NCJ Number
167911
Journal
Law and Psychology Review Volume: 20 Dated: (Spring 1996) Pages: 139-177
Date Published
1996
Length
39 pages
Annotation
The perspective of social analytic jurisprudence is used to explore and conduct a preliminary empirically test of the issue of whether the use of psychologists as trial consultants in trial preparation and jury selection is perceived as fair.
Abstract
The analysis considered the effectiveness and ethics of trial consulting and the use of procedural justice theory to analyze the perceived fairness of trial consulting. The analysis then used the methodological and statistical methods of behavioral science to gather preliminary data on the impact of psychologist trial consultants on judgments of fairness in both criminal and civil cases. The research used a mixed factorial design and gathered data from 132 undergraduates at Saint Louis University in Missouri. Participants read case summaries and completed questionnaires consisting of 21 procedural justice items measured on 15-point Likert-type scales. Results revealed that the presence of a trial consultant for the prosecution or defense may not affect perceptions of procedural justice at all, although several factors limit this finding. Further research is recommended. Footnotes and appended instrument and additional results