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- Title
The Interrogation of Vulnerable Suspects in the Netherlands: An Exploratory Study.
- Authors
Geijsen, Koen; Vanbelle, Sophie; Kop, Nicolien; de Ruiter, Corine
- Abstract
This study explored the effectiveness of Dutch police interrogation practices in relation to psychologically vulnerable suspects. Examples of psychological vulnerabilities are mental disorders, abnormal mental states, and intellectual disabilities. These psychological vulnerabilities of suspects may interfere with, for example, coping with the stress of police interrogations, understanding questions, decision-making, and overseeing the implications of their answers. The General Interrogation Strategy used by Dutch police officers is an information gathering interrogation method that includes both investigative and accusatory components. In this study, suspects in police custody (N = 36) were psychologically screened for intellectual disabilities, mental disorders, abnormal mental states and substance abuse. Interrogation transcripts were analyzed with the Griffiths Question Map and classified as either appropriate (about 11%) or inappropriate (about 86%). Vulnerability of suspects was unrelated to appropriateness of the interrogations. Results showed that 69% of the suspects could be labelled as vulnerable, and about 85% of these vulnerable suspects were interrogated inappropriately. The findings indicate that more research is needed on the appropriateness of current Dutch interrogation methods.
- Subjects
NETHERLANDS; QUESTIONING; POLICE questioning; INTELLECTUAL disabilities; DETENTION of persons; POLICE psychology; POLICE
- Publication
Investigative Interviewing: Research & Practice, 2018, Vol 9, Issue 1, p34
- ISSN
2227-7420
- Publication type
Article