Prior Allegations of Harassment Impact Mock Jurors ’ Perceptions of Sexual Harassment in a Criminal Trial

AbstractThe current study examined factors that may influence jurors ’ judgments in a criminal sexual harassment case with Canadian undergraduate students. Undergraduate students (n = 268) examined whether defendant’s gender, victim’s gender, and whether the victim had made similar accusations in the past were influential in mock jurors’ judgments. Participants read a case summary describing an alleged sexual harassment and answered questions concerning defendant’s guilt, defendant’s culpability, and perceptions of the victim. Additionally, attitudes concerning sexual harassment and sexism were measured. The presence of prior allegations was a driving force in mock juror decisions, with mock jurors providing more guilty verdicts, more favorable perceptions of the victim, and less favorable perceptions of the defendant when no prior allegations of harassment had been made by the victim. The results of the current study suggest that the presence of prior allegations have a large impact on mock jurors’ decisions, suggesting that prior allegations may n eed to be considered more closely in court before they can be used as evidence.

Source: Sex Roles - August 1, 2019 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research