Title: The effects of defendant physical attractiveness and criminal violation of gender-role stereotypes on perceived guilt, punishment harshness, and judgment justifications
Department: Psychology
Description: This project will explore whether guilt attributions and sentencing decisions (harshness) are affected by defendant physical attractiveness and the degree to which the crime committed violates gender-role stereotypes. In general, the existence of a "halo effect," by which positive qualities are ascribed to physically attractive people, has been established, but the literature is mixed as to the role this may play in the context of the criminal justice system. In some instances, physically attractive people may be subjected to a "beauty penalty." Further, prior research has uncovered that despite receiving shorter sentences than men in general, women whose offenses violate gender-role stereotypes may actually be punished more harshly than their male counterparts. This study will aim to uncover both quantitative relationships between the variables explained above as well as thinking and justification patterns of "jurors" (participants) through the use of qualitative coding.
Hometown: Richmond, Virginia
Advisor: Cheryl Dickter
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