Judging by the Numbers: An Empirical Study of the Power of Story

Chestek, Kenneth D.

doi:10.2139/ssrn.1457947

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Additionally, research on narrative persuasion indicates that argument-based persuasion attempts are not as convincing as stories (Adaval & Wyer, 1998;Chestek, 2010), implying that the surplus of information without the context of the story are likely less effective. This is supported by the results of Study 2's statement of innocence, which indicate that already some context information (i.e.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative stories and the decision to prosecute: an applied approach against confirmation bias in criminal prosecution

Schmittat

Englich

Sautner

et al. 2021

Psychology, Crime & Law

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In many legal systems, preliminary proceedings and the prosecutor's charging decision predict the outcome of the trial, as reflected in high conviction rates. This charging decision is mostly based on the final police report, which is primarily aimed to substantiate the given suspicion and may lead to a preponderance of incriminating evidence. We investigated if a written statement by the defense (an alternative story) can balance out this information disparity and can alter the charging decision. Building on classical debiasing methods, the Story Model and narrative persuasion, we hypothesized that an alternative story reduces the likelihood of being charged, because the police report becomes less unique. Participants of three experiments (criminal-law students, N = 684) received either only the police report, or the police report plus an alternative story (vs. a statement merely claiming innocence) and were asked to make charging decisions. The presence of prior conviction evidence (PCE) was varied. Results show that 1) an alternative story reduces (and PCE increases) the likelihood of being charged, 2) a statement merely claiming innocence is less but still effective, and 3) PCE effects were small and inconsistent. Underlying mechanisms, implications for criminal procedural law, and applicability to adversarial systems are discussed.

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Section: Limitations and Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative stories and the decision to prosecute: an applied approach against confirmation bias in criminal prosecution

Schmittat

Englich

Sautner

et al. 2021

Psychology, Crime & Law

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Competing Stories: A Case Study of the Role of Narrative Reasoning in Judicial Decisions

Chestek

2011

SSRN Journal

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Since 2007, the Applied Legal Storytelling (AppLS) movement has helped scholars understand the role of stories in the legal system. 1 AppLS 2 scholarship differs from some of the more-familiar genres of "storytelling" scholarship in that it focuses on the practical: how does storytelling (or "narrative theory") affect what lawyers and judges do in actual cases? 3 Much, although certainly not all, of this rich body of scholarship examines storytelling from the point of view of the client or the advocate. That is, many scholars are investigating the characteristics of stories and drawing conclusions about how advocates can best take advantage of those characteristics, to tell effective stories on behalf of their clients. 4

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Judging by the Numbers: An Empirical Study of the Power of Story

Cited by 2 publications

References 1 publication

Alternative stories and the decision to prosecute: an applied approach against confirmation bias in criminal prosecution

Alternative stories and the decision to prosecute: an applied approach against confirmation bias in criminal prosecution

Competing Stories: A Case Study of the Role of Narrative Reasoning in Judicial Decisions

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