Abstract
An estimated 90% of reported sexual abuse cases result in a plea agreement. The present study investigated the perception of plea agreements involving a teacher-adolescent student child sexual assault case. A 2 (teacher gender: male or female) x 2 (student gender: male or female) x 2 (punishment type: probation or jail) within-participant design was used with participant gender included as a between-participant factor. Perceptions of the plea agreement served as the dependent variables. Participants (N = 52; 48.1% male, 51.9% female) each read the eight vignettes in a random order and then rated their perceptions (e.g., support for the judicial process, degree of justice served, how upset they were by the plea) of a plea agreement on a 7-point scale. It was found that participants showed less support for plea agreements (1) offered to male teacher offenders compared to female teacher offenders and (2) when the punishment was probation compared to jail time. Additionally, participants’ emotional reactions (e.g., how upset) mediated the relationship between the independent variables (defendant gender and punishment type) and participants’ perception of the plea agreements. Results and implications are discussed in terms of procedural justice and the importance of public perceptions of pleas.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 930-947 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Journal of Child Sexual Abuse |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This hypothesis was supported by the findings. Participants viewed rape committed by a male teacher as significantly more severe than rape committed by a female teacher, F(1, 50) = 6.19, p = .02, η = .11. Regarding the other dependent variables, participants rated higher support for the plea agreement, F(1, 50) = 13.35, p = .001, η = .21; were less upset by the plea, F(1, 50) = 12.31, p = .001, η = .20; were more likely to approve the plea agreement if they were the judge, F(1, 50) = 6.30, p = .02, η = .11; and perceived more justice being served by the plea, F(1, 50) = 10.95, p = .002, η = .18, if the teacher was presented as a female rather than a male. Thus, participants showed less support for a plea agreement offered to a male defendant compared to a female defendant. p 2 p 2 p 2 p 2 p 2
Funding Information:
This hypothesis was supported by the findings. Participants rated higher support, F(1, 50) = 17.75, p < .001, η = .26; were less upset by the plea, F(1, 50) = 12.88, p = .001, η = .21; were more likely to agree that they would approve the plea if they were the judge on this case, F(1, 50) = 23.69, p < .001, η = .32; and perceived greater justice served by the plea, F(1, 50) = 27.18, p < .001, η = .35, if the plea agreement involved jail time rather than probation. p 2 p 2 p 2 p 2
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Taylor & Francis.
Keywords
- Child sexual assault
- plea agreements
- procedural justice
- psychology and law
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
- Pathology and Forensic Medicine
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health
