The Psychology Behind Wrongful Convictions

Abstract

Wrongful convictions are miscarriages of justice that occur when innocent individuals are found guilty, often resulting from complex interactions between legal processes, psychological biases, and systemic failures. Research identifies several psychological mechanisms contributing to wrongful convictions, including cognitive biases among investigators, false confessions, eyewitness misidentification, misinformation effects, and juror decision-making errors. This paper synthesizes interdisciplinary findings to develop the Psychological Pathways to Wrongful Conviction Model (PPWCM), mapping how psychological, institutional, and evidentiary distortions converge to produce injustice. Case studies and empirical research demonstrate how these mechanisms interact across investigative and judicial stages. Recommendations emphasize cognitive-bias training, stricter evidence protocols, and judicial safeguards to reduce error rates.