This module introduces the neuroscientific evidence underpinning the differences between adolescent and adult brains and how this may inform legal decision-making. Dr. Robert Kinscherff, associate professor in the doctoral program in clinical psychology and associate vice president for community engagement at William James College, talks about ways to gain a better understanding of how the brains of young adults differ from those of children and adults and how this affects young adult behavior. He also elaborates on the importance of considering how culpability and punishment should be viewed differently in cases involving young adults.
Objectives:
- to understand the fundamental differences between adolescent and adult brains
- to understand how maturation of the adolescent brain could affect the behavior of young adults
To learn more about Dr. Kinscherff, click here.
Additional Resources:
- BJ Casey et al., How Should Justice Policy Treat Young Offenders?: A Knowledge Brief of the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Law and Neuroscience (2017).
- Jenny E. Carroll, Brain Science and the Theory of Juvenile Mens Rea, 94 N.C. L. Rev. 539 (2016).
- Jenny E. Carroll, The Problem with Inference for Juvenile Defendants, 45 Fla. St. U. L. Rev., no. 1, 2017, at 1.
- Thomas Grisso & Antoinette Kavanaugh, Prospects for Developmental Evidence in Juvenile Sentencing Based on Miller v. Alabama, 22 Psychol., Pub. Pol’y, & Law 235 (2016).
