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The Effect Of Multiple Perpetrators On Judgements Of Responsibility, Louise Hamer

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study questioned whether participants feel one person committing a crime alone is more, less, or equally responsible for his or her actions than two people committing a crime together; whether participants react differently to two equally culpable coconspirators than they do to a perpetrator who was coerced by a companion to commit the crime; and whether these factors affect the amount of responsibility attributed to the perpetrator or the length of sentence recommended. The study found that less responsibility was attributed to a coerced perpetrator; however, all perpetrators received sentences of similar lengths. Also, White respondents attributed more responsibility …