Continuing & Professional Studies, Palo Alto University

This webinar on Forensic Aspects of Suggestibility is presented by Jerrod Brown, PhD.

Suggestibility can be defined as the proneness of an individual to accept and adopt the views of another person as truth. For example, when confronted by someone else’s explanation of an event, individuals prone to suggestibility may adopt this alternate explanation as their own memory of the event. Although the behavioral and environmental etiological origins of vulnerability to suggestibility are dynamic and complex, suggestions can be inspired by a range of stimuli from verbal and non-verbal communication with another person to reading text or exposure to various forms of media. Suggestibility can also occur in individuals involved in high-stress situations. For example, in a courtroom setting, the use of repetitious lines of questioning may exacerbate the likelihood of suggestibility, false confessions and wrongful convictions. Awareness of suggestibility is of paramount concern in settings such as the criminal justice system where self-reported information is used to make life-altering decisions. Suggestibility’s impact on memory can have a deleterious influence on justice at each and every point in the criminal justice system. In this webinar, Dr. Brown addresses the phenomenon of suggestibility and its implications for criminal justice, forensic mental health, and legal systems.