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An analog study was devised to examine perceived differences between psychiatrists and psychologists in providing expert testimony on the insanity defense. The effects of issue involvement and initial attitude were also assessed. Subjects who had been exposed to the differences in training between the professionals were used. In a pilot investigation, subjects were exposed to identical testimony from a defense expert identified either as a psychiatrist or psychologist. Medical bias, as measured by the tendency to concur with the expert recommendations and endorse attitudes consistent with the M.D., was confirmed. This finding was especially strong among pro insanity defense subjects with low issue involvement. The failure to find a similar pattern among anti-insanity defense subjects with low issue involvement was thought to be an artifact of the absence of opposing testimony. The overall failure of highly involved anti insanity defense subjects to reach verdicts consistent with their initial attitudes, was also thought to result from the lack of opposing testimony. The primary study was designed to clarify the findings of the pilot investigation and to approximate a more authentic court situation by including an opposing expert. Witness credentials were manipulated while testimony remained constant. Some subjects were exposed to the Ph.D. for the defense and M.D. for prosecution and others to the M.D. for the defense and Ph.D. for the prosecution. Medical bias was evident in this study, again measured by the tendency to follow the recommendations of the M.D. and endorse attitudes consistent with those recommendations. Additionally, subjects tended to evaluate the psychiatrist more favorably than the psychologist. Subjects with low issue involvement were more susceptible to the influence of the medical expert. Highly issue involved subjects maintained their initial attitudes. Attitudes, issue involvement and credentials seemed to affect memory for facts of the case. In some instances, initial attitudes became stronger when mock jurors were exposed to the opposing view (polarization). Implications and limits of these findings were explored.

Mental disorders are among the most prevalent of chronic diseases, and high rates of these disorders have been consistently found in jails and prisons. This study was a retrospective case series that described the population of adults charged with a criminal offense who were court ordered to undergo a psychiatric assessment within the Medical Legal Service in Santiago, Chile from 2005-2006. Chi-square tests were used to assess differences in the distribution of variables by sex and by criminal responsibility. Exploratory analyses using polytomous logistic regression were conducted in order to assess variables that might be predictive of the outcome of criminal responsibility as recommended by the psychiatrist. Of the evaluated offenders, approximately 84% were considered by a psychiatrist to be criminally responsible for their crime, 7% were regarded as having diminished criminal responsibility, 4% were considered to be not criminally responsible for their crime, and 4% were cases where criminal responsibility was not applicable. The following variables were found to be significant in the exploratory model: sex, age, occupational status, psychiatric pathology, recommendation of treatment, and recommendation of hospitalization. An offender determined by the psychiatrist to have a psychiatric pathology had the highest increase in odds of being considered to have diminished criminal responsibility or of being considered not criminally responsible. Results from this investigation will contribute to international knowledge about forensic psychiatry and mental health in Latin America. / Thesis (Master, Community Health & Epidemiology) -- Queen's University, 2008-09-23 12:52:55.423

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Göttingen, 1974. / Includes bibliographical references (p. i-ix).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Florida, 2004. / Typescript. Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 122 pages. Includes Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Includes bibliography. / The discussion in this paper centers around the development of a paper-and-pencil fact sheet for collecting and systematizing forensic case material. This paper-and-pencil device is the prototype fact sheet that will be used to collect the data to form a computerized, forensic information system. The system, known as FOCIS, the Forensic Computerized Information System, will serve the largest Forensic Unit in the Western Cape, at Valkenberg Hospital, and the new unit that is being developed at Lentegeur Hospital. FOCIS will comprise case material from all forensic referrals to these two hospitals, under the present law: Sections 77, 78 and 79 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of the 1st of July 1977. Additionally, FOCIS will develop dynamically, continuing to incorporate case material as referrals are made to these hospitals. The estimated 7500 cases that will constitute FOCIS by the time this project is completed, include all of the officially classified population groups of South Africa, i.e. the so-called 'black', 'coloured' and 'white' groups [POPULATION REGISTRATION ACT, 1982]. The prototype fact sheet has a schematic layout and uses a mixed-format for data collection, i.e. checklists, multiple choice answer-options and semi-structured narrative text.

A review of the literature indicates that young males, who are unemployed with low levels of education, predominate in populations of pre-trial criminal offenders suspected of having a psychiatric illness, also known as “Observation Patients” according to the Criminal Procedures Act of 1977 in South Africa. Other contributory factors include a history of mental illness and non-compliance on psychiatric medication, a previous forensic history, co-morbid substance abuse and being intoxicated at the time of the offence. Dual diagnosis is considered a key contributor to criminal behaviour in this group of patients. The review of the literature also shows a significant proportion of co-morbid intellectual disability among offenders found to be psychiatrically ill at the time of the criminal event. A previous study conducted 20 years earlier, in 1986 at the Sterkfontein Forensic Psychiatric Unit by Vorster (1986) showed that the typical profile was a single, unemployed, poorly educated male in his twenties, usually with a history of psychiatric treatment. This typical profile confirmed the evidence in the literatures at the time of the study.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Bern, 2003.

Motiverande samtal är en metod som kan användas för att hjälpa individer att finna motivation till förändring. Syftet med föreliggande studie är att undersöka hur skötare inom rättspsykiatrin ser på att använda motiverande samtal inom sitt arbete samt hur de använder sig av metoden. Semistrukturerade intervjuer utfördes med informanter som jobbade aktivt med motiverande samtal på en rättspsykiatrisk klinik. Insamlade data analyserades tematiskt vilket resulterade i fem huvudkategorier med grenade underkategorier. Dessa kategorier visade att informanterna använde sig av både riktade motiverande samtal samt använde metodens förhållningssätt utanför dessa samtal. Majoriteten av informanterna uttryckte sig positivt om metoden, med en vilja att fortsätta lära sig om metoden, samt att de gärna ser att fler medarbetare börjar arbeta med metoden. Personlighet uppfattades vara en faktor som inverkade på uppfattad svårighetsgrad av moment inom motiverande samtal. Inga större brister uppfattades angående motiverande samtal utan det var brister som berodde på arbetsplatsen. De fem huvudkategorierna ansågs ge svar på studiens frågeställningar och dessa svar kan i sin tur hjälpa rättspsykiatrin att utveckla sin verksamhet.

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