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3 System Justification Theory and Research: Implications for Law, Legal Advocacy, and Social Justice
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I. Lay Dispositionism and Underappreciation of the Power of the Situation I. Lay Dispositionism and Underappreciation of the Power of the Situation
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II. Subjectivism, Naïve Realism, and Attributions of Objectivity Versus Bias II. Subjectivism, Naïve Realism, and Attributions of Objectivity Versus Bias
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III. Implications of a Situationist Perspective III. Implications of a Situationist Perspective
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IV. Psychological Versus Legal Reasoning: Fairness Considerations IV. Psychological Versus Legal Reasoning: Fairness Considerations
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V. Pragmatic Considerations Versus Considerations of Justice V. Pragmatic Considerations Versus Considerations of Justice
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Notes Notes
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Reference Reference
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17 Two Social Psychologists' Reflections on Situationism and the Criminal Justice System
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Published:January 2012
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Abstract
The criminal justice system relies on lay notions of culpability that are incompatible with contemporary social psychology, and arguably with reasonable standards of fairness and justice. A given wrongdoer’s actions are viewed in that field less as the product of stable disposition or “character” and more that of situation factors and their cumulative consequences than either lay or legal conceptions acknowledge. Moreover, the legal distinctions made between relevant and irrelevant mitigating factors are ones that social psychologists would deem uncompelling and even incoherent. While recognizing the impediments to dramatic systemic change, and the important role that public approval plays in maintaining the criminal justice system, this chapter questions whether justice can truly be served when the law’s theory of culpability is so fundamentally at odds with the lessons of social scientific research. It also considers the implications of a more enlightened view.
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