The influence of social pressure and black clothing on crime judgements

Authors: Vrij, Aldert; Pannell, Helen; Ost, James

Source: Psychology, Crime and Law, Volume 11, Number 3, September 2005 , pp. 265-274(10)

Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group

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Abstract:

The impact of (i) social pressure and (ii) colour of clothing on participants' crime judgements were examined. A total of 49 participants participated in small groups. They were read a crime report, and answered questions aloud about this report. Unknown to them, some group members were confederates and gave incorrect answers to some of the questions. In each session either one or four confederates were present who wore either dark or light clothing. Results revealed that participants gave numerous incorrect answers, with the most incorrect answers being given when (i) there were four confederates, and (ii) the confederates wore dark clothing.

Keywords: black clothing influence; conformity; mack jury trials

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10683160410001680780

Affiliations: 1: Psychology Department, University of Portsmouth, UK

Publication date: 2005-09-01