NCJ Number
162414
Journal
Law and Human Behavior Volume: 20 Issue: 2 Dated: (April 1996) Pages: 167-187
Date Published
1996
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This study manipulated both the female defendant's prior response to abuse by the victim (passive, active) and the presence of expert testimony (battered woman syndrome, social agency, no expert control) in a homicide trial that involved a battered woman who had killed her abuser.
Abstract
The introduction of battered woman syndrome testimony in trials of battered women who have killed has stirred considerable debate within the psycholegal community. Much of the controversy stems from the testimony's focus on the woman's passivity, as well as its portrayal of a single profile of battered women. Given these concerns, proposals to alter the content of the testimony (for example, dropping the "syndrome" terminology, focus on battered women's social reality as opposed to their psychological state and reactions) have surfaced. Overall, participants, who were drawn from both a university (n=195) and a nonuniversity setting (n=202), rendered more lenient verdicts and provided more favorable evaluations of the defendant's claim of self-defense in the presence of expert testimony (either form) compared to a no-expert control. Further, these effects were more pronounced for the student than the nonstudent sample. Implications of these findings for the use of expert evidence that pertains to battered women are discussed. 2 tables, 2 figures, and 45 references