The Impact of Social Stereotypes on Juror´s Decisions

561 Words2 Pages

The amount of Psychological research about the impact of social stereotypes on juror’s decisions is increasing. Previous studies have looked at everything from the effect of differences in social categories (Deaux, K, 1984) to the gender of the perpetrator (e.g., Clark, H.L., & Nightingale, N.N., 1997; Mallozi, J., McDermott, V., & Kayson, W . A., 1990). The current study questions whether or not male defendants are always more likely to be found guilty compared to female defendants, or does the match with the crime type matter? Jurors are randomly selected citizens who are given the task of determining whether someone is guilty or not, based solely on the evidence provided by the court. (Functions and Duties of a Juror, n.d.) However, jurors, who like all other humans, have the potential to be biased, meaning that their final decision can sometimes be influenced by many factors.

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