Psych 202 Lecture April 7, 2015- Social Psychology and the Criminal Justice System:o Stanford Prison Experimento Iraq: Abu Ghraibo U.S Prisonso False Confessions- Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Study: people started taking on their social roles; dehumanization; de-individuation- The Stanford Prison Study: The Power of the Situation videoclipo Students become deindividualized with sunglasses that made you unable to see their eyes + the same uniformso “Prisoners” rebelled against having to follow orders from other students- Similarities between Stanford Prison Project and Abu Ghraib and Prisons Todayo Roleso Dehumanization and moral disengagemento Deindividuation Changing external presentation can change behavior Stanford guard sunglasses and uniform Inmates no hair, matching uniformso Power-Doing Time Videoo Lewisburg prisono Inmates include spies, kidnappers, pornographers, mafia leaderso Prisoners outnumber guards 6:1; guards have knives to protect themselveso No fist fights allowedo “Prison within a prison”- solitary confinement cell block- not a lot of air circulates through the cells- Dehumanization and Moral Disengagement in Labo Bandura research College students Study to help students from another college improve problem-solving by punishing errors (punishment= electric shocks that increase in severity) As part of this research, you “accidentally” overhear the assistant complain to the experimenter that the other students “seem like animals”- The Psychology of False Confessionso Central Park Jogger Case: woman brutally raped in central park in 1989o White, well-educated, lots of media attention, pressure to catch the offendero 5 teenagers were questioned and confessedo Later, 2002, an imprisoned rapist confessedo Why confess to rape they didn’t commit?o Why did the police believe them?-False Confession Videoo Katie Hamlin’s body was found by a rivero Police can lie to a suspect about the evidence and can lie about having evidence- brainwash the person being interrogated; Robert Rocha finally says that he was there, even though he wasn’t- arrested and charged with murder; he wasn’t even in the country the day Katie Hamlin was killed- Saul Cassin Research- False Confession involves 2 factors:o 1. An authority figure insisting on guilto 2. Police can lie to suspects about false evidence connecting them to a crime- Subject is under intense pressure- How can you judge accuracy of a confession?o A confession is compelling evidence, but caution is needed to avoid confirmation biaso Factors that increased the likelihood of coercion? Age and competency Conditions of custody and interrogationo Are details consistent?o Are their facts knowable only to offender?o Consider the confession in its context, not just a videotape obtained without “prep”- Confirmation Bias at Worko Looked at information that confirmed theory that they committed the offenseso Ignored all the inconsistencies that suggested that they did not know important details of the offense- Kassin’s Article on Applying Psychology to Law: Lessons to Remembero Stereotypes (why believe?)o Reinforcement (operant condition, immediate rewards)o Motivation (deprivation food, social needs)o Social impact (conformity, obedience)o Adolescence (more compliant and suggestible)o Memory (malleable)o Fundamental attribution error (don’t consider situation) and other biases- Starts with false belief that can tell if someone is lyingo Interrogators told to consider: Nonverbal cues Gaze aversion Frozen posture Slouching Anxious Unconcerned Guarded- Even the innocent might start to believe the guiltyo The “Reid Technique” of interrogationo Isolate in small, bare, sound proof roomo Develop a theme of guilto Interrupt expressions of innocenceo Pressure, then show sympathyo Offer a face-saving explanation for crimeo Increase anxiety associated with denialo Reduce the perception of negative consequences for confessingo “innocents” at risk- trust the system- The Social Psychology of Halloween and Protestso Deindividuation- in a big group while wearing a costumeo Dehumanization- crowd sees police as not human or vice versao Social roleso Social normso Group think- as a group, people think it’s a good idea to do something they wouldn’t normally do, such as burning a car- Social Psychology of Protests: nonviolent mindset - Cooperation: behavior by 2+ individuals that leads to mutual benefit; cooperation is risky- The Prisoner’s dilemma: should I cooperate with someone else in confessing?- Hot Science: The Eyes have ito Is the “honor system” enough for people to pay for their coffee?o Posting pictures of human eyes above the coffee pot yielded greater honesty (paying for the coffee)o Mirrors in restaurants are helpful to get people to pay- The Real World: Making the Moveo In speed-dating experiment, either men or women remained seated and were approached- results showed that when men made the move, women were choosier, but when women made the move, men were choosiero Approaching someone makes us eager and being approached makes us