Capgras Syndrome and Criminal Behavior
Main Article Content
Abstract
Background: Capgras Syndrome is a psychiatric disorder characterized by the delusional belief that loved ones, objects, animals, or places have been replaced by impostors, duplicates, or copies. While research has explored this mental disorder in psychiatric and neurobiological contexts, its criminological implications remain under-investigated.
Methods: The authors conducted a narrative review of scholarly articles available on Google Scholar, PubMed and ResearchGate, focusing on Capgras-Syndrome-related violent behavior, legal outcomes, and clinical management. Additionally, instructive cases from Italian and American legal systems are illustrated.
Results: Capgras Syndrome frequently co-occurs with schizophrenia, mood, and neurodegenerative disorders, occasionally leading to violent acts against those perceived as “impostors”. Case analyses underscore the importance of early detection, accurate diagnosis, and interdisciplinary intervention.
Conclusion: This review highlights the need for increased awareness of the criminological implications attributed to Capgras Syndrome, particularly regarding forensic assessment and legal proceedings. Further research is needed to develop specialized treatment protocols and improve patient outcomes.
Keywords:
capgras syndrome, crime, law, delusion, violent behavior
Article Details
How to Cite
POSA, Franco et al.
Capgras Syndrome and Criminal Behavior.
Medical Research Archives, [S.l.], v. 13, n. 2, feb. 2025.
ISSN 2375-1924.
Available at: <https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/6324>. Date accessed: 17 mar. 2025.
doi: https://doi.org/10.18103/mra.v13i2.6324.
Section
Research Articles
The Medical Research Archives grants authors the right to publish and reproduce the unrevised contribution in whole or in part at any time and in any form for any scholarly non-commercial purpose with the condition that all publications of the contribution include a full citation to the journal as published by the Medical Research Archives.
References
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5. Barrelle A, Luauté JP. Capgras Syndrome and Other Delusional Misidentification Syndromes. Front Neurol Neurosci. 2018;42:35-43. doi:10.115 9/000475680
6. Islam L, Piacentini S, Soliveri P, Scarone S, Gambini O. Capgras delusion for animals and inanimate objects in Parkinson’s Disease: a case report. BMC Psychiatry. 2015;15(1):73. doi:10.1186/s12888-015-0460-7
7. Ellis HD, Lewis MB. Capgras delusion: a window on face recognition. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2001;5(4):149-156. doi:10.1016/S1364-6613(00)01620-X
8. Salvatore P, Bhuvaneswar C, Tohen M, Khalsa HMK, Maggini C, Baldessarini RJ. Capgras’ Syndrome in First-Episode Psychotic Disorders. Psychopathology. 2014;47(4):261-269. doi:10.1159/000357813
9. Alexander MP, Stuss DT. Capgras syndrome: a reduplicative phenomenon. J Psychosom Res. 1998;44(6):637-639. doi:10.1016/s0022-3999(98)0 0039-7
10. Förstl H, Almeida OP, Owen AM, Burns A, Howard R. Psychiatric, neurological and medical aspects of misidentification syndromes: a review of 260 cases. Psychol Med. 1991;21(4):905-910.
doi:10.1017/s0033291700029895
11. Christodoulou GN, Margariti M, Christodoulou N. Delusional misidentifications in a procrustean bed. Psychiatriki. 2018;29(1):15-18. doi:10.22365/jpsych.2018.291.15
12. de Gelder B, Rouw R. Beyond localisation: a dynamical dual route account of face recognition. Acta Psychol (Amst). 2001;107(1-3):183-207. doi:10.1016/s0001-6918(01)00024-5
13. Barton JJS, Corrow SL. Recognizing and identifying people: A neuropsychological review. Cortex. 2016;75:132-150. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2015.11.023
14. Devinsky O. Behavioral neurology. The neurology of Capgras syndrome. Rev Neurol Dis. 2008;5(2):97-100.
15. Mi Y, Qin Q, Xing Y, Tang Y. Capgras Syndrome as the Core Manifestation of Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease. J Alzheimers Dis. 2022;87 (1):155-160. doi:10.3233/JAD-215565
16. Sampathi BR, Sofine A, Alvarez J, Bota R. Capgras syndrome in substance-induced psychosis. Ment Illn. 2018;10(2):7807. doi:10.4081/mi.2018.7807
17. Corlett PR, D’Souza DC, Krystal JH. Capgras syndrome induced by ketamine in a healthy subject. Biol Psychiatry. 2010;68(1):e1-2. doi:10.1016/j.bio psych.2010.02.015
18. Turano A, Caravaggi C, Ducci G, Bernardini S, Bandinelli PL. On the edge of Capgras’ syndrome. Journal of Psychopathology. Published online March 2021:1-3. doi:10.36148/2284-0249-386
19. Bello Castro DM, Segura Ayala L, Saavedra S, García S, Herrera Ortiz AF. Capgras Syndrome Due to Cannabinoids Use: A Case Report With Radiological Findings. Cureus. Published online January 19, 2022. doi:10.7759/cureus.21412
20. Knezevic V, Ratkovic D, Ivanovic Kovacevic S, Sobot V, Vejnovic AM, Comic M. Importance of Capgras syndrome in shared psychotic disorder: a case report. J Int Med Res. 2024;52(3):3000605241 233526. doi:10.1177/03000605241233526
21. Carabellese F, Rocca G, Candelli C, Catanesi R. Mental illness, violence and delusional misidentifications: the role of Capgras’ syndrome in matricide. J Forensic Leg Med. 2014;21:9-13. doi:10.1016/j.jflm.2013.10.012
22. Bourget D, Whitehurst L. Capgras syndrome: a review of the neurophysiological correlates and presenting clinical features in cases involving physical violence. Can J Psychiatry. 2004;49(11):7 19-725. doi:10.1177/070674370404901102
23. Trotta A, Kang J, Stahl D, Yiend J. Interpretation Bias in Paranoia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Clinical Psychological Science. 2021;9(1):3-23. doi:10.1177/2167702620 951552
24. Matuszak, Jeremy, Parra, Matthew. That’s Not My Child: A Case of Capgras Syndrome. Psychiatric Times. 2011.
25. Matevosyan, Naira. Capgras and Fregoli Syndromes in Criminal Justice: A Guide to Forensic Testimony. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2017.
26. Bianchi, A. La sindrome di Capgras: cenni storici, aspetti psicopatologici, psicorganici e psicofunzionali. Journal of Psychopathology. Published online 2012.
27. Collins MN, Hawthorne ME, Gribbin N, Jacobson R. Capgras’ syndrome with organic disorders. Postgraduate Medical Journal. 1990;66 (782):1064-1067. doi:10.1136/pgmj.66.782.1064
28. Paillère-Martinot ML, Dao-Castellana MH, Masure MC, Pillon B, Martinot JL. Delusional Misidentification: A Clinical, Neuropsychological and Brain Imaging Case Study. Psychopathology. 1994;27(3-5):200-210. doi:10.1159/000284870
29. Christodoulou GN. The Syndrome of Capgras. Br J Psychiatry. 1977;130(6):556-564. doi:10.1192/bjp.130.6.556
30. Anderson DN. The Delusion of Inanimate Doubles: Implications for Understanding the Capgras Phenomenon. Br J Psychiatry. 1988;153 (5):694-699. doi:10.1192/bjp.153.5.694
31. Pandis C, Agrawal N, Poole N. Capgras’ Delusion: A Systematic Review of 255 Published Cases. Psychopathology. 2019;52(3):161-173. doi:10.1159/000500474
32. Uhlmann RF, Larson EB, Koepsell TD, Rees TS, Duckert LG. Visual impairment and cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease. J Gen Intern Med. 1991;6(2):126-132. doi:10.1007/BF02598307
33. Brighetti G, Bonifacci P, Borlimi R, Ottaviani C. “Far from the heart far from the eye”: Evidence from the Capgras delusion. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry. 2007;12(3):189-197. doi:10.1080/13546800600892183
34. Edelstyn NMJ, Oyebode F. A review of the phenomenology and cognitive neuropsychological origins of the Capgras syndrome. Int J Geriat Psychiatry. 1999;14(1):48-59. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-1166(199901)14:1<48::AID-GPS891>3.0.CO;2-0
35. Tamam L, Karatas G, Zeren T, Ozpoyraz N. The prevalence of Capgras syndrome in a university hospital setting. Acta Neuropsychiatr. 2003;15(5): 290-295. doi:10.1034/j.1601-5215.2003.00039.x
36. Feinberg TE, Keenan JP. Where in the brain is the self? Conscious Cogn. 2005;14(4):661-678. doi:10.1016/j.concog.2005.01.002
37. Mackie J, Ebmeier KP, O′Carroll RE. An MRI, SPECT and Neuropsychological Study of a Patient Presenting with Capgras Syndrome. Behavioural Neurology. 1994;7(3-4):960953. doi:https://doi.org/10.3233/BEN-1994-73-417
38. Rapinesi C, Kotzalidis GD, Del Casale A, et al. Treatment-resistant, five-year long, postpartum-onset Capgras episode resolving after electroconvulsive therapy. Int J Psychiatry Med. 2015;49(3):227-234. doi:10.1177/0091217415582193
39. Bienenfeld D, Brott T. Capgras’ syndrome following minor head trauma. J Clin Psychiatry. 1989;50(2):68-69.
40. Groth CL, Pusso A, Sperling SA, et al. Capgras Syndrome in Advanced Parkinson’s Disease. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2018;30(2):160-163. doi:10.1176/appi.neuropsych.17030052
41. Josephs KA. Capgras Syndrome and Its Relationship to Neurodegenerative Disease. Arch Neurol. 2007;64(12):1762. doi:10.1001/archneur.6 4.12.1762
42. Mei L, Osakada T, Lin D. Hypothalamic control of innate social behaviors. Science. 2023; 382(6669):399-404. doi:10.1126/science.adh8489
43. Kolla NJ, Bortolato M. The role of monoamine oxidase A in the neurobiology of aggressive, antisocial, and violent behavior: A tale of mice and men. Prog Neurobiol. 2020;194:101875. doi:10.1016/j.pneurobio.2020.101875
44. Ulzen TP, James JF. Capgras and Fregoli’s syndrome, aggression and mental retardation: a report of two cases. Can J Psychiatry. 1995;40 (10):636-639. doi:10.1177/070674379504001018
2. Silva JA, Leong GB, Weinstock R, Klein RL. Psychiatric factors associated with dangerous misidentification delusions. Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law. 1995;23(1):53-61.
3. Shah KP, Jain SB, Wadhwa R. Capgras Syndrome. In: StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2024. Accessed November 26, 2024. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK570557/
4. Enzel Koc A, Hocaoglu C. What is Capgras Syndrome? Diagnosis and Treatment Approach. In: V. Kalinin V, Hocaoglu C, Mohamed S, eds. Anxiety Disorders - The New Achievements. IntechOpen; 2021. doi:10.5772/intechopen.91153
5. Barrelle A, Luauté JP. Capgras Syndrome and Other Delusional Misidentification Syndromes. Front Neurol Neurosci. 2018;42:35-43. doi:10.115 9/000475680
6. Islam L, Piacentini S, Soliveri P, Scarone S, Gambini O. Capgras delusion for animals and inanimate objects in Parkinson’s Disease: a case report. BMC Psychiatry. 2015;15(1):73. doi:10.1186/s12888-015-0460-7
7. Ellis HD, Lewis MB. Capgras delusion: a window on face recognition. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2001;5(4):149-156. doi:10.1016/S1364-6613(00)01620-X
8. Salvatore P, Bhuvaneswar C, Tohen M, Khalsa HMK, Maggini C, Baldessarini RJ. Capgras’ Syndrome in First-Episode Psychotic Disorders. Psychopathology. 2014;47(4):261-269. doi:10.1159/000357813
9. Alexander MP, Stuss DT. Capgras syndrome: a reduplicative phenomenon. J Psychosom Res. 1998;44(6):637-639. doi:10.1016/s0022-3999(98)0 0039-7
10. Förstl H, Almeida OP, Owen AM, Burns A, Howard R. Psychiatric, neurological and medical aspects of misidentification syndromes: a review of 260 cases. Psychol Med. 1991;21(4):905-910.
doi:10.1017/s0033291700029895
11. Christodoulou GN, Margariti M, Christodoulou N. Delusional misidentifications in a procrustean bed. Psychiatriki. 2018;29(1):15-18. doi:10.22365/jpsych.2018.291.15
12. de Gelder B, Rouw R. Beyond localisation: a dynamical dual route account of face recognition. Acta Psychol (Amst). 2001;107(1-3):183-207. doi:10.1016/s0001-6918(01)00024-5
13. Barton JJS, Corrow SL. Recognizing and identifying people: A neuropsychological review. Cortex. 2016;75:132-150. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2015.11.023
14. Devinsky O. Behavioral neurology. The neurology of Capgras syndrome. Rev Neurol Dis. 2008;5(2):97-100.
15. Mi Y, Qin Q, Xing Y, Tang Y. Capgras Syndrome as the Core Manifestation of Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease. J Alzheimers Dis. 2022;87 (1):155-160. doi:10.3233/JAD-215565
16. Sampathi BR, Sofine A, Alvarez J, Bota R. Capgras syndrome in substance-induced psychosis. Ment Illn. 2018;10(2):7807. doi:10.4081/mi.2018.7807
17. Corlett PR, D’Souza DC, Krystal JH. Capgras syndrome induced by ketamine in a healthy subject. Biol Psychiatry. 2010;68(1):e1-2. doi:10.1016/j.bio psych.2010.02.015
18. Turano A, Caravaggi C, Ducci G, Bernardini S, Bandinelli PL. On the edge of Capgras’ syndrome. Journal of Psychopathology. Published online March 2021:1-3. doi:10.36148/2284-0249-386
19. Bello Castro DM, Segura Ayala L, Saavedra S, García S, Herrera Ortiz AF. Capgras Syndrome Due to Cannabinoids Use: A Case Report With Radiological Findings. Cureus. Published online January 19, 2022. doi:10.7759/cureus.21412
20. Knezevic V, Ratkovic D, Ivanovic Kovacevic S, Sobot V, Vejnovic AM, Comic M. Importance of Capgras syndrome in shared psychotic disorder: a case report. J Int Med Res. 2024;52(3):3000605241 233526. doi:10.1177/03000605241233526
21. Carabellese F, Rocca G, Candelli C, Catanesi R. Mental illness, violence and delusional misidentifications: the role of Capgras’ syndrome in matricide. J Forensic Leg Med. 2014;21:9-13. doi:10.1016/j.jflm.2013.10.012
22. Bourget D, Whitehurst L. Capgras syndrome: a review of the neurophysiological correlates and presenting clinical features in cases involving physical violence. Can J Psychiatry. 2004;49(11):7 19-725. doi:10.1177/070674370404901102
23. Trotta A, Kang J, Stahl D, Yiend J. Interpretation Bias in Paranoia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Clinical Psychological Science. 2021;9(1):3-23. doi:10.1177/2167702620 951552
24. Matuszak, Jeremy, Parra, Matthew. That’s Not My Child: A Case of Capgras Syndrome. Psychiatric Times. 2011.
25. Matevosyan, Naira. Capgras and Fregoli Syndromes in Criminal Justice: A Guide to Forensic Testimony. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 2017.
26. Bianchi, A. La sindrome di Capgras: cenni storici, aspetti psicopatologici, psicorganici e psicofunzionali. Journal of Psychopathology. Published online 2012.
27. Collins MN, Hawthorne ME, Gribbin N, Jacobson R. Capgras’ syndrome with organic disorders. Postgraduate Medical Journal. 1990;66 (782):1064-1067. doi:10.1136/pgmj.66.782.1064
28. Paillère-Martinot ML, Dao-Castellana MH, Masure MC, Pillon B, Martinot JL. Delusional Misidentification: A Clinical, Neuropsychological and Brain Imaging Case Study. Psychopathology. 1994;27(3-5):200-210. doi:10.1159/000284870
29. Christodoulou GN. The Syndrome of Capgras. Br J Psychiatry. 1977;130(6):556-564. doi:10.1192/bjp.130.6.556
30. Anderson DN. The Delusion of Inanimate Doubles: Implications for Understanding the Capgras Phenomenon. Br J Psychiatry. 1988;153 (5):694-699. doi:10.1192/bjp.153.5.694
31. Pandis C, Agrawal N, Poole N. Capgras’ Delusion: A Systematic Review of 255 Published Cases. Psychopathology. 2019;52(3):161-173. doi:10.1159/000500474
32. Uhlmann RF, Larson EB, Koepsell TD, Rees TS, Duckert LG. Visual impairment and cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease. J Gen Intern Med. 1991;6(2):126-132. doi:10.1007/BF02598307
33. Brighetti G, Bonifacci P, Borlimi R, Ottaviani C. “Far from the heart far from the eye”: Evidence from the Capgras delusion. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry. 2007;12(3):189-197. doi:10.1080/13546800600892183
34. Edelstyn NMJ, Oyebode F. A review of the phenomenology and cognitive neuropsychological origins of the Capgras syndrome. Int J Geriat Psychiatry. 1999;14(1):48-59. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-1166(199901)14:1<48::AID-GPS891>3.0.CO;2-0
35. Tamam L, Karatas G, Zeren T, Ozpoyraz N. The prevalence of Capgras syndrome in a university hospital setting. Acta Neuropsychiatr. 2003;15(5): 290-295. doi:10.1034/j.1601-5215.2003.00039.x
36. Feinberg TE, Keenan JP. Where in the brain is the self? Conscious Cogn. 2005;14(4):661-678. doi:10.1016/j.concog.2005.01.002
37. Mackie J, Ebmeier KP, O′Carroll RE. An MRI, SPECT and Neuropsychological Study of a Patient Presenting with Capgras Syndrome. Behavioural Neurology. 1994;7(3-4):960953. doi:https://doi.org/10.3233/BEN-1994-73-417
38. Rapinesi C, Kotzalidis GD, Del Casale A, et al. Treatment-resistant, five-year long, postpartum-onset Capgras episode resolving after electroconvulsive therapy. Int J Psychiatry Med. 2015;49(3):227-234. doi:10.1177/0091217415582193
39. Bienenfeld D, Brott T. Capgras’ syndrome following minor head trauma. J Clin Psychiatry. 1989;50(2):68-69.
40. Groth CL, Pusso A, Sperling SA, et al. Capgras Syndrome in Advanced Parkinson’s Disease. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2018;30(2):160-163. doi:10.1176/appi.neuropsych.17030052
41. Josephs KA. Capgras Syndrome and Its Relationship to Neurodegenerative Disease. Arch Neurol. 2007;64(12):1762. doi:10.1001/archneur.6 4.12.1762
42. Mei L, Osakada T, Lin D. Hypothalamic control of innate social behaviors. Science. 2023; 382(6669):399-404. doi:10.1126/science.adh8489
43. Kolla NJ, Bortolato M. The role of monoamine oxidase A in the neurobiology of aggressive, antisocial, and violent behavior: A tale of mice and men. Prog Neurobiol. 2020;194:101875. doi:10.1016/j.pneurobio.2020.101875
44. Ulzen TP, James JF. Capgras and Fregoli’s syndrome, aggression and mental retardation: a report of two cases. Can J Psychiatry. 1995;40 (10):636-639. doi:10.1177/070674379504001018