Psychology and law : a critical introduction / Andreas Kapardis. electronic resource

Includes bibliographical references (p. 343-407) and indexes.

[ch.] 1. Psycholegal research : an introduction -- Introduction : development of the psycholegal field -- 1. Bridging the gap between psychology and law : why it has taken so long -- 2. Remaining difficulties -- 3. Grounds for optimism -- 4. Psychology and law in Australia -- 5. Conclusions -- 6. The book's structure, focus and aim -- [ch.] 2. Eyewitnesses : key issues and event characteristics -- Introduction -- 1. Legal aspects of eyewitness testimony -- 2. Characteristics of human attention, perception and memory -- 3. Eyewitness testimony research : methodological considerations -- 4. Variables in the study of eyewitness memory -- 5. Variables that impact on eyewitness' testimony accuracy -- 6. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 3. Eyewitnesses : the perpetrator and interviewing -- Introduction -- 1. Witness characteristics -- 2. Perpetrator variables -- 3. Interrogational variables -- 4. Misinformation due to source monitoring error -- 5. Repressed or false-memory syndrome? -- 6. Interviewing eyewitnesses effectively -- 7. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 4. Children as witnesses -- Introduction -- 1. Legal aspects of children as witnesses -- 2. Evaluations of the 'live link'/closed-circuit television -- 3. Child witnesses and popular beliefs about them -- 4. Children's remembering ability -- 5. Deception in children -- 6. Factors that impact on children's testimony -- 7. Enhancing children's testimony -- 8. Interviewing children in sexual abuse cases -- 9. Anatomical dolls and interviewing children -- 10. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 5. The jury -- Introduction -- 1. A jury of twelve : historical background -- 2. The notion of an impartial and fair jury : a critical appraisal -- 3. Methods for studying juries/jurors -- 4. What do we know about juries? -- 5. Defendant characteristics -- 6. Victim/plaintiff characteristics -- 7. Interaction of defendant and victim characteristics -- 8. Hung juries -- 9. Models of jury-decision making -- 10. Reforming the jury to remedy some of its problems -- 11. Alternatives to trial by jury -- 12. Conclusions -- Revision questions.[ch.] 6. Sentencing as a human process -- Introduction -- 1. Disparities in sentencing -- 2. Studying variations in sentencing -- 3. Some extra-legal factors that influence sentences -- 4. Models of judicial decision-making -- 5. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 7. The psychologist as expert witness -- Introduction -- 1. Five rules for admitting expert evidence -- 2. United States -- 3. England and Wales -- 4. Australia, New Zealand and Canada -- 5. The impact of expert testimony by psychologists -- 6. Appearing as expert witnesses -- 7. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 8. Persuasion in the courtroom -- Introduction -- 1. Defining advocacy -- 2. Qualities of an advocate : lawyers writing about lawyers -- 3. Effective advocacy : some practical advice by lawyers -- 4. Effective advocacy in the courtroom : empirical psychologists' contribution -- 5. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 9. Detecting deception -- Introduction -- 1. Paper-and-pencil tests -- 2. The social psychological approach -- 3. Physiological and neurological correlates of deception -- 4. Brainwaves as indicators of deceitful communication -- 5. Stylometry -- 6. Statement reality/validity analysis (SVA) -- 7. Reality monitoring -- 8. Scientific content analysis -- 9. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 10. Witness recognition procedures -- Introduction -- 1. Person identification from photographs -- 2. Show-ups/witness confrontations -- 3. Group identification -- 4. Line-ups -- 5. Voice identification -- 6. Conclusions -- Revision questions -- [ch.] 11. Psychology and the police -- Introduction -- 1. Selection -- 2. Predicting success within the force -- 3. Encounters with the public -- 4. Stress -- 5. Questioning suspects -- 6. False confessions -- 7. Conclusions -- [ch.] 12. Conclusions.

This book provides a comprehensive, up-to-date discussion of contemporary debates at the interface between psychology and criminal law. The topics surveyed include critiques of eyewitness testimony; the jury; sentencing as a human process; the psychologist as expert witness; persuasion in the courtroom; detecting deception; and psychology and the police. Kapardis draws on sources from Europe, North America and Australia to offer an expert investigation of the subjectivity and human fallibility inherent in our system of justice. He also provides suggestions for minimizing undesirable influences on crucial judicial decision-making.