1. TEMPLATE DESIGN © 2008 www.PosterPresentations.com What should be the consequences for police who shoot to kill based on victim race/ethnicity and criminal background? Political leaning matters. Rebecca L. Fix, Spencer T. Fix, & Barry R. Burkhart Department of Psychology, Auburn University, University of North Carolina - Charlotte INTRODUCTION OPTIONAL LOGO HERE RESEARCH QUESTIONS DISCUSSION -Racial/ethnic characteristics of the victim and defendant are factors that can influence judicial decision making. -Racial/ethnicity minority identification, particularly Black/African American identification is a salient predictor of more severe or harsh judicial punishment. -Research also indicates political affiliation can influence judicial outcomes. -Defendants of violent offenses like murder or assault who were classified in the same racial/ethnic group as their victim were considered more guilty than defendants who were classified in a different racial/ethnic group than their victim. -Research is lacking on factors contributing to law enforcement officer (LEO) outcomes for civilian shootings. OBJECTIVE Test whether race/ethnicity of a law enforcement officer, race/ethnicity of a civilian who is shot, participant political affiliation, and whether or not the civilian has a criminal record impact judicial decision making. 1)Does race/ethnicity of a LEO, race/ethnicity of a civilian who is shot, participant political affiliation, and whether or not the civilian has a criminal record impact judicial decision making? 2)Are there interaction effects between the race/ethnicity of the LEO and race/ethnicity of the civilian who was shot on different judicial outcomes? 3)Are there interaction effects between the race/ethnicity of the LEO and participant political affiliation on different judicial outcomes? 4)Are there interaction effects between the race/ethnicity of the civilian who was shot and participant political affiliation on different judicial outcomes? 5)Does criminal background interact with any other tested predictors? PARTICIPANTS (CONT.) Age: M = 19.82 years, SD = 6.2 Gender: 76% female; 24% male Race/ethnicity: 83% European American; 11% African American Religion: 86% Christian; 12% No Religious Affiliation Sexual Orientation: 94% Straight/Heterosexual Sorority or Fraternity: 43% Yes Political Affiliation: 22% Liberal; 30% Moderate; 48% Conservative PROCEDURE Case vignette study “DeMarcus Williams/Paul Strickland, a Black/White juvenile male was shot three times in the back by a Black/White police officer. According to the police officer, who was the only witness of the shooting, DeMarcus/Paul was seen stealing a pint of liquor from a local gas station and refused to lie on the ground when approached by the officer.” Criminal Background During a comprehensive legal investigation, a significant criminal record was noted for DeMarcus/Paul, meaning he had a number of previous charges, arrests, or warrants. No Criminal Background During a comprehensive legal investigation, no significant criminal record was noted for DeMarcus/Paul, meaning he had no previous charges, arrests, or warrants. MEASURES 1. Judicial outcomes -Would you find the LEO guilty? -Should LEO lose job? -Should family of victim receive monetary compensation? -Select follow-up questions were also asked concerning judicial outcomes DATA ANALYSIS A series of logistic and linear regressions were run to test the study hypotheses. -Comparable interaction effects were observed between: A) victim race and political affiliation AND B) LEO race and political affiliation on whether the LEO should be fired; victim race and political affiliation on family compensation. -Results from the present study indicate a main effect of political affiliation, race of LEO, and criminal history on several judicial outcomes -Political affiliation was particularly influential on judicial outcomes LIMITATIONS -College sample -Two states, from Southeastern US (geographically limited) -Vignettes only included African and European Americans FUTURE DIRECTIONS -Examine parallel vignettes but have more varied racial/ethnic groups -Examine influence of other factors on judicial decision making -Test for similar effects using court-level data METHOD PARTICIPANTS Participants were 1,136 college students at two Southeastern Universities who volunteered for our study and received extra credit in a psychology course for their study involvement. METHOD (CONT.) RESULTS (CONT.) FIGURES Please contact Rebecca Fix with questions or comments at rebecca.fix@auburn.edu. INTRODUCTION RESULTS MAIN EFFECTS Main effect of criminal history on: guilt Main effect of race/ethnicity of LEO on: confidence in verdict Main effect of Political Affiliation on: guilt, getting fired, victim compensation, confidence in verdict INTRODUCTION