Psychiatric interview and therapeutic credulity in penitentiary institutes

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is demonstrating - through the description of twelve clinical cases - that patients in prison may lie to their therapists and give them false information. A psychiatrist working in a penitentiary institute should remember that a patient may give false information for different reasons: defence of his/her own life, protection of his/her physical integrity, desire to hide a crime committed in jail or to avoid or shorten a condemnation, personal advantage, recreational purpose, masked desire for violence, need to be accepted, need of a physical contact, malingering, deception, social visibility and acceptance. Therefore, it is important to examine the information given by patients and the anthropologic, sociologic and psychologic patterns of penitentiary life in a critical way, in order to achieve a better contextualization of clinical observation.