An Information-Processing Model of Jury Decision Making

Abstract

An experiment was designed to test a model of jury decision making. This model, the linear discrepancy model, is an information-processing model which posits that when jurors hear an argument during deliberation, they adjust their opinion toward the message. The amount of change is a linear function of the discrepancy between the opinion expressed in the message and the jurors' opinions. An unequal-speaking version of this model, contrasting the speaking frequency of the foreperson and other jury members was constructed. Trial outcomes and postdeliberation variances were predicted accurately by the model in an experiment employing impaneled jurors.

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