Profiling Jury Bias in Rape Trials: Examining the link between Juror Characteristics and Trial Decisions

StatusPost-Print
Dublin Core metadata
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Authors
Willmott, Dominic
Boduszek, Daniel
Booth, Nigel
Monograph
Researching Rape Trials. Methods, Ethics and Empirical Perspectives
Monograph (alternative title)
Editor
Leahy, Susan
Dowds, Eithne
Weare, Siobhan
Date
2026-08-18
Place of publication
Publisher
Routledge
Journal title
Researching Rape Trials
Volume
Pages
127-144
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ISBN
9781003613015
eISBN
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Weblink
Access date
2025-11-22
Remarks
Abstract PL
Abstract EN
Since the onset of the Chicago jury project in the 1950s, social scientists have utilised varied methodologies to better understand the fairness and functionality of jury trials. One common approach involves investigating the relationship between a juror's psychosocial make-up (traits, attitudes, and experiences) and their judgements at trial. An established literature has since amassed, which indicates that juror attitudes, more so than isolated personality features or demographics, appear most important in influencing verdict decision-making. This attitudinal bias is particularly prominent within rape trials, where deep-rooted culturally embedded stereotypes (known as rape myths) exist. This chapter reports on the findings from two experimental studies conducted in an English trial context that scrutinised the influence of rape attitudes and jurors’ sexual victimisation experiences and gender upon their subsequent verdict decisions. Both studies used the same rape allegation and case materials within a mock trial paradigm. However, the methodologies differed in their realism; study one adopted a videotaped mock trial, while study two utilised a highly realistic live trial re-enactment design. The findings from both studies are discussed considering the impact that pre-trial rape attitudes, victimisation experiences, and gender can have upon rape trial verdict outcomes and crucially, what solutions may be effective.
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Keywords EN
Jury decision-making
juror bias
rape trials
rape myths
sexual victimisation
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Sustainable Development Goals
SDG 4. Quality Education ,
SDG 3. Good Health and Well-being ,
SDG 5. Gender Equality ,
SDG 10. Reduced Inequalities ,
SDG 16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
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Organisational Unit
Wydział Psychologii we Wrocławiu
Instytut Psychologii
URI
https://share.swps.edu.pl/handle/swps/2590
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Version
post-print / Author's Accepted Manuscript (AAM)
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cc-by-nc-nd
Except as otherwise noted, this item is licensed under the Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence | Permitted use of copyrighted works
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Acquisition Date20.10.2022
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Acquisition Date20.10.2022