Citation

Travis LF, Cullen FT, Link BG, Wozniak JF. J. Crim. Justice 1986; 14(5): 433-440.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1986, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/0047-2352(86)90110-8

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Recently, Miethe (1982) hypothesized that the use of legal referents in the instructions on crime seriousness surveys biases ratings. The present study assessed this possibility through a survey of 210 college students in which the respondents were randomly assigned to three different instructional conditions (items were referred to as crimes, deviant behaviors, or behaviors). Although instances were detected in which instructions appeared to influence ratings, most of the evidence indicated that instructional bias is not a major factor shaping respondent evaluations. This suggests that findings on crime seriousness cannot be attributed to the nature of the instructions commonly used in past survey instruments.