NCJ Number
116624
Editor(s)
H Wegener,
F Losel,
J Haisch
Date Published
1989
Length
455 pages
Annotation
These 25 papers present theoretical and empirical analyses of the following four areas of psychological research in the framework of criminal law: prediction and explanation of criminal behavior; legal thought, attribution, and sentencing; eyewitness testimony; and clinical and organizational aspects of correctional treatment.
Abstract
Individual papers examine the possibility of predicting long-term outcomes for youths ages 8-10, the prediction of drunk-driving offenses, situational effects on the decisions of adolescent offenders to carry out delinquent acts, rational choice theory as applied to crime specialization and crime displacement, and perceptions of a building's appeal to a potential burglar. Other papers examine decision processes of jurors, situational effects on judicial judgmental processes, and the attractiveness and respectability of the offender as factors in sentencing decisions. Further papers examine the ways that social events are perceived and remembered, the factors that distort eyewitness testimony, the accuracy of collaborative testimony by police officers, and the assessment of credibility of allegations of child sexual abuse. Additional papers consider the effectiveness of various kinds of inmate treatment, the need for differentiated sanctions for different types of juvenile vandals, the relationships between correctional officers' personalities and their attitudes toward prisoners, and the role of prison psychologists. The papers emphasize findings from the Federal Republic of Germany, although findings from the United States, the Netherlands, and other countries are also included. Figures, tables, chapter reference lists, author index, and subject index.