The effect of multiple perpetrators on judgements of responsibility

<p>This study questioned whether participants feel one person committing a crime alone is more, less, or equally responsible for his or her actions than two people committing a crime together; whether participants react differently to two equally culpable coconspirators than they do to a perpetrator who was coerced by a companion to commit the crime; and whether these factors affect the amount of responsibility attributed to the perpetrator or the length of sentence recommended. The study found that less responsibility was attributed to a coerced perpetrator; however, all perpetrators received sentences of similar lengths. Also, White respondents attributed more responsibility to the perpetrator than Black or ―other‖ respondents, and females gave longer sentences than males. It appears that the differing circumstances of the perpetrators and the backgrounds of the respondents are more influential factors than the number of perpetrators. Possible implications of these findings, methodological improvements, and suggestions for future research are discussed.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MS)

Level thesis:degree_level

Open Access Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Year

2009

Author dc:creator

• Hamer, Louise

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Silvia von Kluge (chair)
• Dr. Elliott Bonem
• Dr. Amy Young

• Judgments
• Criminal United States
• Jurors United States Psychology
• Sentences (Criminal procedure) United States
• Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.emich.edu/theses/259

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.emich.edu:theses-1258