Measuring social desirability amongst men with intellectual disabilities: The psychometric properties of the Self- and Other-Deception Questionnaire—Intellectual Disabilities

Background Social desirability has been construed as either inaccurately attributing positive characteristics to oneself (self-deception), or inaccurately denying that one possesses undesirable characteristics to others (other-deception or impression management). These conceptualisations of social desirability have not been considered in relation to people with intellectual disabilities (IDs), but they are important constructs to consider when undertaking a psychological assessment of an individual, especially within forensic contexts. Therefore, we revised two existing measures of self- and other-deception and considered their psychometric properties. Methods Thirty-two men with mild IDs and 28 men without IDs completed the Self- and Other-Deception Questionnaires—Intellectual Disabilities (SDQ-ID and ODQ-ID) on two occasions, two weeks apart. Results Men with IDs scored significantly higher on the SDQ-ID and the ODQ-ID than men without IDs. However, these differences disappeared when Full Scale IQ, Verbal IQ and Performance IQ were controlled in relation to the SDQ-ID, and partially disappeared in relation to the ODQ-ID. The SDQ-ID and the ODQ-ID had substantial internal consistency in relation to men with IDs (k = 0.82 and 0.84 respectively). The test-retest reliability of the SDQ-ID was good (ri = 0.68), while the test-retest reliability of the ODQ-ID was moderate (ri = 0.56), for men with IDs. The SDQ-ID had moderate (k = 0.60) and the ODQ-ID had substantial (k = 0.70) internal consistency in relation to men without IDs, while the test-retest reliability of the SDQ-ID was excellent (ri = 0.87) as was the case for the ODQ-ID (ri = 0.85). Conclusions The SDQ-ID and the ODQ-ID have satisfactory psychometric properties in relation to men with and without IDs. Future research using these instruments is propose

The effect of cognitive load on faking interrogative suggestibility on the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale

In the light of recent studies into the impact of cognitive load on detecting deception, the impact of cognitive load on faking on the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale (GSS) was investigated. Eighty undergraduate students participated in the study, and were randomly assigned to one of four conditions resulting from a combination of the factors: instruction type (genuine or instructed faking, see Hansen, Smeets, & Jelicic, 2009) and concurrent task (yes or no). Findings show that instructed fakers, not performing a concurrent task, score significantly higher on yield 1 in comparison to genuine interviewees. This is in line with previous studies into faking on the GSS. However, instructed fakers, performing a concurrent task, achieved significantly lower yield 1 scores than instructed fakers not performing a concurrent task. Genuine (non fakers) showed a different response to increased cognitive load during the dual-task paradigm. This study suggests that increasing cognitive load may potentially indicate (and preclude) faking attempts on the yield dimension of the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale

Childhood predictors of criminal offending: results from a 19-year longitudinal epidemiological study of boys

Objective: To examine the relative contribution of hyperactivity, conduct, and emotional problems in predicting criminal offending. Method: In all, 173 boys aged 6 to 8 years (assessed for hyperactivity, conduct, and emotional problems) were followed up 19 years later by examining criminal offense histories. Results: Significant main effects for total and violent convictions were found, the strongest being for violent criminal offenses. Conduct problems predicted general offending (irrespective of the type of conviction), whereas emotional problems were the single best predictor of violent convictions. Hyperactivity was not a significant predictor in the models. Conclusion: The findings provide insight into the developmental mechanisms that mediate criminal behavior by showing that childhood emotional problems independently contribute to the risk of violent offending in later

Vulnerable suspects in police interviews: exploring current practice in England and Wales

Mentally disordered individuals are increasingly coming into contact with the police. The current study explored investigative interview practice with mentally disordered suspects to examine how they respond, and the impact this has on the level of information obtained. Transcripts of interviews conducted with vulnerable and non-vulnerable suspects (N = 66) were analysed using a specially designed coding framework. Results highlighted that best practice is generally not being adhered to regarding questioning techniques (for example, the use of open questions). Furthermore, while police officers altered their communication to suit the needs of the vulnerable suspect, they were also more likely to use minimisation tactics. Mentally disordered suspects sought more clarification for open questions and provided more information to closed questions. They also demonstrated higher levels of vulnerability (suggestibility and compliance) when compared to their non-vulnerable counterparts. Implications regarding interviewing methods for this vulnerable group are discussed

Investigating gender differences in the factor structure of the Gudjonsson Compliance Scale

Purpose: The Gudjonsson Compliance Scale (GCS) remains, in terms of its psychometrics, an under-researched instrument, in which gender differences in particular have been insufficiently examined. The aim of this research was to therefore investigate the effect of gender on the factor structure of the GCS. Method: The GCS was administered to 441 females and 250 males. The data were factor-analysed, with 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-factor solutions tested and compared. Procrustean rotation was applied to the male factor loading matrix to investigate structural equivalence across gender. Results: Although a 3-factor solution was the best fit to the male GCS data, a 4-factor solution was the most acceptable fit to the female data. Whilst each of the factors had a high degree of determinacy, the identity coefficients indicated that these factors differ non-trivially across gender. Conclusion: The GCS may measure different aspects of compliance across males and females, which may explain the gender differences in compliance found within the literature to date. The work also allows insight into why males and females may end up complying with police requests, which might ultimately help to inform strategies, implemented by police, to manage vulnerable general population suspects and witnesses. There is a need now to further investigate the structure of compliance across ethnic groups and/or countries where the GCS is administered

Diagnostic accuracy of a brief screening tool forAttention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in UK prison inmates

BackgroundAttention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is overrepresented in prison, making it imperative to identify a screening tool that can be quickly applied to efficiently detect the disorder. We explored the discrimination ability of a widely used ADHD screen, the Barkley Adult ADHD Rating Scale (BAARS-IV), against a clinical diagnostic interview. A brief version of the screen was then developed in order to simplify its use in the prison context, and maximize its diagnostic properties.MethodA cross-sectional study of 390 male prison inmates was performed in the UK, all participants were screened and interviewed via the Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in Adults 2.0 (DIVA-2).ResultsA total of 47 (12.1%) inmates screened positive for ADHD using the full BAARS-IV, and 96 (24.6%) were clinically diagnosed, for a sensitivity of 37.9 and a specificity of 96.3. Our models identified the six items that most predicted ADHD diagnosis, with adjusted odds ratios ranging from 2.66 to 4.58. Sensitivity, specificity and accuracy were 0.82, 0.84 and 0.84, respectively, for the developed brief scale, and 0.71, 0.85 and 0.81 for its validation. Weighted probability scores produced an area under the curve of 0.89 for development, and 0.82 for validation of the brief scale.ConclusionsThe original BAARS-IV performed poorly at identifying prison inmates with ADHD. Our developed brief scale substantially improved diagnostic accuracy. The brief screening instrument has great potential to be used as an accurate and resource-effective tool to screen young people and adults for likely ADHD in the criminal justice system.</jats:sec

Brief report: Suggestibility, compliance and psychological traits in high-functioning adults with autism spectrum disorder

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may be over-represented within the criminal justice system; it is therefore important to understand how they fare under police questioning. The present study examined interrogative suggestibility and compliance in individuals with ASD, and whether this is associated with certain psychological traits. Adults with ASD and their typical counterparts completed the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scales (GSS), Gudjonsson Compliance Scale (GCS), and measures of state-trait anxiety, self-esteem, fear of negative evaluation by others and paranoia. In contrast to previous research (North, Russell, & Gudjonsson, 2008), there was no difference between the ASD and comparison groups on the measure of compliance, and groups also did not differ on any of the GSS measures, despite the ASD group reporting significantly higher paranoia. Findings indicate that individuals with ASD may be no more likely to succumb to interrogative pressures than their typical counterparts

Reasoning and rehabilitation cognitive skills programme for mentally disordered offenders: predictors of outcome

AIM To investigate factors predicting treatment completion and treatment outcome of the Reasoning and Rehabili tation Mental Health Programme ( R&R2MHP ) cognitive skills programme for mentally disordered offenders (MDOs). METHODS Secondary analysis of data previously obtain ed from 97 male patients who were sectioned and detained under the U nited Kingdom Mental Health Act in low, medium and high security hospitals and who had completed R&R2MHP. Predictors of treatment completion included background variables and five outcome measures: four self - reported measures of violent attitudes, social problem - solvin g skills, reactive anger and locus of control and an objective measure of behaviour on the ward that was completed by staff. Completion of the 16 session programme, which was delivered on a weekly basis, was classified as ≥ 12 sessions. RESULTS It was fou nd that the R&R2MHP is appropriate for delivery to participants of different ages, ethnic background, and at different levels of security without the completion rate or treatment effectiveness being compromised. Participants taking oral typical psychotropi c medication were over seven times more likely to complete the programme than other participants. Behavioural disturbance on the ward prior to commencing the programme predicted non - completion (medium effect size). As far as treatment completion was concer ned, none of the background factors predicted treatment effectiveness (age, ethnic background, level of security, number of previous convictions and number of previous hospital admissions). The best predictor of treatment effectiveness was attitude towards violence suggesting that this should be the primary outcome measure in future research evaluating outcomes of the R&R2MHP cognitive skills program. CONCLUSION The findings suggest that a stable mental state is a key factor that predicts treatment completion

A ‘criminal personas’ approach to countering criminal creativity

This paper describes a pilot study of a ‘criminal personas’ approach to countering criminal creativity. The value of the personas approach has been assessed by comparing the identification of criminal opportunity, through ‘traditional’ brainstorming and then through ‘criminal personas’ brainstorming The method involved brainstorm sessions with Computer Forensics Practitioners and with Product Designers, where they were required to generate criminal scenarios, select the most serious criminal opportunities, and propose means of countering them. The findings indicated that there was merit in further research in the development and application of the ‘criminal personas’ approach. The generation of criminal opportunity ideas and proposal of counter criminal solutions were both greater when the brainstorm approach involved the group responding through their given criminal personas