Subclinical delusional functioning in judicial contexts: a conceptual and methodological framework for forensic psychological assessment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71112/j7abt610Keywords:
Forensic psychological assessment, Subclinical delusional beliefs, Belief updating, Metacognition, Cognitive biases.Abstract
The differentiation between clinical delusions, overvalued ideas, and rigid inferential configurations constitutes a central methodological challenge in forensic assessment. While DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 define delusional disorders, a conceptual gap persists between normative cognition and structured psychosis. This paper introduces Contextual Subclinical Delusive Functioning (CSDF) as an analytical framework to describe rigid inferential configurations in judicial contexts without expanding psychiatric nosography. Integrating dimensional psychopathology, dual-process theory, and belief-updating models, CSDF is defined by high conviction, asymmetric evidence updating, and resistance to alternative hypotheses, while maintaining preserved reality testing and general functioning. A methodological framework is proposed for its forensic operationalization through structured interviews and explicit hypothesis-testing procedures. The objective is to enhance the inferential transparency of forensic reports and provide a replicable tool for analyzing complex judicial contexts, ensuring a rigorous technical assessment without unnecessary pathologization.
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