Abstract
The influence of extra-legal (i.e., irrelevant or invalid) aspects on legal decisions has been the focus of research in legal psychology for decades. In this area of research, the influence of a defendant's prior criminal records on the verdict has received special attention. Prior criminal records serve as a legal criterion in sentencing. However, they may not be used in the determination of guilt, except as circumstantial evidence in certain individual cases. In the present article we discuss research findings on this topic and present considerations regarding an experimental study design. This design makes it possible to investigate the relationship between a defendant's prior records and the probability of a conviction among different groups of people. In contrast to previous studies on this topic, we propose that in addition to laypersons-legal practitioners should be used as research participants.
| Dokumententyp: | Zeitschriftenartikel |
|---|---|
| Fakultät: | Medizin |
| Themengebiete: | 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften > 610 Medizin und Gesundheit |
| ISSN: | 0724-2247 |
| Sprache: | Deutsch |
| Dokumenten ID: | 45304 |
| Datum der Veröffentlichung auf Open Access LMU: | 27. Apr. 2018, 08:08 |
| Letzte Änderungen: | 27. Apr. 2018, 08:08 |
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