blog
Although Christmas is a wonderful fun-filled time for families, it is also another opportunity for offenders to strike. There are numerous areas in life where you can be more at risk of crime over the festive period. You are at risk of having money cards or goods stolen whilst you are out shopping. Car thefts and break-ins are also increasing at this time of year.
It is also the season when we are attending a lot of parties and are at risk of being spiked, assaulted or raped. Alcohol can reduce inhibitions and can also give you a false sense of security. You are less likely to be vigilant after a couple of drinks so it is best to plan your safety.
Burglaries increase at this time of year too, so it is important to plan and make sure your home is safe over Christmas. There are lots of things that you do to ensure your property is as safe as possible.
During the festive season, most people drink more. Once a person has had a drink their inhibitions and decision making skills are impaired. Road safety is something that the police take very seriously and there are much more police out stopping people during December. And, no, it isn’t to fund their Christmas party by issuing fines! It is to keep you and all other road users safe.
The final area you can be more at risk over the festive period is in your own home. It is also a known fact that occurrences of domestic violence are increased during Christmas (as well as other holidays and sporting events). This can be inflated by jealousy over other people at parties and gatherings, by increased alcohol consumption, and because it is a very emotive time of the year for some people.
It would be too much to cover all of these in one blog. After all, we are all really busy over Christmas so who has the time to read a lengthy blog? Therefore, I have decided to cover each aspect in a short video. Hopefully, that will make it easier for you to listen to at the end of a long day Christmas shopping and partying.
These videos will replace the usual criminal psychology and psychological analysis videos during December. Head over to Youtube and search Crimepsych. You can subscribe and be notified of each new video.
If you have any questions about safety over Christmas get in touch. If there is any aspect you want me to cover then get in touch. Don’t forget to share your Christmas safety tips in the comments section.
Merry Christmas. Stay safe
Dr H x
by CrimePsych | Dec 2, 2019 | Blog
When we hear the term domestic abuse, many people would automatically imagine a husband beating his wife. However, the term domestic abuse covers a wide range of unhealthy behaviours and the victims of abuse can be male, female, young, old, any race or any religion. It is a wide area of study and it would be impossible to cover everything in a short blog. Therefore, in this blog, I wanted to discuss the signs of abuse or unhealthy relationships. Whether you are in an abusive relationship, or you suspect someone you care about it, recognising and acknowledging the signs is the first step to recovery.
Every relationship is different and there is no such thing as a typical relationship. As I have just mentioned, victims of domestic abuse can be male or female and not necessarily confined to those in intimate relationships. However, the majority of domestic abuse does occur between those in an intimate relationship and that is what I am going to discuss in this blog.
I recognize that there are going to be some people reading this blog who have either experienced or are currently experiencing domestic abuse. There are also going to be people reading this who are worried about someone they care about and suspect they are experiencing domestic abuse. Therefore, I am going to include two sections: one about how to spot the signs of abuse in other people; and one about recognising domestic abuse in your relationship.
Identifying domestic abuse in others.
Domestic abuse can happen to anyone regardless of who they are. As I have already mentioned, all relationships are different and so identifying signs of domestic abuse is not always easy. Victims of domestic abuse will often try to hide the signs for a variety of reasons. Some of the signs of domestic abuse may be easy to identify, such as bruises and cuts. Others may be things that can easily be explained or overlook. However, spotting several signs over time will usually show that a person is at risk.
If someone is being physically abused, they will frequently have bruises and bangs. However, victims can be very good at covering these things up. The abuser may also cause bruises and marks on parts of the body that are not easily seen.
When the signs of physical abuse are evident, victims may give inconsistent explanations for them. They may wear glasses indoors or long sleeve tops and jumpers in hot weather. Female victims of physical violence are often very skilled at covering up with heavier make up.
Domestic abuse is extremely damaging psychologically. Although you may never see any physical evidence of abuse, the emotional clues will be evident. Domestic abuse can cause people to believe that they will never escape the control of the abuser. They will often fear the consequences of leaving them. They may also be in a constant state of alertness and unable to ever fully relax.
Fear is an important component for the abuser. They will cause the other person to be timid, fearful, and nervous. The person may even show higher levels of fear when they are not with the abuser. A person experiencing domestic abuse may not say that they are being controlled and abused. However, they may refer to their partner as bad-tempered or moody. They will also behave in ways that show they are overly anxious to please them.
The key component of domestic abuse is control. The abuser controls and manipulates their victim in all areas of their life. They will refer to their partner as jealous and will very often constantly accuse the victim of having an affair. If you notice that a person asks for permission to go and socialize with people or does not have access to money then it is a sign they may be, or are, being controlled. Abusive partners will also constantly check up on them while they are out via phone calls or texts messages.
If you suspect someone you care about is the victim of domestic abuse, watch out for changes in behaviour. You may notice that they drop out of activities that they once enjoyed or cancels at the last minute. They can become distant with people and secretive about their private life. They may be quiet or withdrawn in a general way and isolate themselves. However, these can also be a sign of depression.
When a victim of domestic violence is particularly fearful, they will refuse the help to escape even if it is offered to them.
Are you in an abusive relationship?
Domestic abuse does not always mean that the abuser will physically hurt or harm you. Emotional and verbal abuse can be just as damaging to live with. This usually develops over time and becomes a ‘normal’ part of your relationship. More often than not, you don’t even notice that it is happening.
People who are in healthy relationships treat each other with respect and encourage each other. They will respect each other and talk about their feelings with you. They will give you compliments and say nice things about you to other people. Couples in a healthy relationship try to so some of the things the other person likes as well as having interests and friends of their own.
Unhealthy relationships can be evident in several ways. They may put you down when you are together and may do it in front of other people. They may go through your phone or social media accounts to check up on you and will often accuse you of cheating on them.
The main objective of an abuser is to manipulate and control you. This can start with small things such as making you feel guilty for not spending time with them or making you do things you don’t want to or are not interested in. A manipulating person will try to isolate you from friends and family and will not try to get on with people that are important to you. When you do spend time away from them they will constantly check up on you.
The domestic abuse may even include the other person forcing you to have sex when you don’t want to. They will also undermine your confidence and say things to scare you or make threats towards you.
Over time, you will become heavily critical of yourself. You may have thoughts such as ‘I’m stupid’ ‘I’m fat’ or ‘I’m not worthy. The abuser will isolate you and will tell you that they love you very much and are just worried about you. It can feel like the most loving relationship ever. Trust me, I’ve been there and I know.
Have you ever worried about how your partner will respond or react over something? You shouldn’t. That feeling of dread or uneasiness is not normal in a healthy relationship. You should be free to say or do whatever you want without worrying about upsetting the other person. Feeling fear of any kind within a relationship is unacceptable.
People stay in abusive relationships for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it may be because you are too frightened of what will happen if you do try and leave. It may be that you rely on them for financial help or worry about losing your home or children. The abuser will have taken away your self-confidence and belief in yourself, but it important that you seek help and advice.
The abuser may have blamed you for they wat that they have behaved and you may feel guilty. You may enjoy the good times you have with them and keep hoping it won’t happen again. However, it is important to recognize that nobody should treat you that way or cause you to feel fear.
Emotional abuse can be difficult to acknowledge and identify. The abuse is often subtle and escalates over time. You should not feel any kind of shame for not seeing it happen. The important thing is that as soon as you do recognize it, you take action.
Many people can give you advice and support that you need. You might not want to or feel able to end the relationship because you think things will get better. It is unlikely that the abuse will end on its own without intervention.
Reach out and seek help. I have included a link below to some websites that can offer you professional advice and support.
https://www.victimsupport.org.uk/crime-info/types-crime/domestic-abuse/recognising-signs-domestic-abuse
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/domestic-abuse-how-to-get-help
Women:
Home
Men:
Home
LGBT:
Galop to run National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) Domestic Violence Helpline
Children:
https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/home-families/family-relationships/domestic-abuse/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=UK_GO_S_B_GEN_New_Grant_ChildLine_Domestic_Abuse&utm_term=domestic_violence_children&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=Cj0KCQiAiZPvBRDZARIsAORkq7d7KzBa68E2jn0Lv9pzDTlYfNGhcu3z1neND24JdB_CjA4KPwqK2MkaAhZQEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
by CrimePsych | Oct 7, 2019 | Blog
There is a large body of literature dedicated to understanding the way offenders think and how this manifests as criminal behaviours. Early investigations into what influences an offender to commit any type of offence have suggested that faulty thinking patterns may influence re-offending, and as such suggest that any treatment programs should target the way an offender thinks rather behaves. A researcher named Farringdon suggested that the motivation to offend is inherent within the individual and is determined in stages. Farrington identifies stages of motivation which correlate to thinking that maintains offending. Other studies have examined the way an offender interprets his or her offending behaviour and have suggested that factors such as lack of thoughtfulness and wilful hostility influence offending.
Criminal thinking literature assumes offenders are intrinsically different from non-offenders, it assumes that offenders thinking patterns are distinct from the non-offending population. However, it is possible that context and emotion can be combined to increase the likelihood that a person will offend. It is reasonable to assume that while an offender is not breaking the law they may share many of the values and behaviours that non-offenders do. This suggests that the intrinsic differences are not always evident.
Walters has dominated the criminal thinking literature with his Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS). The PICTS is a measure criminal cognition and thinking style that maintains offending, Walters established that it is a reliable predictor of re-offending when correlated with age and prior offending behaviours. Walters established that males’ scores on this scale are correlated with high problem avoidance, high masculinity, and self-deception, while females’ scores are correlated with low levels of interpersonal hostility and high levels of denial of harm.
Egan and colleagues support these findings and go further to suggest that there are individual differences in lack of thoughtfulness and wilful hostility. Johnson and colleagues also support the scale, however, points out the importance of controlling for age. The scale is reliable cross-culturally and it has been found that that this scale is not only applicable to incarcerated individuals, but also non-incarcerated individuals.
Walters further suggests that the PICTS can effectively identify and predict proactive and reactive aspects of criminal behaviours. The terms Proactive and Reactive were initially proposed as forms of aggression that children display. Dodge investigated theories on aggression and identified two key theories within the literature; the Frustration-Aggression and Social Learning Theory. The Frustration-Aggression model suggests that aggression is a hostile angry reaction to perceived frustration or provocation. Whereas Social learning theory suggests aggression is a learned behaviour which is mediated by external rewards. Dodge subsequently relabelled these Proactive and reactive forms of aggression.
Reactive aggression has been associated with a tendency to view ambiguous behaviours as hostile or threatening. Proactive aggression has been associated with a tendency to see aggressive behaviour as an effective way to attain external rewards, and unlikely to result in being punished. Walters extends the theory of proactive and reactive behaviours to criminal actions and has identified two factors on his PICTS that predict criminal thinking styles. The Problem avoidance factor identifies reactive criminal thinking which is associated with hostile attribution bias. The Self-assertion/deception factor identifies proactive criminal thinking which is associated with positive outcome expectancies. Walters has suggested that proactive criminal thinking has been associated with offences such as robbery and burglary, whereas reactive criminal thinking has been associated with offences such as assault & violence.
It has been identified that proactive and reactive aggression can be displayed by the same individual, perhaps even during one event, this complicates the matter of differentiating the behaviours of offenders and non-offenders or between different types of offender. Although this literature furthers our understanding of the factors that maintain offending, there is a lack of explanation for why many individuals cease their offending behaviour.
Other studies into what types of motivations influence a person to offend have also suggested inherent influences. Gudjohnsson & Siggurdson developed the Offence Motivation Questionnaire (OMQ), this scale investigates motivation based on Farrigton’s stage sequence. The main motivations for offending according to Gudjonsson & Siggurdson are Compliance, Provocation, Excitement, and Financial.
Most of this literature suggests that criminal thinking allows the individual to maintain offending behaviour, however, the onset of criminal behaviour is not accounted for in this literature. The literature also fails to explain why some individuals cease their offending behaviours. Furthermore, the literature treats crime as an undifferentiated construct and does not allow for that fact that some offenders may consider crimes against the person as unacceptable, and crimes against property as acceptable and vice versa.
by CrimePsych | Sep 30, 2019 | Blog
Level of morality has been suggested as a basis for differentiating those that follow norms and laws from those that do not. Early research into what influences an individual to digress from the norm and laws of society have suggested that morality is a major influence. It is suggested that individuals differ in their understanding and application of moral behaviour.
Pioneers in this area of literature, such as Piaget have proposed that anti-social and criminal behaviour should be examined as the thoughts and judgements an individual makes rather than how they behave. This is an important factor to identify, once thoughts and judgements are understood they can be applied across a variety of contexts. Piaget suggested that morality develops throughout childhood and is a learned process. Piaget suggests that individuals construct and reconstruct knowledge of the world through social interactions. Kohlberg extended this theory to incorporate morality in adults. However, he did point out that the essence of morality lay in the rules of engagement learned during childhood.
Kohlberg proposes that a person progresses through stages of moral development and use this knowledge as a basis for ethical behaviour. Kohlberg proposed that an appropriate way to measure the level of morality is through the use of moral dilemmas. Kohlberg presents participants with moral dilemmas, usually involving a criminal or deviant act, and asks participants whether the act should be carried out. Participants are asked to give a rationale for their response, this rationale is then used as a basis to determine which stage of morality a person is in.
Kohlberg suggests that there are 3 levels of moral development, the first stage is the Pre-conventional level. During the Pre-conventional level individuals are concerned with avoiding punishment. The second stage is the Conventional level, during this stage individuals are concerned with following social and legal norms. The third and final stage is the Post conventional level, very few individuals are said to reach this stage, most stay within the conventional level. Individuals in the Post-conventional level are concerned with universal ethical principles. As a person develops through these stages a deeper and more comprehensive understanding is gained, and new principals are integrated with what has already been learned.
However, when level of morality is applied to the theory of criminal behaviour, it fails to allow for the fact that many offenders follow norms and laws of society in many aspects of their daily lives. The learned process of developing through the various stages is suggested as a one-way process, whereas many people who offend show care and compassion for others they care about, and their offending may have occurred for many reasons. The proposed stages ignore context and emotive factors which may influence offending.
However, in terms of how morality develops, there is much support for Kohlberg’s stages of moral development. Snarey supports the underlying premise of the theory and suggests some caveats regarding urban and middle-class subcultures. Other researchers also supports the framework proposed by Kohlberg and have used this theory to investigate employee theft. The results indicated that those who operate at the conventional level stole less from the workplace than those who are at a lower level. This suggests that level of morality can influence offending behaviour.
Other researchers have investigated the effects of gender on moral development, Wark & Krebs provide overall support for Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning and found that females were more consistent in their moral reasoning than males. Gender differences are also observed by Hurwitz who suggests that females show preferences for preventative treatments rather than punishments when the norms and laws are violated in some way.
However, some have criticized the theory suggesting that it should incorporate a wider view of morality. For example, Tureill (1983) began to identify anomalies in the stage sequence in Kohlberg’s theory and suggested that major revisions were necessary. Another researcher named Nucci highlights the assumption that knowing what is right does not necessarily mean the individual will follow that course of action. Others have criticised the moral dilemmas formulated by Kohlberg as not being diverse enough, suggesting that there were no instances of group versus individual decisions, or scenarios that depict caring for others versus taking care of one’s own needs.
In conclusion, we develop moral behaviour during childhood and this can influence how we behave as adults. Although level of moral development cannon explain or account for all types of offending it is likely to influence whether or not we follow the same rules as everyone else.
by CrimePsych | Sep 24, 2019 | Blog
As the discipline of Investigative Psychology evolved, there was a recognition that psychologists could help police with a variety of things. As many of you will know, the majority of police work begins with collecting information. This can sometimes be challenging for officers as they need to decide on what information or evidence to collect. Of course, there is the basic forensic evidence to be collected from a crime scene, however, additional information at a crime can also be revealing. For example, how a victim and a perpetrator interact can tell us a lot about the offender.
There are several areas in policing that can benefit from applying aspects of Investigative Psychology. These can be how information is gathered from suspects, witnesses, or victims. It could be identifying where the offender is likely to live. It may even be drawing inferences about what characteristics the offender is likely to have.
But as any officer will tell you, the majority of work begins with interviewing. This is certainly one area that principles within psychology can have an impact on policing work. They need to interview the victim, any witnesses, and any suspects. However, as we have also previously discussed, this information may not always be accurate or truthful.
Eyewitness testimony is one area that has been greatly improved by understanding how memory and brain work. It is well understood that the information given by witnesses may not always be 100% correct. Eyewitnesses may give false or inaccurate information – this is not always intentional though. There can be many cases of innocent errors being made such as not identifying the suspect in an identity parade, not recalling the events they witnessed correctly and so on. One particular study within psychology set up an experiment in which a person entered a shop and performed some memorable act, such as paying with pennies, and they were later asked to look at photographs to identify that person. They were only correct 34-48% and incorrect 34-38% of the time. This means that identification of a person may be incorrect and they may be wrongly convicted of the crime.
When eyewitnesses are asked to pick the offender out of an identity parade, they may feel pressured to pick a person out even though they may not be 100% sure they have chosen the correct suspect.
Problems such as these were also found in a study by MacLin and colleagues who found that out of 62 convicted offenders had their conviction reversed when DNA evidence later exonerated them, 52 of those had been convicted using eyewitness testimony alone. This means 52 innocent people in jail because of an eyewitnesses mistake.
But by putting in stringent frameworks, it is possible to reduce the number of incorrect identifications. Several procedures have been put into everyday practice by police to reduce the possibility of incorrect identification of a suspect. Measures such as the officer not knowing who the suspect is so as not to influence the witness, the witness being told the offender may not be in the lineup, having similar looking people used in line ups, and no feedback to be given to the witness, can all help to reduce inaccurate information.
Both the quantity and quality of information drawn out from witnesses and suspects is of great importance. Therefore, a comprehensive semi-structured interview technique has been proven to improve the quantity and quality of information from both suspects and eyewitnesses. The Cognitive Interview contains several factors: Establish rapport, listen actively, encourage spontaneous recall, ask open-ended questions, pause after responses, avoid interrupting, request detailed descriptions, encourage intense concentration, encourage the use of imagery, recreate the original context, adopt the rememberers perspective, ask compatible questions, encourage multiple retrieval attempts.
In an attempt to make this simpler so it could be adopted into everyday policing practices, the PEACE interview was developed. PEACE is an acronym where all of the letters stand for something to be done. This summarizes the main components of the interview to Planning and preparation, Engage and explain the purpose of interview and process, Account – free recall, Clarify challenge and conclude, Evaluate – new lines of enquiry?
When interviewing suspects, it is important to acknowledge that they may not always be telling the truth. Interview methods such as the Cognitive Interview and PEACE framework can help in getting as much information as possible.
It is suggested that officers be as open and honest as possible with any evidence they have against a suspect as this makes them more likely to confess. However, that information may not always be present. In cases such as this, Investigative Psychologists have developed various ways of telling when someone is lying.
In the past, detectives have used polygraphs, or lie detectors, to detect deception. These work by measuring physiological arousal, in other words, their emotional response to a question. However, some studies have found these not to be 100% accurate.
There are several incorrect stereotypes linked to spotting a liar. Many people, including police officers, believe that not looking someone directly in the eye, or fidgeting whilst talking are signs the person is lying. These are popular, but incorrect, ideas of what liars do. By using carefully researched markers of deception, the accuracy rates in spotting a liar can be increased significantly.
Another area that Investigative Psychologists have helped police is identifying where a criminal is likely to live. This is called geographical profiling. This grew out of work Professor Canter did with Detective Constable Rupert Herritage in the 1990s. The basis of this is mapping out crimes which occur in a series. Offenders have shown to behave in similar ways with the distance they travel to offend. They will consider where or not they know the area well, how they might get back after the crime, whether they will be recognised whilst committing the offences. This is a major aspect of Investigative Psychology and will be discussed in its own video.
Whether we are behaving in criminal or law-abiding ways, we are most confident in areas we know well. We form mental maps of the areas surrounding us. We tend to underestimate distances in areas we know well and underestimate distances in unfamiliar places. By using a complex computerised system, in this case, it is called Dragnet, we can input where on the map the crimes occur and as a result where the most likely home base of the offender is going to be.
The final way in which Investigative Psychology can be applied to policing is matching some offending actions to the characteristics of the person who is likely to have carried them out. In essence, this is creating profiles of offenders. When investigative psychologists infer the offender’s likely characteristics based on the crime scene actions it is based on knowledge from several disciplines such as criminology, sociology, clinical psychology, child psychology, criminal psychology, social psychology, and organisational psychology.
As has already been discussed, it is important to match the right types of activities to the right level of characteristics. The use of structured methods to gather, analyse and report these findings are of utmost importance. Psychological researchers use complex statistics to enhance the everyday activities of police, including creating profiles, to explore and explain their findings. What we must be mindful of is that this information needs to be translated in a way which is understandable and accessible to everyone. It would be useless to present complex statistical findings to the police and recommend policy or procedure because they may not always understand it.
So when we present findings of profiles, it is important to keep it as simple and understandable and applicable as possible. In doing this, investigating officers and police will be able to easily integrate these findings into their everyday procedures.
by CrimePsych | Sep 16, 2019 | Blog
Those who are suspected of taking part in crime will often lie. A suspect will rarely admit to their part in a crime when they are first interviewed. Police officers are trained in interviewing techniques which help to draw as much information out of the suspect as possible. These interviewing techniques also help to identify when suspects are lying.
When interviewing suspects, it is important to acknowledge that they may not always be telling the truth. Interview methods such as the Cognitive Interview and PEACE framework can help in getting as much information as possible. It is suggested that officers be as open and honest as possible with any evidence they have against a suspect as this makes them more likely to confess.
In the past, detectives have used polygraphs, or lie detectors, to detect deception. These work by measuring physiological arousal, in other words, their level of physical arousal in response to a question. The person being interviewed is fitted with a device on their finger to measure sweat rates. They also have a blood pressure cuff and two rubber straps around the chest and abdomen to measure breathing.
However, some studies have found these to be unreliable and only about 50% accurate. Although this didn’t seem to bother Jeremy Kyle much! The polygraph measures physiological responses to questions but there are no proven physiological responses associated with liars. The machine is measuring stress levels. It is believed that when people are lying it causes more stress and as such can be detected by the machine.
You might think that police officers and detectives are much better at telling when people are lying than the rest of us. However, several studies have found that law enforcement officials are no better at spotting liars than everyone else. There is about a 50/50 chance of getting it right and spotting a liar.
As a result of numerous studies within psychology, an interview technique was developed called the cognitive interview. This interview technique was primarily developed to interview witnesses and victims of crime. The interview technique uses several different types of retrieval cues and encourages the interviewee to remember all the events that occurred.
Cognitive interviews reliably enhance the process of memory retrieval and have been found to elicit memories without generating inaccurate accounts. Further research has established that this interview technique allows those who are lying to be identified more easily.
The Cognitive Interview is grounded within psychology and contains several important factors within an interview. The interviewer should establish rapport and listen actively to what the person is saying. The interviewer should encourage spontaneous recall of information and ask open-ended questions. They should ensure that they leave a pause after each response and should avoid interrupting. The interviewer should also request detailed descriptions and encourage intense concentration throughout the interview. The use of imagery should be encouraged and the person should also be encouraged to recreate the original context in their mind. Questions should be asked from the perspective of the person remembering the information and compatible questions should be asked throughout. Finally, multiple retrieval attempts of the information should be encouraged.
For the cognitive interview to be adopted into everyday policing practices, the main components of the cognitive interview were summarized and as a result, the PEACE interview was developed. This interview technique is a conversational approach to gathering information rather than confrontational.
PEACE is an acronym where all of the letters stand for something to be done. This P stands for Planning and preparation. The interviewer should know who they are interviewing and have a set of questions already prepared. The E stands for Engage and explains the purpose of the interview and process. The interviewer should explain what information they need and why they need it. The person being interviewed should be treated like a person rather than a suspect and the language should be kept simple. A stands for Account – the interviewer should allow free recall. Open-ended questions will allow for more information to be obtained. The C stands for Clarify challenge and conclude. The interviewer should explain what happens next and check that they have all the information they need. Finally, the E stands for Evaluate. The interviewer should evaluate their performance. They should evaluate what information was gathered and decide whether any actions need to be taken.
By using these principles during an interview, both the quantity and quality of information is enhanced. It has been found that the PEACE interview helps those giving truthful accounts of an event to remember all of the relevant information. The technique also makes it much more difficult for a liar to continue to lie. By asking about all aspects of the event in several different ways, the liar is much more likely to contradict themselves.
