Social Psychology Commons^™

Killing, Letting Die, And The Case For Mildly Punishing Bad Samaritanism, Ken M. Levy

Journal Articles

For over a century now, American scholars (among others) have been debating the merits of “bad-samaritan” laws – laws punishing people for failing to attempt “easy rescues.” Unfortunately, the opponents of bad-samaritan laws have mostly prevailed. In the United States, the “no-duty-to-rescue” rule dominates. Only four states even have bad-samaritan laws, and these laws impose only the most minimal punishment – either sub-$500 fines or short-term imprisonment.

This Article argues that this situation needs to be remedied. Every state should criminalize bad samaritanism. For, first, criminalization is required by the supreme value that we place on protecting human life, a …

Public Attitudes Toward Applying Sex Offender Registration Laws To Juvenile Offenders, Jessica M. Salerno, Margaret C. Stevenson, Tisha R. A. Wiley, Cynthia J. Najdowski, Bette L. Bottoms, Rachel A. Schmillen

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

In this chapter, we provide a summary of current registration laws for juvenile sex offenders across the United States and discuss the assumptions that drive these laws. We consider whether these assumptions have been supported or refuted by the research produced on the topic thus far. Then, turning to new data from our own laboratory, we discuss public perceptions of registration laws. This is an important issue because expansion of registry laws to juveniles might be driven by strong public support—or politicians' and policy makers' perceptions that there is public support—for expansion of the registry. As we discuss, research does …

Jurors And Social Loafing: Factors That Reduce Participation During Jury Deliberations, Cynthia J. Najdowski

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

The American jury system rests on the fundamental assumption that jurors will engage in a thorough analysis of facts and robust debate to ensure that verdicts are reliable. Research demonstrates, however, that this expectation is rarely met. All jurors do not participate equally in deliberations. This may be explained in part by social loafing, or the withdrawal of effort that may occur when an individual works in a group relative to when the individual works alone. Despite evidence that jurors do not participate equally during jury deliberations, an analysis of factors contributing to participation, or the lack thereof, has not …