刑讯逼供是在刑事诉讼过程中,侦查机关的侦查人员在对犯罪嫌疑人或被告人进行讯问时,采取肉刑、变相肉刑或精神折磨的方法逼取其供认犯罪事实的行为。刑讯逼供的基本特征是以刑讯作为方法,以获取犯罪嫌疑人、被告人的口供为目的。笔者认为,产生刑讯逼供的原因是多方面、多层次的。既有促使侦查人员产生刑讯逼供动机的直接原因,又有使刑讯逼供作为一种现象得以存在并具有一定普遍性的深层次的观念上的原因。 Extorting a Confession by Torture In the course of criminal proceedings, investigators of a criminal investigation agency, when interrogating a criminal suspect or a defendant, adopt the method of flesh, cruel or mental torture to extract the facts of his confession. The basic feature of extorting a confession by torture is to use torture as a method to obtain the confession of criminal suspects and defendants. The author believes that there are many reasons for confession by torture, multi-level. It not only has the direct reason of causing the investigators to generate the motive of torture but also causes the conception of torture to be a deep phenomenon that has the existence and universality.