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False Confessions
The JonBenet Ramsey murder case has not been solved after all and the "confessed killer," John Mark Karr, didn't do it. Now there's DNA that doesn't match his and the Colorado prosecutor has decided to drop all charges. I'm sure a lot of you are wondering who confesses to something they didn't do and what would be the reason.
As I thought about it, an unusual psychiatric disorder, Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy (MSP), came to mind.
False confessions and this syndrome share a lot in common. MSP patients are, generally, mothers of small children who make the children sick on purpose, and then rush them to a variety of doctors and ERs for treatment. This can go on for years and, in some cases, the children die from the things the mothers have done to them. The mothers in the meantime are seen as tantamount to living saints as they endure the endless medical treatments their child must face and sit devotedly by their side during many of these treatments. The staff is in awe of these women and, in some instances, permits them to provide some of the treatment.
The central focus in both cases is the thrill of all that publicity and the attention that will be paid to them. Craving attention and believing that they should be "rewarded" in this way for all that has been denied them causes these individuals to do whatever it takes to get their names into the media. Some of them have a psychiatric illness in addition to this syndrome, others have a personality disorder and some may really believe they did commit a crime. The latter happens in cases of individuals with psychotic illnesses where just reading about a crime can begin to seem so familiar that they're easily convinced they did it.
Generally, adults give false confessions. children are usually confused or scared into them and it's easy to do that because not everyone knows how to properly interview a child involved as either a victim or the perpetrator of a crime. I've witnessed interviews of children by inexperienced and poorly trained professionals and it's shocking how they lead the children, confuse them or provide information that later the child can't tell fact from fiction.
I wouldn't attempt to offer an opinion on Mr. Karr or what might be involved in his case because I am not involved in his care and have had contact with him or anyone involved in his case. The one thing we do know is that he will be going to California in response to an outstanding warrant related to the possession of child pornography.
Related Topics: Lying Makes the Brain Work More, A New Age of Celebrity Worship
Technorati Tags: John Mark Karr, MSP, Munchhausen's Syndrome by Proxy, false confessions
As I thought about it, an unusual psychiatric disorder, Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy (MSP), came to mind.
False confessions and this syndrome share a lot in common. MSP patients are, generally, mothers of small children who make the children sick on purpose, and then rush them to a variety of doctors and ERs for treatment. This can go on for years and, in some cases, the children die from the things the mothers have done to them. The mothers in the meantime are seen as tantamount to living saints as they endure the endless medical treatments their child must face and sit devotedly by their side during many of these treatments. The staff is in awe of these women and, in some instances, permits them to provide some of the treatment.
The central focus in both cases is the thrill of all that publicity and the attention that will be paid to them. Craving attention and believing that they should be "rewarded" in this way for all that has been denied them causes these individuals to do whatever it takes to get their names into the media. Some of them have a psychiatric illness in addition to this syndrome, others have a personality disorder and some may really believe they did commit a crime. The latter happens in cases of individuals with psychotic illnesses where just reading about a crime can begin to seem so familiar that they're easily convinced they did it.
Generally, adults give false confessions. children are usually confused or scared into them and it's easy to do that because not everyone knows how to properly interview a child involved as either a victim or the perpetrator of a crime. I've witnessed interviews of children by inexperienced and poorly trained professionals and it's shocking how they lead the children, confuse them or provide information that later the child can't tell fact from fiction.
I wouldn't attempt to offer an opinion on Mr. Karr or what might be involved in his case because I am not involved in his care and have had contact with him or anyone involved in his case. The one thing we do know is that he will be going to California in response to an outstanding warrant related to the possession of child pornography.
Related Topics: Lying Makes the Brain Work More, A New Age of Celebrity Worship
Technorati Tags: John Mark Karr, MSP, Munchhausen's Syndrome by Proxy, false confessions
