McNaughten Rule & Legal Responsibility MCQ Quiz | Forensic Psychiatry

Welcome to this specialized quiz on the McNaughten Rule and Legal Responsibility, a cornerstone of Forensic Psychiatry for MBBS students. This quiz is designed to test your understanding of the legal criteria for insanity, the principles of criminal responsibility, and the application of these concepts in clinical practice. Covering 25 multiple-choice questions, it delves into the nuances of “disease of the mind,” “defect of reason,” and the defendant’s capacity to understand the nature and wrongfulness of their actions. This assessment will help solidify your knowledge for exams and future clinical scenarios where legal and medical fields intersect. After submitting your answers, you can review your score and download all questions with the correct answers in PDF format for revision.

1. The McNaughten Rule primarily assesses the defendant’s cognitive capacity at what point in time?

2. According to the McNaughten Rule, for a defense of insanity to be successful, it must be proven that the accused was suffering from a “defect of reason” caused by what?

3. Which of the following is NOT a component of the McNaughten Rule?

4. Section 84 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is based on which legal precedent?

5. In the context of the McNaughten Rule, “knowing that the act was wrong” refers to:

6. The term ‘mens rea’ in criminal law refers to:

7. In most jurisdictions that use the McNaughten Rule, who bears the burden of proof for the insanity defense?

8. Which of the following conditions would most likely NOT be considered a “disease of the mind” under the McNaughten Rule?

9. A defendant who believes he is squeezing a lemon when he is actually strangling a person fails which limb of the McNaughten test?

10. The concept of “fitness to plead” or “competency to stand trial” is concerned with the accused’s mental state:

11. A key criticism of the McNaughten Rule is its narrow focus on:

12. The legal concept of ‘automatism’ refers to an act committed:

13. Diminished responsibility is a partial defense that typically reduces a charge of murder to:

14. Which rule for the insanity defense states that an accused is not criminally responsible if their unlawful act was the “product of mental disease or mental defect”?

15. The primary role of a forensic psychiatrist in an insanity defense case is to:

16. A person with an intellectual disability (mental retardation) may be found not criminally responsible if:

17. In legal terms, “insanity” is primarily a:

18. A defendant who kills someone under the delusional belief that God commanded them to do so may succeed in an insanity defense if they can prove they:

19. The McNaughten Rule originated from a case in which country?

20. What is the usual outcome for a defendant found “not guilty by reason of insanity”?

21. The ALI (American Law Institute) test for insanity differs from McNaughten by including a component related to:

22. Which term describes the criminal act itself, the physical component of a crime?

23. In IPC Section 84, “incapable of knowing the nature of the act” means the person does not understand:

24. A person who commits a crime while in a state of somnambulism (sleepwalking) might use the defense of:

25. The presumption in criminal law regarding sanity is that the defendant is: