Abstract
Background: False confessions occur when innocent persons confess to a crime that they did not commit. There are many reasons why a person might give a false confession to police. Particular populations, such as youth and the mentally ill/intellectually disabled are at greater risk for giving false confessions, due to factors such as suggestibility, a lack of critical thinking regarding future consequences, and a desire to comply and please authority figures. Certain coercive interrogation techniques can also lead to an increase in the likelihood for persons to give false confessions, especially when combined with the factors already present for youth and the mentally ill/intellectually disabled. Social workers who will likely work with these marginalized populations should become aware of these issues, so as to become better advocates for marginalized populations within the criminal justice system, at both an individual level as well as a policy level.Methods: A sample of 21 Masters level social work students in advance standing at California State University, Sacramento completed a survey that aimed to analyze their attitudes and beliefs surrounding factors that can lead to false confessions among youth and the mentally ill/intellectually disabled. Factors that were discussed included some interrogation techniques, competency to understand Miranda rights, and ability to waive Miranda rights.
Results and Conclusion: Participants who expressed strong disagreement with beliefs that mentally ill/intellectually disabled persons are always fully competent in understanding their rights were more likely to express strong disagreement with the belief that mentally ill/intellectually disabled persons should be able to waive their Miranda rights. Participants with more than five years of experience working with justice involved populations were more likely to express agreement with certain interrogation techniques can may lead to false confessions. Implications for social work and future research are discussed.