NCJ Number
140448
Journal
International Journal of the Sociology of Law Volume: 20 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1992) Pages: 253-270
Date Published
1992
Length
18 pages
Annotation
Over the past 25 years, several studies of the sentencing process in English magistrate courts have employed simulation, including the vignette, as a research instrument.
Abstract
Simulation has been used to conduct research on court proceedings. It can take the form of audiovisual tape re- enactments of trials, role playing exercises that often include courtroom figures playing their own official roles, and vignettes. The main limit of simulation concerns validity, but confidence in the generalizability of findings from a single study can be increased by enlarging the range of subjects or settings. Simulation has also been criticized because its independent variables are often more accentuated than they would be in real life cases. As a form of simulation, vignettes have not only been used in research on the English legal system but also in a number of other jurisdictions. A small-scale and quickly conducted simulation study can contribute to the general body of knowledge and theory about courtroom processes and can be an efficient way of developing and checking tentative, working hypotheses about actual behavior. The use of vignettes as a research tool should be viewed as complementary rather than alternative. The role of vignettes is considered in terms of presentation methods, case types used, artificiality, and external validity. 31 references