Criminal behaviour is the result of faulty information processes in the minds of offenders
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Cognitive distortions are ? Or ? In people's information processing system characterised by faulty thinking
Errors or biases
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What has cognitive distortions been linked to in criminal behaviour?
Way in which criminals interpret other people's behaviour and justify their own actions
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What is hostile attribution bias?
Tendency to misinterpret the actions of others therefore blame for offending behaviour is placed onto external factors such as other people's actions
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What does research suggest?
There is a relationship between hostile attribution bias and aggression/violence
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Why might this relationship exist?
Because offenders misread non aggressive cues and this may trigger a disproportionate, often violent, response
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What did schonenberg and justye do?
Presented 55 violent offenders with images of emotionally ambiguous facial expressions. When compared with a marched control group of non aggressive ps the violent offenders were more likely to perceive the pic as angry or hostile
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What is minimalisation?
Offender downplaying or denying the seriousness of the offence committed.
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What would this include?
Downplaying the effects of the crime, rationalising why they have committed the crime or trivialising the acts they committed
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What is an example of an offender doing this?
Burglars may describe themselves as doing a job to support their family as a way of minimising the seriousness of their offences
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What offence in particular is particularly prone to minimalisation?
Sexual offences
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What did barbaree find?
Among 26 convicted rapists, 54% denied they had committed the offence at all and a further 40% minimalists the harm they had caused to the victim
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What did Hasmall find?
35% of a sample of child molesters argued that the crime they had committed was non sexual and 36% stated that the victim had consented
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Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
Cognitive distortions are ? Or ? In people's information processing system characterised by faulty thinking
Back
Errors or biases
Card 3
Front
What has cognitive distortions been linked to in criminal behaviour?
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