Simulated Jury Trials: Studentsvs.“Real” People as Jurors
- 1 April 1978
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis in The Journal of Social Psychology
- Vol. 104 (2) , 287-293
- https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.1978.9924071
Abstract
The use of laboratory experiments involving simulated jurors has proven to be a popular means for examining the effects of various variables on juror decision making. In the vast majority of these studies, college students have been used in the roles as simulated jurors. Yet, one question facing studies employing students as jurors remains: Can the results of such studies be generalized to nonstudents in similar roles? Using 80 randomly selected undergraduate students and 80 randomly selected citizens, the present study tested the null hypothesis that college students do not differ from the general population in terms of the length of sentence they would impose upon an individual charged with a crime. Results showed that students were significantly (p < .01) more lenient in their sentences than were nonstudents.Keywords
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