Date of Award
2023
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Psychology
Committee Chair
Jeffrey Neuschatz
Committee Member
Aurora Torres
Committee Member
Stacy Wetmore
Subject(s)
Jurors--Decision making--Psychological aspects, Informers, Incentive (Psychology)
Abstract
Jailhouse informant testimony in the form of secondary confessions is one of the leading causes of wrongful convictions in the United States. Often, informants receive incentives in exchange for their testimony. This is the first study to incorporate incentives other than reduced sentences. In two experiments, employing a multigroup comparison with 4 levels of the independent variable (Incentive: Legal, Illegal, No Incentive, No Informant), this study explored the influence the type of incentive received by the informant had on jury decision making. The results of Experiment 1 indicated neither perceptions of the informant nor verdict decision making were influenced by the type of incentive. In Experiment 2, although the perceptions of the informant and incentive were influenced by incentive type, verdict decision making was not. Mock jurors may be relying on implicit prosecutorial vouching when deciding whether to convict or acquit the defendant.
Recommended Citation
Street, Kylene, "Sex, drugs, and secondary confessions" (2023). Theses. 504.
https://louis.uah.edu/uah-theses/504