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Cognitive bias in forensic pathology decisions.
Itiel Dror1, Judy Melinek2, Jonathan L Arden3
1University College London (UCL), London, UK.
Journal of Forensic Sciences
|February 20, 2021
Summary
Cognitive bias impacts forensic pathologists' decisions in child death cases. Extraneous information, like race, influenced rulings, potentially affecting justice in child homicide investigations.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Pathology
- Medical Law
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Forensic pathologists' determinations of child deaths are crucial for legal proceedings.
- Cognitive bias may influence the accuracy of these critical decisions.
- Understanding potential biases is vital for ensuring impartial justice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the influence of cognitive bias on forensic pathologists' decision-making.
- To examine whether non-medical information affects manner of death determinations.
- To assess racial disparities in child death rulings.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 10-year death certificates for children under six in Nevada.
- An experiment involving 133 forensic pathologists evaluating hypothetical cases.
- Testing the impact of irrelevant non-medical information (race, caregiver) on rulings.
Main Results:
- Death certificates showed a higher likelihood of homicide rulings for Black children compared to White children.
- Experimental data revealed biased decisions when race and caregiver information were introduced.
- Identical medical information led to different conclusions based on extraneous details.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive bias, influenced by extraneous factors like race, significantly affects forensic pathology decisions.
- This bias can perpetuate disparities in how child deaths are classified.
- Ensuring impartiality requires addressing and mitigating cognitive biases in forensic evaluations.
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