A mock juror-simulation was utilized to determine the effect of observers' prior perpetration and victimization upon attributions of responsibility for an illegal act. 386 student subjects were presented a newspaper article depicting a court case of an individual being tried for one of two crimes, petty larceny or armed robbery. As predicted, prior victimization was significantly correlated with attributed responsibility. However, a significant relationship was not found between prior perpetration and attributed responsibility.
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