Organizational Role Perceptions of Lower Court Judges

• NCJ Number: 87236
• Journal: Free Inquiry in Creative Sociology Volume: 9 Issue: 2 Dated: (November 1981) Pages: 115-126
• Author(s): W B Bankston; C J Brody; N Shover
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 7 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Using existing theory and research, this study hypothesizes dimensions of the judicial role, and these hypothesized dimensions are compared with the role perceptions of a sample of lower court judges.

Abstract

Three fundamental dimensions of the role of lower court judges are hypothesized: (1) ritualism-pragmatism as a continuum of perceptions of constraints of formal law on judicial goals and purposes, (2) the dominance-independence continuum of perceptions of subordinate role-set members such as police and prosecutors on judicial actions, and (3) the dominance-independence continuum of perceptions of the influence of superordinate role-set members such as the appellate courts. Based on the content and implications of the hypothesized role dimensions, 15 Likert-type attitude questions were chosen. It was expected that judges' responses to the questions would cluster predictably as distinct factors if the role types were empirically present. The response scale consisted of two levels of agreement and disagreement and a neutral response. The questionnaire was mailed to all Tennessee judges presiding in courts of original jurisdiction. The return of 90 completed questionnaires yielded a 63 percent response rate; however, this sample was further reduced to those 70 judges presiding in Tennessee's General Sessions Courts to provide a more homogeneous group in terms of the formally prescribed character of their judicial role. There were relatively consistent response patterns with small standard deviations. In each of the three sets of questions reflecting the hypothesized dimensions, at least three questions show a significant difference from the neutral scale value. Factor analysis revealed empirical support for the predicted continuums of judicial role perception. Further research questions spawned by the findings of this study are presented. Tabular data and 51 references are provided.