Untested assumptions: psychological research and credibility assessment in legal decision-making.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Background
Trauma survivors often have to negotiate legal systems such as refugee status determination or the criminal justice system.Methods & results
We outline and discuss the contribution which research on trauma and related psychological processes can make to two particular areas of law where complex and difficult legal decisions must be made: in claims for refugee and humanitarian protection, and in reporting and prosecuting sexual assault in the criminal justice system.Conclusion
There is a breadth of psychological knowledge that, if correctly applied, would limit the inappropriate reliance on assumptions and myth in legal decision-making in these settings. Specific recommendations are made for further study.
SUBMITTER: Herlihy J
PROVIDER: S-EPMC4439408 | biostudies-literature | 2015
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Untested assumptions: psychological research and credibility assessment in legal decision-making.
Herlihy Jane J Turner Stuart S
European journal of psychotraumatology 20150519
<h4>Background</h4>Trauma survivors often have to negotiate legal systems such as refugee status determination or the criminal justice system.<h4>Methods & results</h4>We outline and discuss the contribution which research on trauma and related psychological processes can make to two particular areas of law where complex and difficult legal decisions must be made: in claims for refugee and humanitarian protection, and in reporting and prosecuting sexual assault in the criminal justice system.<h4 ...[more]
Similar Datasets
Project description:Having to explain a decision has often been found to have a positive effect on the quality of a decision. We aimed to determine whether different accountability requirements for judges (i.e., having to justify their decision or having to explicate their decision) affect evidence use. Those requirements were compared to instructions based on the falsification principle and a control condition. Participants (N = 173) decided on the defendant's guilt in a murder case vignette and explained their decision according to the instructions. The explication and falsification (but not the justification) instructions increased the use of exonerating evidence. There was no significant difference between the groups in guilt perception. The use of exonerating evidence was a significant positive predictor of acquittal rates. The implications for the different forms of instructions in practice are positive, but suggest a difference between the evidence considered and the evidence used to account for the decision.
| S-EPMC9225718 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In the present work, we set out to assess whether and how much people learn in response to their stereotypic assumptions being confirmed, being disconfirmed, or remaining untested. In Study 1, participants made a series of judgments that could be influenced by stereotypes and received feedback that confirmed stereotypes the majority of the time, feedback that disconfirmed stereotypes the majority of the time, or no feedback on their judgments. Replicating past work on confirmation bias, patterns in the conditions with feedback indicated that pieces of stereotype-confirming evidence exerted more influence than stereotype-disconfirming evidence. Participants in the Stereotype-Confirming condition stereotyped more over time, but rates of stereotyping for participants in the Stereotype-Disconfirming condition remained unchanged. Participants who received no feedback, and thus no evidence, stereotyped more over time, indicating that, matching our core hypothesis, they learned from their own untested assumptions. Study 2 provided a direct replication of Study 1. In Study 3, we extended our assessment to memory. Participants made judgments and received a mix of confirmatory, disconfirmatory, and no feedback and were subsequently asked to remember the feedback they received on each trial, if any. Memory tests for the no feedback trials revealed that participants often misremembered that their untested assumptions were confirmed. Supplementing null hypothesis significance testing, Bayes Factor analyses indicated the data in Studies 1, 2, and 3 provided moderate-to-extreme evidence in favor of our hypotheses. Discussion focuses on the challenges these learning patterns create for efforts to reduce stereotyping.
| S-EPMC9337700 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The vast volume of documents available in legal databases demands effective information retrieval approaches which take into consideration the intricacies of the legal domain. Relevant document retrieval is the backbone of the legal domain. The concept of relevance in the legal domain is very complex and multi-faceted. In this work, we propose a novel approach of concept based similarity estimation among court judgments. We use a graph-based method, to identify prominent concepts present in a judgment and extract sentences representative of these concepts. The sentences and concepts so mined are used to express/visualize likeness among concepts between a pair of documents from different perspectives. We also propose to aggregate the different levels of matching so obtained into one measure quantifying the level of similarity between a judgment pair. We employ the ordered weighted average (OWA) family of aggregation operators for obtaining the similarity value. The experimental results suggest that the proposed approach of concept based similarity is effective in the extraction of relevant legal documents and performs better than other competing techniques. Additionally, the proposed two-level abstraction of similarity enables informative visualization for deeper insights into case relevance.
| S-EPMC7924540 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background/objectivesAs the elderly population and associated number of persons with dementia increase, so does the need for decision-making capacity assessments (DMCAs). Many healthcare professionals (HCPs), however, do not feel prepared to conduct DMCAs. We have provided 4-h DMCA workshops to HCPs since 2006 and offered physicians either a 3-h or 2-day DMCA workshop from 2013 to present. We evaluated the effectiveness of the workshops on self-reported key concepts of capacity.DesignPre-/post-test design.SettingDMCA workshops for physicians across Canada and HCPs within Alberta.ParticipantsTwo hundred and eighty-one physicians and 835 HCPs.MeasurementsPre-/post-workshop ratings on level of comfort with and understanding of 15 core DMCA concepts using 4-point Likert-type items.ResultsFor the DMCA workshops among physicians, ten 3-h workshops were held in 2014-2015 with 166 participants and seven 2-day workshops, between 2014 and 2018, with 115 participants. With respect to the self-report on core DMCA concepts, at least 62.7% (range: 62.7%-89.6%) of physician participants had higher post-workshop ratings (sign test; p < 0.001) than pre-workshop ratings for all core DMCA concepts. For the DMCA workshops among HCPs, 4-h workshops were delivered to 835 HCP participants from 2008 to 2012. At least 49.6% of participants (range: 49.6%-78.9%) had increased post-workshop ratings (sign test; p < 0.001) for all level of comfort items with and understanding of core DMCA concepts.ConclusionThere is a need for DMCA training for physicians and HCPs. The content and method of the workshops are effective at enhancing self-reported level of comfort with and understanding of core DMCA concepts.
| S-EPMC8247986 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Bullying and cyberbullying have severe psychological and legal consequences for those involved. However, it is unclear how or even if previous experience of bullying and cyberbullying is considered in mental health assessments. Furthermore, the relevance and effectiveness of current legal solutions has been debated extensively, resulting in a desire for a specific legislation. The purpose of this study is to investigate the psychological and legal components of bullying and cyberbullying. This is a qualitative research that includes interviews with five practitioner psychologists and four lawyers in the United Kingdom (UK). Thematic analysis revealed three main themes. One theme is related to the definition, characteristics, and impact of bullying and cyberbullying and the need for more discussion among the psychological and legal professions. Another theme is related to current professional procedures and the inclusion of questions about bullying and cyberbullying in psychological risk assessments. The third theme emphasised the importance of intervention through education. Two key messages were highlighted by the lawyers: ample yet problematic legislation exists, and knowledge will ensure legal success. The study recommends the necessity of performing revisions in the clinical psychological practices and assessments, and the legal policies regarding bullying and cyberbullying. In addition to improving legal success, this will reduce bullying prevalence rates, psychological distress, and psychopathology that can be comorbid or emerge as a result of this behaviour.
| S-EPMC5750868 | biostudies-other
Project description:BackgroundICU patients frequently undergo non-life-saving invasive procedures. When patient informed consent cannot be obtained, legal guardianship (LG), often from a close relative, may be required by law. The objective of this cohort study was to investigate the attitudes of LGs of ICU patients regarding the process of decision making for invasive non-life-saving procedures.MethodsThe study was conducted from May 2009 until June 2010 in general medical/surgical ICUs in two large Israeli medical centers. All 64 LGs who met the study criteria agreed to participate in the study. Three questionnaires were administered: a demographic data questionnaire, the Family Satisfaction with ICU 34 Questionnaire, and the Attitudes towards the LG Decision Making Process questionnaire, developed by the authors.ResultsThe sample consisted of 64 LGs. Most participants were married (n?=?56, 87.5%), male (n?=?33, 51.6%), who had either a high school (n?=?24, 37.5%) or college (n?=?19, 29.7%) education, and were at a mean age of 49.2 (±11.22). Almost all of the procedures performed were tracheotomies (n?=?63, 98.4%). About two-thirds of the LGs preferred decisions to be made by the medical staff after discussing options with them (n?=?42, 65.6%) and about three-fifths stated that decisions could be made without the need for the appointment of an LG (n?=?37, 57.8%). Attitudes towards ease of obtaining information and honesty of information were more positive compared to those of consistency and understanding of information.ConclusionsThe legal guardianship process requires better communication and more understandable information in order to assist LGs in making decisions for others in at times vague and stressful situations.
| S-EPMC3467171 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMicrobial community simulations using genome scale metabolic networks (GSMs) are relevant for many application areas, such as the analysis of the human microbiome. Such simulations rely on assumptions about the culturing environment, affecting if the culture may reach a metabolically stationary state with constant microbial concentrations. They also require assumptions on decision making by the microbes: metabolic strategies can be in the interest of individual community members or of the whole community. However, the impact of such common assumptions on community simulation results has not been investigated systematically.ResultsHere, we investigate four combinations of assumptions, elucidate how they are applied in literature, provide novel mathematical formulations for their simulation, and show how the resulting predictions differ qualitatively. Our results stress that different assumption combinations give qualitatively different predictions on microbial coexistence by differential substrate utilization. This fundamental mechanism is critically under explored in the steady state GSM literature with its strong focus on coexistence states due to crossfeeding (division of labor). Furthermore, investigating a realistic synthetic community, where the two involved strains exhibit no growth in isolation, but grow as a community, we predict multiple modes of cooperation, even without an explicit cooperation mechanism.ConclusionsSteady state GSM modelling of microbial communities relies both on assumed decision making principles and environmental assumptions. In principle, dynamic flux balance analysis addresses both. In practice, our methods that address the steady state directly may be preferable, especially if the community is expected to display multiple steady states.
| S-EPMC10288676 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Sequential use of alternative treatments for chronic conditions represents a complex intervention pathway; previous treatment and patient characteristics affect both the choice and effectiveness of subsequent treatments. This paper critically explores the methods for quantitative evidence synthesis of the effectiveness of sequential treatment options within a health technology assessment (HTA) or similar process. It covers methods for developing summary estimates of clinical effectiveness or the clinical inputs for the cost-effectiveness assessment and can encompass any disease condition. A comprehensive review of current approaches is presented, which considers meta-analytic methods for assessing the clinical effectiveness of treatment sequences and decision-analytic modelling approaches used to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment sequences. Estimating the effectiveness of a sequence of treatments is not straightforward or trivial and is severely hampered by the limitations of the evidence base. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of sequences were often absent or very limited. In the absence of sufficient RCTs of whole sequences, there is no single best way to evaluate treatment sequences; however, some approaches could be re-used or adapted, sharing ideas across different disease conditions. Each has advantages and disadvantages, and is influenced by the evidence available, extent of treatment sequences (number of treatment lines or permutations), and complexity of the decision problem. Due to the scarcity of data, modelling studies applied simplifying assumptions to data on discrete treatments. A taxonomy for all possible assumptions was developed, providing a unique resource to aid the critique of existing decision-analytic models.
| S-EPMC7790782 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We examine how chronic debt affects behavior by studying how a large, unanticipated debt-relief program affected psychological functioning and economic decision-making in beneficiaries. A charity granted low-income households debt relief worth up to Singapore dollars 5,000 (∼3 month's household income). We exploited quasiexperimental variation in the structure of debt relief: For the same dollar amount of relief, some beneficiaries had more debt accounts eliminated, while others had fewer paid off. Comparing 196 beneficiaries before and after debt relief, and controlling for debt-relief amount, having an additional debt account paid off improves cognitive functioning by about one-quarter of a SD and reduces the likelihood of exhibiting anxiety by 11% and of present bias by 10%. To achieve the same effect on cognitive functioning of eliminating one debt account, a beneficiary must receive debt relief worth ∼1 month's household income. There is no effect of debt-relief magnitude on anxiety and decision-making. We exclude training and calendar effects, debt-causing behaviors, and liquidity constraints as explanations. Instead, these results support the hypothesis that chronic debt impairs behavior because the mental-accounting costs of owing distinct debt accounts consume mental bandwidth. Poverty-alleviation policies aimed at the indebted poor should consider addressing mental accounting and bandwidth taxes.
| S-EPMC6462060 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThere is a longstanding concern about the accuracy of surrogate consent in representing the health care and research preferences of those who lose their ability to decide for themselves. We sought informed, deliberative views of the older general public (?50 years old) regarding their willingness to participate in dementia research and to grant leeway to future surrogates to choose an option contrary to their stated wishes.Methodology/principal findings503 persons aged 50+ recruited by random digit dialing were randomly assigned to one of three groups: deliberation, education, or control. The deliberation group attended an all-day education/peer deliberation session; the education group received written information only. Participants were surveyed at baseline, after the deliberation session (or equivalent time), and one month after the session, regarding their willingness to participate in dementia research and to give leeway to surrogates, regarding studies of varying risk-benefit profiles (a lumbar puncture study, a drug randomized controlled trial, a vaccine randomized controlled trial, and an early phase gene transfer trial). At baseline, 48% (gene transfer scenario) to 92% (drug RCT) were willing to participate in future dementia research. A majority of respondents (57-71% depending on scenario) were willing to give leeway to future surrogate decision-makers. Democratic deliberation increased willingness to participate in all scenarios, to grant leeway in 3 of 4 scenarios (lumbar puncture, vaccine, and gene transfer), and to enroll loved ones in research in all scenarios. On average, respondents were more willing to volunteer themselves for research than to enroll their loved ones.Conclusions/significanceMost people were willing to grant leeway to their surrogates, and this willingness was either sustained or increased after democratic deliberation, suggesting that the attitude toward leeway is a reliable opinion. Eliciting a person's current preferences about future research participation should also involve eliciting his or her leeway preferences.
| S-EPMC3561414 | biostudies-literature