NCJ Number
59953
Journal
Journal of Clinical Psychology Volume: 34 Issue: 3 Dated: (JULY 1978) Pages: 798-808
Date Published
1978
Length
11 pages
Annotation
THE RELATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS OF INMATE CHARACTERISTICS AND DECISIONMAKER RESPONSE BIASES TO SENTENCING RECOMMENDATIONS WERE EXAMINED BY COMPARING PRESENTENCING EVALUATIONS DONE BY CLINICIANS AND CASEWORKERS.
Abstract
A TOTAL OF 720 MEN FROM 1 CALIFORNIA PRISON WERE STUDIED. INMATE CHARACTERISTICS EXAMINED WERE OFFENSE SEVERITY AND RECIDIVISM PROBABILITY. CLINICIANS INCLUDED PSYCHOLOGISTS AND PSYCHIATRISTS. RESPONSE BIAS WAS DEFINED AS PERCENTAGE OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR STATE LEVEL COMMITMENTS, AND WAS CLASSIFIED AS LENIENT OR PUNITIVE. MULTIPLEREGRESSION ANAYLSIS SHOWED THAT ALTHOUGH BOTH GROUPS OF DECISIONMAKERS EVIDENCED A BIAS EFFECT FOR CASES THAT WERE HARD TO CATEGORIZE, THE EFFECT WAS GENERALLY GREATER FOR CLINICIANS THAN FOR CASEWORKERS. NEITHER THE TYPE OF CLINICAL JUDGMENT MODEL NOR PREDICTABILITY OF RECOMMENDATION WERE ASSOCIATED WITH RESPONSE BIAS. IN CONTRAST, THE TWO VARIABLES' RELATIVE WEIGHTS, AS WELL AS THE TENDENCY TO USE ONLY OFFENSE SEVERITY TO THE EXLUSION OF RECIDIVISM PROBABILITY WERE BOTH ASSOCIATED WITH RESPONSE BIAS. IN ADDITION, THE MOST SERIOUS OFFENDERS WERE SELECTIVELY EXPOSED TO DECISIONMAKERS MOST LIKELY TO RELY ONLY ON OFFENSE SEVERITY AND TO RECOMMEND RELATIVELY PUNITIVE CASE DISPOSITIONS. RESULTS DEMONSTRATED THE NEED FOR AN ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM TO MINIMIZE EFFECTS OF CORRECTIONAL DECISIONMAKERS' RESPONSE BIASES WITHOUT THREATENING THEIR SENSE OF PROFESSIONAL AUTONOMY AND EXPERTISE. SUCH A SYSTEM WOULD PROVIDE EXPLICITNESS, RATIONALITY AND UNIFORMITY, WHICH ARE OFTEN ABSENT. IN ADDITION, DECISIONMAKER CHARACTERISTICS OTHER THAN THOSE DESCRIBED SHOULD BE STUDIED. A DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF METHODOLOGY, TABLES OF RESULTS, NOTES AND REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)