Decision error tolerance and attitudes toward crime control: Measuring values toward judicial decisions

This research investigated the relation between attitudes toward crime control and a measure of ordered liberty for two types of judicial decisions and two levels of crime severity. Valid and reliable measures of attitudes toward crime control and ordered liberty were developed. These measures were related to decision threshold probability and authoritarianism constructs, and verdict and recidivism base rate predictions. The results revealed that subjects tolerated decision errors that would protect society in parole decisions and errors that would protect individual liberty in jury decisions. Crime control attitudes were related to tolerance of decision errors that would protect society, and due process attitudes were related to errors that would protect individual liberty. Tolerance for decision errors that would protect society when the crime was life-threatening was revealed. Authoritarian attitudes were associated with a crime control orientation to the criminal process. Greater predictions of guilt and recidivism were related to greater tolerance for decision errors that would protect society. Further studies using the decision error tolerance measure and the attitudes toward crime control scale should be conducted in actual judicial decision situations. The decision error tolerance measure can be applied to any decision situation as a measure of ordered liberty when ever the safety of society or individual liberty is placed at risk to protect the other.