The Social Psychology of Police Interrogation: The Theory and Classification of True and False Confessions

Abstract

This article (1) develops a social psychological decision-making model that describes the methods of influence through which interrogation proceeds and identifies the factors leading the guilty and the innocent to decide to confess; (2) Specifies the sequence and effects of the tactical moves through which interrogators influence suspects decisions; (3) Describes the variety of types of confessions and their differentiating characteristics; and (4) Develops and illustrates through case materials of a classification system for categorizing types of statements made in response to interrogation. Together, the decision-making model and the expanded classification system provide a framework for explaining the process of police interrogation as it is practiced in the United States.

Keywords: Criminal procedure, criminal justice, law enforcement, police interrogations, false confessions