People often confess to crimes they did not commit and this can be attributed to a number of reasons. Psychologists believe because people are responsive to reinforcements and thus are subject to principles of conditioning. In addition, people are social beings and vulnerable to the influences from other people. Modern day police interrogations use these biological responses to their advantage to elicit conformity, compliance, obedience, and persuasion in suspects. Furthermore, the use of trickery and deceit is not uncommon, with the widespread use of DNA evidence, many once guilty victims have been exonerated of their crimes and set free. Psychology reveals that current interrogation practices can lead to false confessions and should no longer be used within the criminal justice system.
Previous interrogation methods Police interrogation methods from the late nineteenth century till the 1930s used a method called third-degree. This method often involved police inflicting physical or mental pain onto suspects
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For example, by isolating and questioning a suspect, the interrogation is more stress inducing and creates anxiety and even despair in suspects. This can be done by isolating the suspect in a small private room. Then, through various techniques such as sustained pressure, manipulation, trickery, and deceit, interrogators will try and break down the suspect and get them to make a confession. The interrogation will often have an investigator confronting the suspect with accusations of their guilt, followed by the presentation of evidence, real or manufactured, and lastly, refuse to believe any alibis or denials provided (Kassin, Drizin, Grisso, Dudjonsson, Leo & Redlich, 2009). If the suspect does not confess, investigator will then offer sympathy or moral justification for the crime and possibly blame the