Cognitive biases in forensic psychiatry
A scoping review
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21458970 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Luigi Buongiorno (0000-0001-8757-088X, University of Bari Aldo Moro), Federica Mele (0000-0003-4289-8907, University of Bari Aldo Moro), Giulia Petroni (0000-0002-1563-7739, Sapienza University of Rome), Anna Margari (0000-0002-0161-2805, University of Bari Aldo Moro), Felice Carabellese (0000-0001-9942-6754, University of Bari Aldo Moro), Roberto Catanesi (0000-0003-1691-6366, University of Bari Aldo Moro), Gabriele Mandarelli (0000-0003-4887-5108, University of Bari Aldo Moro) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 101 |
| Pages | 102083 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Law and Psychiatry (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0160-2527 • E-ISSN: 1873-6386 |
| Publisher | Elsevier BV (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.ijlp.2025.102083 |
| PMID | 40049040 |
| OpenAlex | W4408162724 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 48 |
Forensic psychiatry plays a critical role in legal contexts but is highly susceptible to cognitive biases that can undermine the accuracy and objectivity of evaluations. This scoping review, guided by the Arksey and O'Malley framework, aims to identify and analyze cognitive biases within forensic psychiatric practice across criminal, civil, and testimonial domains. A comprehensive search across five databases yielded 7002 records, with 24 studies meeting the inclusion criteria. From these studies, ten distinct cognitive biases were identified, with the most frequently discussed being gender bias (29.2 %), allegiance bias (20.8 %), and confirmation bias (20.8 %), followed by hindsight, cultural, and emotional biases. Most studies focused on criminal settings, with only two addressing civil contexts. Among the mitigation strategies reviewed, structured methodologies and the "considering the opposite" technique were the most positively evaluated and widely discussed approaches. Conversely, the self-awareness strategy was criticized for its limited effectiveness in reducing bias. Emerging tools, such as artificial intelligence, offer potential solutions but require robust ethical safeguards to prevent the perpetuation of systemic biases. This scoping review provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of research on biases in forensic psychiatry, underscoring the need for further empirical studies to explore their prevalence, mechanisms, and effective mitigation strategies in greater depth
Cognition · Forensic psychiatry · Forensic science · Medical emergency · MEDLINE · Poison control · Political science · Psychiatry · Deception detection and forensic psychology · Human Factors and Ergonomics · Medicine · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
On Being Sane in Insane Places
On the Failure to Eliminate Hypotheses in a Conceptual Task
The Bias Blind Spot
Scoping studies
Factors related to bias in forensic psychiatric assessments in criminal matters
Experts' decision-making processes in Swedish forensic psychiatric investigations
Bias analysis in forensic and non-forensic psychiatric assessments
The decision-making process in Swedish forensic psychiatric investigations
Influencing factors for assessment of criminal responsibility in patients with mental disorders
A general model of cognitive bias in human judgment and systematic review specific to forensic mental health
Possibly mad? Marital murder in the early twentieth century
Scoping reviews
Cognitive bias in forensic mental health assessment
The cognitive underpinnings of bias in forensic mental health evaluations
Forensic clinicians’ understanding of bias
Scoping studies
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |