NCJ Number
90110
Journal
Journal of Moral Education Volume: 10 Issue: 3 Dated: (May 1981) Pages: 165-172
Date Published
1981
Length
8 pages
Annotation
The explanations a person may provide of behavior in daily life is a central vehicle for clarifying the moral quality of an act. This study is concerned with some aspects of the young persons' conception of criminal events.
Abstract
Students aged 15 to 17 were given a questionnaire asking them to list five crimes they had heard of, their source of information concerning each crime, the appropriate punishment, and the circumstances under which the punishment should be reduced. Various crimes were cited, and a systematic relationship was found between the type of crime, the source of information about the event, and the kind of punishment proposed. The study analyzed accounts of circumstances under which the punishment should be reduced in terms of distinctions made by psychologists interested in attribution processes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Three tables and 18 references are included. (Author abstract modified)