Confessions and guilty pleas of youth : developmental science and practical implications / edited by Lindsay C. Malloy, Rebecca K. Helm, and Tina M. Zottoli.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Malloy, Lindsay C., editor.

Helm, Rebecca K., editor.

Zottoli, Tina M., editor.

Series:

American psychology-law series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Juvenile delinquents.

Juvenile delinquents--Psychology.

Pleas of guilty.

Confession (Law).

Juvenile Delinquency--psychology.

Medical Subjects:

Juvenile Delinquency--psychology.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xxi, 358 pages)

Place of Publication:

Washington, DC : American Psychological Association, [2026]

Summary:

"This volume focuses on confessions and guilty pleas of youth. At the outset, it defines what is mean by confessions and guilty pleas. First, although confessions are an element in many common contexts (e.g., religious practice, mental health therapy), the chapters concerns confessions made to police in the context of investigations, which can be used as evidence in criminal or juvenile/youth court prosecutions. Confessions and guilty pleas have much in common-for example, either may be the result of a suspect's or defendant's belief that they will achieve a better legal outcome, and guilty people are more likely than innocent people to make a confession or to plead guilty. However, confessions and guilty pleas are also notably different, both with respect to their legal implications and the psychosocial factors that may compel them. Most crucially, a confession is a statement that may or may or may not be successfully used against a defendant to secure their conviction, whereas a guilty plea is a statement that leads directly to a criminal conviction. The volume provides unique, integrated coverage of the developmental science relevant to decisions to self-incriminate, and the implications of that science for practices and policies related to both confessions and guilty pleas. The 26 chapters of this volume are organized into four distinct sections. The chapters reveal the extent of the field's current knowledge concerning self-incrimination of youth, highlighting the implications of current knowledge for vulnerable youth and legal practice and policy."--Preface (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Contents:

Understanding youth confessions and guilty pleas : an introduction / Lindsay C. Malloy, Tina M. Zottoli, and Rebecca K. Helm

I. Developmental and legal foundations ; Legal foundations for understanding confessions and guilty pleas of youth / Christopher M. King, Rachel Bomysoad, Sarah Hitchcock, Sana Vora, Chinwe Ossai, and Savannah Cuellar ; Socioemotional foundations for understanding confessions and guilty pleas of youth / Cortney Simmons, Imani Randolph, Jung Min Lee, and Caitlin Cavanagh ; Neurodevelopmental foundations for understanding confessions and guilty pleas of youth / Jillian Grose-Fifer ; Memory foundations for understanding confessions and guilty pleas of youth / Kamala London and Hera Yang

II. Confessions ; Revisiting Lee Arthur Hester : a case study in false confessions / Steven A. Drizin ; Confessions : history, research, and current directions / Saul M. Kassin ; Youth vulnerability during police questioning : false confession and the five-level process model for assessing risk / Gisli H. Gudjonsson ; Psycholegal abilities of youth and waiver of interrogation-related rights / Emily Haney-Caron, Kaillee Philleo, and Sydney Baker ; Defining and determining "custody" through a developmental lens / Fabiana Alceste and Reece Butler ; Trauma as a risk factor for coerced and false confessions among youth / Lucy A. Guarnera and Hayley M. D. Cleary ; System disparities : racial criminalization and the risk of coerced and false confessions in youth / Cynthia J. Najdowski ; (Mis)perceptions of youth confessors by legal decision-makers / Margaret C. Stevenson, Kelly C. Burke, and Gabriela S. Rachman

III. Guilty pleas ; Joseph Buffey : a case study in false guilty pleas / Vanessa Meterko and Jaime S. Henderson ; Guilty pleas : history, research, and current directions / Miko M. Wilford and Annabelle Frazier ; Youth vulnerability in the guilty plea process : cognitive immaturity and suboptimal decisions / Rebecca K. Helm and Valerie F. Reyna ; Guilty pleas and the psycholegal abilities of youth / Tina M. Zottoli, Tarika Daftary-Kapur, Kimberly Echevarria, and Aliya J. Birnbaum ; Legal procedures : protecting youth making plea decisions or exacerbating vulnerabilities? / Talley Bettens, Allison D. Redlich, and Rebecca K. Helm ; System disparities : impact of racial and socioeconomic inequalities on the plea process for youth / Martine Fredrickson and Vanessa A. Edkins

IV. Specific actors and other contexts ; Evaluating youth who confess or plead guilty : a perspective from clinical psychologists / Antoinette Kavanaugh and Kathryn Rea Smith ; Practical guidance for effective counseling, investigation, and criminal representation of youth who confess : a perspective from practicing lawyers / Megan G. Crane and Maria Hawilo ; Parents and appropriate adults in the context of confessions and guilty pleas / Jennifer L. Woolard, Grace Hickman, and Erika Fountain ; Expert testimony in cases of disputed confessions / Jeffrey Kaplan and Brian L. Cutler ; A "child-first" approach to police interviews of youth suspects : applying the PEACE model / Martin Vaughan, Rebecca Milne, and Ray Bull ; An international perspective on legal advice for youth in the police station : strengthening youth participation in criminal proceedings and diversion from court / Vicky Kemp and Cerys Gibson ; Interrogations and confessions in school contexts / Mark D. Snow and Lindsay C. Malloy ; Conclusions and emerging issues / Lindsay C. Malloy, Rebecca K. Helm, and Tina M. Zottoli

Index

About the editors.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Electronic reproduction. Washington, D.C. : American Psychological Association, 2026.

Description based on print version record.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

Other Format:

Print version: Confessions and guilty pleas of youth

ISBN:

1433842467

9781433842467

1433849887

9781433849886

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.