Citation

Petoft A, Abbasi M. Child Indic. Res. 2022; 15(5): 1905-1920.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s12187-022-09928-2

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In criminal justice systems, after reaching the initial age there are levels of responsibility dictated by the intellectual development and the type of offense committed. Criminal perception, as intellectual ability, is a factor involved in determining the appropriate way to discipline, punish, or rehabilitate a delinquent child. A child's perception of his/her crime committed, therefore, explicitly or implicitly plays a crucial role in juror decision-making when determining the level of criminal responsibility. Generally, perception refers to the cognitive process of the brain by which it is possible to interpret our surroundings with stimuli. Hence, in the context of neurolaw criminal perception can be defined as an ability that makes it possible for a child to understand criminal situations and behave lawfully. The present study strives to explain the nature of this concept and illustrate its components in light of theories of cognitive neuroscience, ethics, and law. In addition to significantly filling the theoretical gaps in the field at hand, this study provides judges with a new approach regarding children's criminal perception.

Keywords: Juvenile Justice

Language: en

Keywords

Criminal responsibility; Intellectual development; Juvenile delinquency; Neurolaw; Perception