Variation of the amide I and amide II peak absorbance ratio in human hair as measured by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

Human scalp hair samples were examined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and the ratio of the amide I to amide II band absorbances was determined. The effects of hair oxidation, color, age of sample, and sex of source were examined. Scalp hair from 98 individuals was also analyzed. While there were differences in the amide absorption band ratios, these were difficult to relate to the individualization of the hair samples and did not appear to have a sufficient discriminatory value for routine forensic use.     

Psychological and behavioral adjustment in female youths with high or low psychopathic traits

The aim of the present study was to analyze the role of psychopathic traits in female juvenile delinquency. Using a sample of 236 young females from the Juvenile Detention Centers of the Portuguese Ministry of Justice and schools in the Lisbon area, a group of female youths with high psychopathic traits (n = 118; M = 15.84 years of age; range = 14–18 years of age) and a group of female youths with low psychopathic traits (n = 118; M = 15.77 years of age; range = 14–18 years of age) were formed based on the Portuguese version of the Antisocial Process Screening Device-Self-report (APSD-SR). The results showed that young females with high psychopathic traits start engaging in criminal activities and come into contact with the justice system earlier in life; exhibit higher levels of behavioral problems, conduct disorder, delinquent behaviors and serious criminality; and demonstrate lower levels of self-esteem and pro-social behavior. The importance of some variables in predicting group membership (high versus low psychopathic traits) was established through a binary logistic regression. Our findings reinforce the importance of the psychopathy construct for the early identification of potentially high-risk female youths and for the assessment of female youths who have already come into contact with the judicial system.     

Inside Interrogation: The Lie,The Bluff,and False Confessions

Using a less deceptive variant of the false evidence ploy, interrogators often use the bluff tactic, whereby they pretend to have evidence to be tested without further claiming that it necessarily implicates the suspect. Three experiments were conducted to assess the impact of the bluff on confession rates. Using the Kassin and Kiechel (Psychol Sci 7:125–128, 1996) computer crash paradigm, Experiment 1 indicated that bluffing increases false confessions comparable to the effect produced by the presentation of false evidence. Experiment 2 replicated the bluff effect and provided self-reports indicating that innocent participants saw the bluff as a promise of future exoneration which, paradoxically, made it easier to confess. Using a variant of the Russano et al. (Psychol Sci 16:481–486, 2005) cheating paradigm, Experiment 3 replicated the bluff effect on innocent suspects once again, though a ceiling effect was obtained in the guilty condition. Results suggest that the phenomenology of innocence can lead innocents to confess even in response to relatively benign interrogation tactics.