Leadership style and personality of mock jurors and the effect on sentencing decisions

Attitudes toward sentencing decisions were examined in 135 university students. Participants were administered the Leadership Ability Evaluation (LAE) and the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) and were asked to make sentencing decisions regarding 2 mock criminal matters. Data were evaluated using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). In comparison to other leadership styles, individuals who had a democratic-cooperative leadership style scored significantly higher on personality variables of good impression, self-control, tolerance, and achievement via independence than other leadership styles. In the autocratic-aggressive group, males scored much lower on communality than females. The females in the study scored significantly lower than males on social presence, socialization, and good impression. A 2 way interaction was noted for leadership style and gender for sentencing. Females with a democratic-cooperative leadership style were significantly harsher in sentencing than males from the same group.