Portraying Sympathy-worthy Murder Victims

• In Event: 3481 - Section on Social Psychology Refereed Roundtables (cosponsored with Section on Sociology of Emotions)
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 02. Sociology of Sympathy

Abstract

One’s sympathy-worthiness varies by the ways people experience victimization. Previous research on sympathy-worthiness has focused primarily on living people rather than dead ones. It has also concentrated on one’s traits prior to becoming sympathetic instead of retrospective applications based on people’s actions that resulted in death. I examine portrayals of murder victims in news reports to illustrate two emerging principles of sympathy-worthiness—(1) victim’s heroic sacrifice and (2) murder’s brutality and degree of victim’s suffering. My findings indicate the importance of studying deceased victims as recipients of sympathy.

Author

• Alexander Lu, Francis Marion University