Psychological Processes Underlying True and False Confessions

It is imperative to determine the mechanisms under which an individual may be induced to confess falsely to a crime they did not commit. An ideal interrogative approach would elicit confessions from truly-guilty individuals and limit false confessions from innocent individuals. However, various internal and external pressures during the interrogation process impact defendants’ decisions to confess. Extremely common factors include deep-seated internal feelings of guilt, an intuitive balancing of costs and benefits, and an anxious desire to escape uncomfortable situations. Under the cognitive-behavioral model, likelihood of confession is best understood as a relationship between the antecedents and consequences of providing a confession. This study employed a meta-analysis that assessed interactions among five psychological factors: degree of stress and worry; perceptions of the consequences of confessing; perceptions of the strength of evidence against the individual; degree of pressure from an interrogator; and guilt or remorse. True confessions were primarily products of the individuals’ feelings of guilt or remorse for their actions. Guilty individuals also considered the strength of the evidence against them and the potential consequences of choosing to confess. False confessions from innocent individuals were primarily driven by stress, perceived social pressures, and potential consequences of not confessing. The study provided significant support for the cognitive-behavioral model.

“A strong theoretical understanding of the psychological mechanisms leading to true versus false confessions may offer insights into the development of interrogative approaches that prove useful for eliciting diagnostic confession evidence.” p. 32