Prior Allegations Matter: Mock Jurors’ Perceptions of Sexual Harassment

The current study examined factors that may influence jurors’ judgments in a sexual harassment case. Mock jurors (N = 479) examined how a defendant’s gender and occupation, a victim’s gender, and whether the victim has produced similar accusations in the past influenced mock juror’s judgments. Participants read a case vignette describing an alleged sexual harassment and were asked to answer questions concerning defendant guilt, defendant culpability, and perceptions of the victim. Additionally, attitudes concerning sexual harassment and sexism were measured. It was found that mock jurors were more likely to believe the defendant was guilty and perceive the victim more favorably when no prior accusations had been made in the past compared to when prior accusations were present. When the defendant and victim were of the same sex, and the defendant was a university professor, higher guilt ratings were attributed to the defendant when there were no prior allegations in the victim’s past. Additionally, a complex four-way interaction was observed for the ratings of defendant guilt, and a three-way interaction was observed when examining perceptions of the victim. The results suggest that both defendant and victim characteristics have the potential to influence jurors’ judgments.