@article{ref1,
title="Expressed Sexual Assault Legal Context and Victim Culpability Attributions",
journal="Journal of interpersonal violence",
year="2012",
author="Miller, Audrey K. and Markman, Keith D. and Amacker, Amanda M. and Menaker, Tasha A.",
volume="27",
number="6",
pages="1023-1039",
abstract="Legal scholars have argued that laws have an expressive function, specifically that sexual assault laws may convey social-level messages that victims are culpable for crimes against them. In a university sample, we conducted the first experimental test of legal scholars' proposal, hypothesizing that legal messages-specifically their clarity and effectiveness in conveying that sexual assault is a crime-affect victim culpability attributions. Results demonstrated that greater culpability was attributed to a victim of sexual assault within a context expressing unclear and ineffective sexual assault law than within a context clearly and effectively expressing that sexual assault is a crime. We also garnered empirical support for a mediation model, that is, negative affective reactions to a victim statistically accounted for the relationship between expressed legal context and victim culpability attributions. Implications for future psycholegal research and potential legal reforms are discussed.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0886-2605",
doi="10.1177/0886260511424493",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0886260511424493"
}