Crime Topic 4 Flashcards
What is topic 4
Psychology and the Courtroom
What is the background research
Stewart observed 69 deals life trials in pensylvannia USA
What were the defendants rated on in the trials
Physical attractiveness
Nearness
Cleanliness
Quality of dress
Combined to produce a score of attractiveness
What were the results of the background research by Stewart (2)
There was a significantly negatively correlation between attractiveness and the severity of punishment
Inter rated reliability was 0.78 (high)
What was the background research by Garcia and Griffith
They found that when witnesses are perceived as likeable they are more likely to be seen as credible in both defence and prosecution
Who was the key research by
Dixon
What was the aim of Dixons research
Examine effects of contextual variables of the attribution of guilt as well as the race, type of crime and regional accent
What is the background of dixons study
Standards are rated more positively than non standard accents
Accents may affect listeners impression of someone
What was the method and design of dixons study
Laboratory experiments
Independent measures design
In dixons study
What were the 3 IV
What was the DV
Race of suspect
Type of crime (white collar or blue collar)
The accent (brummie or Received Pronunciation)
What was the white collar and blue collar crime in dixons study
White collar - cheque fraud
Blue collar - armed robbery
What was the sample (3)
119 white undergrad students
Mean age 25.2
Participated as part of course requirement
Ps who grew up in brum excluded
What was the procedure of dixons study
Each participants listened to a 2 minute recorded conversation between a police officer and a young male suspect pleading innocence
Suspect has RP accent or brummie accent
They changed what type of crime and the race by mentioning the suspects looks and saying they match it
The participants had to rate his guilt on a 7 point scale from innocent to guilty
Who played the role of police officer and the suspect in dixons study
Student in mid 40’s
Student in early 20s played suspect
- he was a code switcher (95% identified his brummie accent in a test beforehand)
What was the results (3)
Black, brum accent and blue collar combo had the highest ratings for guilt
Brummie accent rated more guilty (4.27 mean) than RP accent (3.65)
