Comparison of the concept of “responsibility” in neuroscience and in French criminal law: A cross-literature review for the psychiatric forensic practice
Résumé
In forensic psychiatry, experts have to determine the level of responsibility of a subject with regard to their acts. Neuroscience and cognitive sciences have been increasingly studying the brain functions that are supposed to underlie individual responsibility. In neuroscience, impairment of responsibility is underlain by disruptions of different types of cognitive processes. This processes are executive functions, theory of mind, agency, volition and empathy. In the juridical conception, the term of responsibility refers to a broader perspective than in the neuroscientific approach.