Psychological Pressure and Defendants’ Mental Health: Impacts of Abnormal Mental States on Criminal Fault Identification and Legal Perfection
Cheng ChenAbstract
Objective
Sustained psychological pressure may induce abnormal mental states and impair individual mental health, which brings disputes to fault judgment and liability determination in criminal law. This paper explores how psychological pressure affects the identification of criminal subjective fault, analyzes the connection between abnormal mental conditions and legal judgment, and aims to improve judicial fairness while taking people’s mental health status into account.
Subjects and Methods
This research adopts normative legal analysis, case analysis and interdisciplinary reasoning. It collects typical judicial cases involving psychological pressure and abnormal mental states, sorts out judicial criteria for fault judgment, and discusses the logical relation between psychological pressure, fluctuating mental states and the evaluation of mental health in judicial practice.
Results
Severe psychological pressure disturbs normal mental states and distorts subjective cognition, interfering with traditional criminal fault judgment. Reasonably recognizing the impact of pressure can objectively assess abnormal mental conditions, respect individual mental health, and make liability determination more consistent with objective mental realities.
Conclusions
Psychological pressure is an indispensable factor in judging criminal fault. Perfecting relevant legal rules can standardize the evaluation of abnormal mental states caused by pressure, fully protect people’s mental health rights, and realize the rational combination of legal principles and the objective characteristics of human psychological activities.
Corresponding Author
Cheng Chen, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210000, China.