Societal Attitudes Towards Biological Risk Factors for Criminal Behavior and Implications for Death Penalty Mitigation

• In Event: The Influence of Psychopathic Traits, Gender, and Biological Evidence on Juror Decision-Making

Abstract

Literature on biological and biosocial risk factors for the development of criminality continues to be a growing area of research in criminology. Yet, the importance of this research, including whether it should be integrated into explanatory models of criminality as well as the potential implications it could have for the criminal justice system, still remains unresolved. A direct result of these unsettled issues has been a lack of clear information for members of the public concerning how biological characteristics may influence the development of criminal behavior and whether this research is pertinent to criminology and policy. Although the research community has encouraged public discussion, societal attitudes towards biological risk factors and how they could affect the criminal justice system are still virtually unknown. Thus, this presentation will focus on the results of a contrastive-vignette experimental survey that examines societal perceptions of biological risk factors for criminality. Further, utilizing both community and student samples, this study also tests how attitudes towards a range of different biological risk factors influence perceptions of an offender’s responsibility, dangerousness, and if biological risk factors are seen as mitigating factors, both generally as well as in capital sentencing and appeals.

Author

• Colleen Berryessa, University of Pennsylvania