Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a culturally-based argument in a non-insane automatism defense would be detrimental or beneficial to the defendant. We also examined how juror ethnocentrism might affect perceptions of such a defense. Participants read a fictional filicide homicide case in which the defendant claimed to have blacked out during the crime; we manipulated whether culture was used as an explanation for what precipitated the defendant’s blackout. We conducted path analyses to assess the role of ethnocentrism in predicting lower defendant credibility, and harsher verdict decisions. Results revealed an interaction between ethnocentrism and defense type, such that ethnocentrism related to lower perceived defendant credibility in the cultural condition, but not in the standard automatism condition. This study marks a starting point for empirically investigating the role of culture in the courtroom, which may aid scholars in discussing the merits of a standalone cultural defense.
Highlights
In today’s growing global society, it is necessary to be aware of the ways in which culturally diverse individuals interact with the already complex legal system
Persons enculturated in the United States—i.e., who have unconsciously adopted such a culturally dictated way of thinking—may have internalized those same values championed by the American legal system
In order to determine the relationships between ethnocentrism, defense type, credibility, and verdict decisions, we conducted a multiple group path analysis using MPlus software [41] in which we compared the invariance of the paths between the cultural automatism and standard automatism conditions
Summary
In today’s growing global society, it is necessary to be aware of the ways in which culturally diverse individuals interact with the already complex legal system. Since the year 2000, the Asian-American population has grown at over four times the rate of the United States total population [1]. This rapidly developing multiculturalism likely results in diverse perspectives on what constitutes a morally justifiable, or at least explicable, act. Persons enculturated in the United States—i.e., who have unconsciously adopted such a culturally dictated way of thinking—may have internalized those same values championed by the American legal system
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