Chapter 11: Applying Social Psychology to the Criminal Justice System

Multiple Choice

1. The concept of de-individuation was linked, in particular, to what aspect of the Matti
Baranovski murder?
a. The people passing by in their cars were aware of the presence of other bystanders in the
area.
b. Matti’s assailants wore masks.
c. Matti’s assailants had come to the park with the intention of fighting another group.
d. The youth who attacked Matti had never seen him before.
Ans: B

2. Which social psychological concept did the authors of Chapter 11 (“Criminal Justice
System”) NOT use in his analysis of the Matti Baranovski murder?
a. social facilitation
b. diffusion of responsibility
c. social learning
d. frustration-aggression hypothesis
Ans: C

3. The authors of Chapter 11 (“Criminal Justice System”)

a. argue for the social psychological perspective on the origins of criminality
b. argue behaviorism has advantages over the biological perspective
c. use the concept of strain as an example of a biological explanation of the causes of
criminal behavior
d. note that social psychological explanations of criminal behavior focus on the role of
dispositional factors as well as situational factors
Ans: C

4. Which is NOT one of the categories of risk factors included in the general personality and
social psychological model of criminal behavior (Andrews & Bonta, 2010)?
a. exposure to a personally threatening social environment
b. low levels of school or vocational achievement
c. antisocial attitudes and beliefs
d. association with antisocial others
Ans: A

5. Which is NOT true with regard to the general personality and social psychological model
of criminal behavior (Andrews & Bonta, 2010)?
a. The influence of the relevant risk factors is viewed from a developmental perspective.
b. Antisocial attitudes have been demonstrated among the strongest predictors of criminal
behavior.
c. Low socioeconomic status is one of the risk factors.
d. Low school achievement is one of the risk factors.
Ans: C
6. According to Andrews and Bonta’s (2010) general personality and social psychological
model of criminal behavior, the antisocial behavior of adolescents tends to be deeply imbedded,
in particular, within a(n) ______.
a. repressive family context
b. antisocial peer group
c. cluster of severely negative interpersonal relationships
d. subculture of alienation and hopelessness
Ans: B

7. Adolescence-limited offenders
a. compose approximately 25% of adolescents
b. experience few developmental risk factors, such as punitive parenting
c. usually show an onset of antisocial behavior in preadolescence
d. are characterized by the display of violent offenses
Ans: B

8. The life-course-persistent offenders compose somewhere around ______ of the

population of adolescents.
a. 10%
b. 25%
c. 50%
d. 70%
Ans: A

9. The process by which the peers of a life-course persistent adolescent reinforce antisocial
behavior is referred to as ______.
a. delinquency socialization
b. deviancy training
c. criminal inoculation
d. vicarious criminalization
Ans: B

10. In the research by Dishion, Spracklen, Andrews, and Patterson (1996) on how the
socialization process in a peer group takes place, which group(s) spent more time discussing
normative topics than rule-breaking topics?
a. no delinquent group
b. no delinquent group and mixed group
c. no delinquent group and delinquent group
d. no delinquent group, mixed group, and delinquent group
Ans: B

11. In their research on the socialization of antisocial behavior in teenagers, Dishion,

Spracklen, Andrews, and Patterson (1996)
a. observed the interaction among groups of three to four boys as they played various games
b. found that the way the delinquent group showed approval of talk about antisocial acts was
through laughter
c. found an association between demonstrations of rule-breaking behavior at ages 17 and 18
and criminal activity in adulthood
d. found an association between demonstrations of rule-breaking behavior from ages 3 to 18
and criminal activity in adulthood
Ans: B

12. According to the authors of Chapter 11 (“Criminal Justice System”), Dishion, Spracklen,
Andrews, and Patterson’s (1996) research on antisocial socialization of adolescents had
questionable ______ validity.
a. internal
b. predictive
c. construct
d. ecological
Ans: D

13. According to Choy, Farrington, and Raine (2014), there is growing recognition that
theories of crime need to be more ______ informed.
a. sociologically
b. technically
c. psychologically
d. biologically
Ans: D

14. The multisystemic treatment program (Henggeler et al., 2009) is designed for the
treatment of seriously violent youth. What is NOT true with respect to this programmatic
intervention?
a. In helping a young person, program staff might work with family and school.
b. In helping a young person, program staff might arrange for individual counseling.
c. Attesting to the effectiveness of the intervention, evaluation research has shown
recidivism rates almost as low as the rates of more expensive interventions, such as psychiatric
hospitalization.
d. The program may be viewed as being consistent with the general personality and social
psychological perspective.
Ans: C

15. Most good indicators of whether someone is lying or telling the truth relate to
a. what they say
b. how they say things
c. whether they display excess fidgeting when being interviewed
d. whether or not they make appropriate eye contact
Ans: A

16. Social scientific research contributed substantially to the development of a guide intended to
assist law enforcement officers in their work. This document has been distributed to thousands of
police organizations in North America. The guide focuses on improving police procedures
regarding ______.
a. collecting eyewitness evidence
b. testifying in court
c. crime scene analysis
d. conducting investigative interviews
Ans: A

17. Which is true with respect to the investigative interview?

a. Interviewing and interrogating involve different methods.
b. Interactional synchrony refers to the gradual convergence of a witness’s recollection of
events toward the expectations of the interviewer.
c. An interviewer should recognize that when people are lying, they tend to make fewer
body movements than when they are not lying.
d. An interviewer should recognize that when people are lying, they tend to make three to
four more body movements than when they are not lying.
Ans: C

18. Which is generally true of how a police officer should conduct an interview?
a. The officer should emphasize asking specific questions (e.g., “Did the offender have a
mustache?”).
b. The officer should stop the individual at various points during his or her narrative for the
purpose of gaining clarification.
c. The officer should return the individual to the scene of the crime because doing so might
trigger the individual’s memory.
d. The officer should rely on racial stereotypes to help trigger the individual’s memory.
Ans: C

19. Kassin and Kiechel (1996) conducted an experiment in which a participant was accused
by the experimenter of carrying out an act that led to the loss of data. What did NOT characterize
the research?
a. The participant was accused of hitting the wrong key on a computer.
b. In one condition, a confederate reported having seen the participant engage in the harmful
act.
c. Initially, all participants denied that they had engaged in the harmful act.
d. Eventually, virtually all of the participants confessed to having engaged in the harmful
act.
Ans: D

20. In an experiment on gaining false confessions, Kassin and Kiechel (1996) found that in
the condition most biased toward yielding a false confession, ______ of participants signed a
confession, and of these, about ______ seem to have internalized the belief that they were guilty.
a. 50%; one third
b. 50%; two thirds
c. 100%; one third
d. 100%; two thirds
Ans: D

21. The forensic confirmation bias is an example of which social psychological

phenomenon?
a. fundamental attribution error
b. descriptive norm
c. self-handicapping
d. self-fulfilling prophesy
Ans: A

22. In 1983, Ivan Henry was convicted in British Columbia of 17 counts of sexual offenses
against women. Twenty-six years later the British Columbia Court of Appeal acquitted Mr.
Henry of all charges. What was a problem with the lineup that contributed to the acquittal
judgment?
a. use of inappropriately small number of foils in the lineup
b. use of a sequential lineup
c. presence of more than one suspect in the lineup
d. construction of lineup so that Mr. Henry stood out from the other members
Ans: D

23. Which lineup would be most appropriate in trying to identify a culprit?

a. where the foils do not match the description of the culprit
b. where the foils generally match the description of the culprit
c. where the foils very closely match the description of the culprit
d. where there are no foils
Ans: B

24. Which is one of the recommended procedures for conducting a lineup?

a. Make it clear to the witness that the suspect is one of the individuals in the lineup.
b. Use a sequential lineup.
c. Have an officer conduct the lineup who is aware of the identity of the suspect.
d. Have two officers who are aware of the identity of the suspect conduct the lineup.
Ans: B

25. Which of the following is NOT true?

a. In Canada and the United States, criminal trials are conducted according to the
adversarial model of the legal system.
b. In Canada and the United States, juries can be composed of either six or 12 members.
c. In Williams v. Florida (1970), the United States Supreme Court ruled that six- and 12-
person juries are functionally equivalent.
d. The results of Asch’s (1951) early conformity research suggested that six- and 12-person
juries are not functionally equivalent.
Ans: B

26. What has been found in research on jury size (i.e., 12 jurors versus six jurors)?
a. A juror holding a minority opinion experiences greater ability to resist conformity
pressure in a 5–1 split than a 10–2 split.
b. Larger juries tend to recall fewer details of the trial.
c. Jury size does not influence the likelihood of a hung verdict.
d. Jury size does not affect the distribution of guilty versus innocent verdicts.
Ans: D

27. If a juror’s views about a case have been biased by media coverage, the bias most closely
reflects ______ prejudice.
a. interest
b. normative
c. generic
d. specific
Ans: D

28. Which is true with respect to sentencing circles?

a. The people involved usually are limited to the offender, the offender’s family, and
representatives of the criminal justice system.
b. The agreed-on sanction is implemented by the community.
c. The underlying philosophy stresses the importance of the constructive release of anger
and guilt.
d. all of these
Ans: B

29. Which is true with respect to the prison system?

a. The vast majority of people serving time serve their sentences in the community rather
than in prison.
b. During the last 40 years or so, there has been a shift away from goals and philosophy that
emphasize punishment to those that emphasize rehabilitation.
c. Research indicates that in general, incarceration is effective in reducing the risk of
recidivism.
d. During the last 10 years or so, there has been a shift away from goals and philosophy that
emphasize punishment to those that emphasize rehabilitation.
Ans: A

30. The Correctional Institutions Environment Scale (Moos, 1987) assumes that the social
climate of a correctional institution is composed of ______ broad dimensions and consists of a
total of ______ subscales.
a. three; six
b. three; nine
c. four; eight
d. four; 12
Ans: B

31. Which is NOT one of the broad dimensions on which the Correctional Institutions
Environment Scale (Moos, 1987) is based?
a. benevolence-repression
b. system maintenance and system change
c. relationship-oriented
d. personal development
Ans: A

32. The social climate of the Stanford Prison simulation most closely reflected which
dimension of the Correctional Institutions Environment Scale (Moos, 1987)?
a. benevolence-repression
b. system maintenance and system change
c. relationship-oriented
d. personal development
Ans: B

33. Which is NOT characteristic of the Stanford Prison simulation?

a. Randomization was used in the assignment of participants to the roles of prisoner and
guard.
b. All participants were volunteers.
c. The simulation demonstrated both the beneficial and harmful consequences of prisons.
d. The simulation ended after six days.
Ans: C

34. A riot at Bluewater Youth Centre in Goderich, Ontario (including subsequent related
events), was featured in Chapter 11 (“Criminal Justice System”) as an example of
a. the deleterious effects of overcrowded prison conditions
b. the abuse of inmates by correctional staff
c. how understanding-focused interventions can improve a deteriorating prison situation
d. how control-focused interventions can improve a deteriorating prison situation
Ans: B

35. A therapeutic community can be distinguished from other therapeutic approaches by its
emphasis on ______ as the primary vehicle for promoting social and psychological change.
a. social psychological factors
b. the community
c. the transition to the home environment
d. the inmate–therapist relationship
Ans: B

36. The Stay’n Out program

a. is designed for prisoners with substance abuse problems
b. consists of two stages: treatment and consolidation/re-entry
c. is designed for all prisoners to help them with their journey to rehabilitation
d. is designed for prisoners with lying problems
Ans: A

37. Which is NOT true with respect to the Stay’n Out program?
a. It is relatively loosely structured to allow inmates to learn responsible autonomous
behavior.
b. It emphasizes involvement in group seminars and group counseling.
c. It draws upon social learning theory (Bandura, 1977).
d. It contrasts philosophically with the prevailing political climate about the treatment of
prison inmates.
Ans: A

38. The results of a meta-analysis of 43 experimental or quasi-experimental evaluation

studies of boot camps (Wilson et al., 2008)
a. were inconclusive
b. indicated that those who participated in boot camps had lower recidivism rates than those
who had participated in comparison programs
c. indicated no differences in the recidivism rates of those who had participated in boot
camps and those who had participated in comparison programs
d. indicated that those who had participated in boot camps had higher recidivism rates than
those who had participated in comparison programs
Ans: C

39. Which of the following is NOT very compatible with the contemporary political climate
regarding what should be the goals and philosophy of correctional facilities?
a. boot camp programs
b. Stay’n Out program
c. Stanford Prison simulation
d. military training programs
Ans: B

40. Qualitative research in which researchers have interviewed inmates to examine whether
their experiences in prison are consistent with the goals of prison has found that
a. the experience of being in prison is incompatible with the goals of prison
b. the experience of being in prison is in direct opposition to the goals of prison
c. the experience of being in prison only occasionally maps onto the goals of prison
d. the experience of being in prison is generally consistent with the goals of prison
Ans: D

True or False

1. The fundamental attribution error (FAE) occurs when we underestimate the influence of
internal factors and overestimate the influence of external factors when we evaluate others’
behaviors.
Ans: F

2. Forensic confirmation bias occurs when a prior expectation about the guilt (or innocence)
of a suspect influences a witness’s judgments and perceptions toward new evidence in a
confirmatory manner.
Ans: T
3. As outlined in the text, de-individuation and social facilitation are good examples of
distal variables (i.e., those occurring in the distant past relative to the event) that can influence
criminal behavior.
Ans: F

4. The bystander effect refers to the fact that people are less likely to intervene in an
emergency situation when others are present.
Ans: T

5. Social psychological theories of criminal behavior attempt to explain crime in relation to

various factors in society, such as social class, poverty, and social inequity.
Ans: F

6. Self-fulfilling prophecy refers to the way in which a person’s expectations can influence
his or her own and others’ behaviors in a way that will confirm the person’s beliefs.
Ans: T

7. Specific prejudice occurs when a juror holds attitudes or beliefs that might interfere with
his or her ability to be impartial in a particular case.
Ans: T

8. Generic prejudice refers to a juror believing that there is such strong community
sentiment supporting a particular outcome of the case that his or her ability to decide the case
impartially based on the evidence becomes compromised in favor of the perceived normative
attitude.
Ans: F

9. Jury size, juror impartiality, and inadmissible evidence all influence interpersonal
dynamics and decision making of key players in court cases.
Ans: T

10. Therapeutic communities, representing prison environments that have relationship or

personal-growth orientations, have been shown to be effective in reducing the risk of recidivism
among certain offender types.
Ans: T

Short Answer

1. Differentiate between biological, sociological, and social psychological theories of

criminal behavior.

Ans: Biologically based theories view criminal behavior as the result of genetics,
psychophysiology, neurological functioning, and biochemistry. Research has found that in
addition to inherited biological characteristics, acquired biological deficits may influence
criminal behavior. On the other hand, some of the most enduring theories of crime are those that
are based on sociological principles. These traditional theories (e.g., anomie, strain, control, and
subculture), although widely diverse, attempt to explain crime in relation to various factors in
society, such as social class, poverty, and social inequity. Thus, a person’s socioeconomic status,
determined by education, occupation, income, and neighborhood characteristics, explains
substantial variability in criminal behavior. Social psychological theories tend to consider the
influence of both dispositional and situational factors.

2. Describe the general personality and social psychological model of criminal

behavior.

Ans: The general personality and social psychological model purports that the likelihood that a
person will engage in criminal behavior is increased by the presence of risk factors in his or her
life. Andrews and Bonta (2016) outline eight categories of risk factors, some personal and some
environmental:
1. An early age of onset for antisocial behavior
2. Temperamental and personal characteristics that are conducive to criminal activity (e.g.,
impulsivity, aggressive energy, weak problemsolving abilities)
3. Antisocial attitudes, values, and beliefs
4. Association with pro-criminal peers and isolation from noncriminal associates
5. Negative parenting and family experiences (e.g., harsh and abusive discipline, poor
parental monitoring and supervision, and low family cohesion)
6. Low levels of school or vocational achievement
7. Poor use of leisure time and low levels of involvement in prosocial leisure pursuits and
recreational activities
8. Abuse of drugs and/or alcohol

3. Explain what is meant by the cross-race effect.

Ans: The cross-race effect is a well-established phenomenon that refers to the tendency for
individuals to be better at recognizing and identifying faces of their own race than faces of a
different race.

4. Jurors, like everyone else, are not impartial. Name the four types of bias faced by
jurors, and explain two in depth.

Ans: As outlined in the text, there are four types of juror prejudice: interest, specific, generic, and
normative prejudice.
First, interest prejudice refers to a juror having a particular interest or stake in the outcome of a
trial. Second, specific prejudice occurs when the juror holds attitudes or beliefs that might
interfere with his or her ability to be impartial in a particular case. Specific prejudice might arise
from exposure to pretrial publicity presented in the media that biases the juror’s judgment of the
case. Third, generic prejudice refers to possessing general attitudes (e.g., racist views) that would
interfere with an unbiased evaluation of the evidence. Finally, normative prejudice refers to a
juror believing that there is such strong community sentiment supporting a particular outcome of
the case that his or her ability to decide the case impartially based on the evidence becomes
compromised in favor of the perceived normative attitude.

5. Explain what a therapeutic community is, and outline the core concept behind it.

Ans: A therapeutic community is a holistic residential environment that is designed to promote

the personal growth and development of the residents. The primary aim is to bring about changes
in attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that lead to a healthier and more adaptive lifestyle on return to
the community than the lifestyle that led the person to be admitted into the facility in the first
place (e.g., substance abuse or criminality). The core concept of a therapeutic community is
living learning, as the therapeutic community adheres to the principles of honesty, openness, self-
governance, and learning from individuals’ efforts to live together.

6. Describe the social ecological perspective used to examine criminal acts.

Ans: The social ecological perspective examines the relationship between person and
environment. The perspective is based on Lewin’s theory B = f(P, E), which states that behavior
(B) is a function (f) of the person (P), the environment (E), and the interaction between the two
(Lewin, 1951). According to this perspective, as it relates to criminal behavior, an individual may
be compelled to offend only in the presence of an environmental stimulus that acts as a sort of
“trigger.”

7. What is meant by bystander effect? Explain the link between bystander effect and
diffusion of responsibility.

Ans: The bystander effect states that people are less likely to help in an emergency when other
bystanders are present. The diffusion of responsibility, on the other hand, refers to the diminished
sense of responsibility a person feels when he or she believes that others would or should
intervene. The text outlines that diffusion of responsibility is more likely to occur when a
bystander can remain anonymous, when there are relatively few victims, and when the victim is
perceived to be dissimilar to the potential helper. The bystander effect comes about because the
presence of others tends to lower the individual bystander’s sense of responsibility (i.e., diffusion
of responsibility).

8. The chapter on applying social psychology to the criminal justice system described
that rather than focusing exclusively on the personal characteristics of the individual
offender, other environmental or situational factors may be at work. Describe two
situational factors that may be considered determinants of criminal activity.

Ans: 1. De-individuation or acting anonymously—Research on de-individuation (i.e., a

diminished sense of selfawareness) suggests that people, under the cover of anonymity, in which
their identities are concealed, may deliberately choose to engage in behavior about which they
might otherwise be inhibited, including aggression.
2. The presence of others—The notion of social facilitation informs us that a person’s
performance on a welllearned task will be enhanced by the heightened arousal caused by the
presence of others.
3. Frustration related to hindrances to goal attainment—According to the frustration–
aggression hypothesis, frustration (defined as anything that blocks a person from attaining a
goal) may trigger aggressive behavior.

9. Research has linked antisocial attitudes to criminal behavior. Andrews and Bonta
(2002), in particular, have identified five elements that compose an antisocial pattern of
attitudes. List four.

Ans: 1. High tolerance for deviance in general

2. Rejection of the validity of legal authority and institutions
3. Use of cognitive distortions (e.g., rationalization or denial) to make one’s antisocial
behavior acceptable
4. Interpretation of a wide range of environmental stimuli as a reason for anger
5. A style of thinking that is generally antisocial

10. The text outlines a relationship between an antisocial peer group and criminal
behavior. Drawing on the work of Andrews and Bonta (2002), describe two ways that peers
can influence criminal behavior.

Ans: The influence of the peer group can come about in one of two ways:
(1) Through a relatively casual and timelimited association with delinquent peers (adolescence-
limited individuals)
(2) Through a clearly indoctrinated, long-term affiliation with other antisocial youths, like
membership in a street gang (life-course-persistent group)
For adolescence-limited individuals, antisocial behavior is limited, as the name implies, to the
teen years. The onset of their problem behaviors is largely explained as resulting from an
association with delinquent peers. These individuals experience few developmental risk factors
(e.g., harsh and punitive parenting and academic problems) and include as many females as
males. Their criminal behavior is typically mild in nature, involving primarily nonviolent
offenses (e.g., property damage, drug use, and shoplifting) rather than violent offenses.
For the life-course-persistent group, the influence of the delinquent peer group follows a more
lengthy and complex developmental pathway. These individuals tend to engage in a wide variety
of antisocial acts (e.g., violence, drug use, and vandalism) referred to as versatility. They are also
at particular risk for becoming chronic and serious offenders with lengthy criminal careers. Their
trajectory often begins with exposure to harsh and punitive discipline practices during childhood,
lack of effective parental monitoring, parental criminality or psychopathology, failure at school,
and rejection by nondeviant peers.