PSY328H1 Chapter Notes - Chapter 8: Hung Jury, Trial, Social Proof
Document Summary
Chapter 8: juries and judges as decision makers. Mock/simulated juries most common research tool to study jury decision making. 2-stage research process that first uses samples of convenience followed by more realistic trial processes and representative samples. Use of archival records to identify patterns in jury decision making; adv: able to identify significant patterns among variables using real jurors deciding real cases but data is only correlational. Use of post-trial interviews with actual jurors after completing juror service. Post-trial interview not used in canada + issues w/ self-reports. Severity of charge, negative pre-trial publicity and trial complexity modestly correlated w/ verdict: these variables influence on verdict follows the liberation hypothesis. Liberation hyp: jury verdict determined by evidence strength b. c. evidence for conviction or acquittal is usually compelling. However in cases where the evidence is ambiguous or close, jurors will be liberated from constraints of evidence allowing the influence of non-evidentiary factors to creep in decision process.
