Deck 8: The Psychology of the Jury

Question 1

What was the verdict in the Harrisburg Seven case?

A) guilty
B) not guilty
C) there was no verdict;the jury deadlocked
D) since the jury deadlocked,the judge declared the defendants not guilty

Answer 1

there was no verdict;the jury deadlocked

Question 2

Who is more likely to use trial consultants in criminal trials?

A) defendants
B) plaintiffs
C) judges
D) juries

Answer 2

defendants

Question 3

Why was the trial of the Harrisburg Seven held in Harrisburg,Pennsylvania?

A) The defence wanted a change of venue to a more liberal community.
B) The defence wanted a change of venue to counteract pretrial publicity.
C) The prosecution wanted a conservative community.
D) The prosecution wanted to avoid the publicity of holding the trial in Washington,DC.

Answer 3

The prosecution wanted a conservative community.

Question 4

What percentage of jurors experience stress due to the general disruption of their schedule?

A) 13 percent
B) 28 percent
C) 45 percent
D) 67 percent

Question 5

What is the term for the proposition that group stereotypes may be unwisely generalized,but that some basic distinctions between groups exist?

A) the fundamental attribution error
B) the kernel-of-truth hypothesis
C) the attitudinal consistency approach
D) the intergroup differential

Question 6

Jury research has found that jurors' biases affect their decisions consistently,even overcoming the weight of the evidence in a case.

Question 7

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of a juror favouring the prosecution?

A) trust in authority
B) belief in a just world
C) sympathy with the underprivileged
D) acquiescent responding

Question 8

According to Kassin and Wrightsman (1983),in what type of crime are jurors predisposed to favouring the defence as likely to vote "guilty" as jurors predisposed toward the prosecution?

A) rape
B) auto theft
C) homicide
D) conspiracy

Question 9

Which of the following would have been a characteristic indicating a possible defence-oriented juror in the de la Beckwith retrial of 1994?

A) membership in a racially integrated softball league
B) having one's child enrolled in a public school
C) being a financially well-off Republican
D) being Republican and poor

Question 10

In the Harrisburg Seven case,which of the following was NOT part of the ideal juror profile constructed by the defence?

A) female
B) advanced educational level
C) democrat
D) no religious preferences

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a valid reason to challenge a prospective juror?

A) The juror has already formed an opinion about guilt.
B) The juror is not a Canadian citizen.
C) The identity of the potential juror is not the name stated on the list.
D) The juror was previously imprisoned for a period of six months.

Question 12

Which behaviour commonly perceived to be associated with nervous behaviour puts Aboriginal people at an unfair disadvantage?

A) speech disturbances
B) gaze aversion
C) body movement
D) fidgeting

Question 13

A juror can be held in contempt for refusing to disclose information on a supplemental juror questionnaire.

Question 14

Kassin and Wrightsman (1983)proposed that judgments of guilt arise when a juror's probability of commission estimate exceeds which of the following?

A) circumstantial evidence
B) reasonable doubt
C) personal biases

Question 15

In Canada,judges recommend that jurors refrain from discussing their deliberations publicly,but if they choose to do so,it is not a criminal offence.

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT a juror type as measured by the Revised Legal Attitudes Questionnaire?

A) authoritarian
B) authoritative
C) antiauthoritarian
D) equalitarian

Question 17

During which stage of a trial would a supplemental juror questionnaire be used?

A) prior to jury selection
B) after jury selection,to double-check for biases
C) after opening statements,to double-check for biases
D) right before jury deliberations

Question 18

In a sequestered voir dire,how are jurors interviewed?

A) in a group in the absence of attorneys
B) individually in the judge's chambers
C) as a group in the absence of the media
D) individually in the courtroom

Question 19

What was the outcome of the 1994 de la Beckwith retrial?

A) not guilty
B) hung jury
C) guilty,with life imprisonment
D) guilty,with death penalty

Question 20

Individuals have been held in contempt of court for inadvertently communicating to jurors during a trial.The same standard applies to prospective jurors before trial.

Question 21

What is scientific jury selection? Does it work?

Question 22

Describe two attitude scales used to measure juror bias in criminal trials.Is there evidence for their validity?

Question 23

Describe the jury selection process in the de la Beckwith retrial.

Question 24

How is jury research conducted in Canada? What problems can arise from this sort of approach?

Question 25

Is "jury selection" the correct term? Or should it be "deselection"? Why?

Question 26

Why is it so difficult for researchers to study jury decision making in Canada?

Question 27

Define supplemental juror questionnaire.What are the advantages of its use?

Question 28

Define juror bias and give examples.

Question 29

What is jury tampering? Does it apply to the investigations of prospective jurors done by the trial consultant?

Question 30

Dr.Dax Urbszat plans to implement a musical education program for incarcerated offenders.

Question 31

Should the use of challenges be discontinued in Canadian trials? Why?

Question 32

How are juries selected in Canada? How does the process differ from that in the United States?

Question 33

The process of jury selection in Canada and the United States is identical.

Question 34

Is it ethical for psychologists to aid in jury selection?

Question 35

What are some examples of lawyers' stereotypes with respect to jury selection?

Question 36

Describe the circumstances under which a challenge can be made and a potential juror excused.

Question 37

Describe some attitudes or biases that might be present in jurors in a civil trial involving claims of,for example,product liability or medical malpractice.

Question 38

Outline the three reasons that Porter and ten Brinke (2009)questioned the assumption of reliability of legal decisions concerning guilt and innocence.

Question 39

Describe the jury selection process in the Harrisburg Seven trial.

Question 40

Contrast two approaches used by forensic psychologists in jury selection.

Question 41

What is the Supreme Court of Canada's major view of the ability of jurors to assess the credibility of witnesses?

Question 42

Explain the importance of the trial of the Harrisburg Seven in evaluating the psychologist's role in jury selection.

Question 43

Describe the main findings on the relation between facial features and legal decision making.