Samenvatting

This article explains the role and significance of ethnic and cultural traits in forensic psychiatric and psychological evaluations of defendants. These evaluations focus on the defendant’s criminal responsibility (legal insanity), the risk of recidivism, and advice about the sanction to be imposed. There is an overrepresentation of defendants with an immigrant background in the criminal justice system, while research indicates that cultural and ethnic traits play a significant role in behavioral evaluations of defendants. In this article is discussed to what extent cultural considerations are part of those evaluations, and how they play a role in the expert’s reasoning and the advisement of the criminal court.