NCJ Number
56570
Journal
Arizona Law Review Volume: 20 Issue: 3 Dated: (1978) Pages: 629-642
Date Published
1978
Length
14 pages
Annotation
GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATING PROSPECTIVE JURORS ON THE BASIS OF THEIR NONVERBAL COMMUNICATIVE BEHAVIOR ARE PRESENTED IN AN ARTICLE DIRECTED TO TRIAL ATTORNEYS.
Abstract
MOST ATTORNEYS ARE ASTUTE JUDGES OF THE VERBAL CONTENT OF PROSPECTIVE JURORS' COMMUNICATIVE BEHAVIOR DURING VOIR DIRE, BUT FEW SYSTEMATICALLY ATTEND TO PARALINGUISTIC (BREATHING, PAUSES, TONE, PITCH, SPEECH DISTURBANCES) AND KINESIC (BODY LANGUAGE) CUES. AMONG SUCH CUES INDICATING THE PRESENCE OF EMOTION, SITUATIONAL ANXIETY, OR DECEPTION ARE VERBOSITY, FAST SPEECH, SPEECH DISTURBANCES, LABORED BREATHING, FREQUENT PAUSES, SLOWNESS OF RESPONSE, INCREASED LATERAL EYE MOVEMENT, DECREASED EYE CONTACT, FACIAL CUES, BODY POSTURE AND VERBAL LANGUAGE INDICATIVE OF A SENSE OF IMMEDIACY, AND BODY-FOCUSED HAND MOVEMENTS. THESE BEHAVIORS MAY MEAN THAT THE PROSPECTIVE JUROR IS ANXIOUS ABOUT BEING QUESTIONED PUBLICLY, HAS A NEGATIVE RESPONSE TO THE QUESTIONER, HAS STRONG FEELINGS ABOUT THE SUBJECT OF THE QUESTION, OR IS BEING DECEPTIVE. ONE WAY TO ASSESS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF NONVERBAL CUES IS TO COMPARE BEHAVIOR DURING NEUTRAL AND ATTITUDINAL QUESTIONING. FOR INSTANCE, JURORS WHO MAINTAIN EYE CONTACT DURING PRELIMINARY QUESTIONS (NAME, ADDRESS, OCCUPATION, ETC.) BUT LOOK AWAY WHEN ASKED WHETHER THEY HAVE FORMED AN OPINION ABOUT THE DEFENDANT'S GUILT PROBABLY SHOULD BE QUESTIONED FURTHER. ASSESSMENTS OF PROSPECTIVE JURORS' NONVERBAL COMMUNICATIVE BEHAVIOR COULD BE MADE BY OBSERVERS (ATTORNEYS NOT PARTICIPATING IN THE QUESTIONING, OR PERHAPS SOCIAL SCIENTISTS) USING RATING FORMS. A SAMPLE RATING FORM IS PRESENTED, AND THE POTENTIAL AND LIMITATIONS OF SUCH A PROCEDURE ARE CONSIDERED. (LKM)