People who are convicted of murder who look less trustworthy are

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Examining the prompt, we are asked to assess how defendants who have been convicted of murder and who appear less trustworthy are treated in terms of subsequent outcomes.
Option 1: 'less likely to commit more crimes' — This choice confounds the immediate phenotype (appearance) with future criminal behavior. Research on appearance bias typically focuses on juror perceptions and sentencing decisions, not on predicting reoffending rates based on looks alone. Therefore, this statement misattributes predictive power to appearance that is not supported by the core literature.
Option 2: 'more likely to commit more crimes' — This suggests a direct link between looking untrustworthy and higher future recidivism. While biases about a defendant's trustworthiness can influence sentencing, there is no established causal claim that a defendant who looks less trustworthy will inevitably commit more crimes. The option overstates the role of appearance in forecasting future behavior and risks stereotyping rather than evidence-based reasoning.
Option 3: 'more likely to receive the death sentence' — This aligns with findings in social psychology and legal psychology about appearance bias affecting verdicts and sentencing. If jurors or judges perceive a defendant as less trustworthy or more deviant based on appearance, they may be more inclined toward harsher penalties, including capital punishment in jurisdictions where it is available. The reasoning hinges on bias in the decision-making process rather than on objective measures of guilt or propensity. 
Option 4: 'less likely to receive the death sentence' — This would imply a protective effect of looking untrustworthy, which contradicts the common pattern of bias toward harsher punishment for individuals who are perceived as less trustworthy or more dangerous. Unless there is nuanced context (e.g., mitigating factors that counteract bias), this option generally runs opposite to the expected bias effect described in related research. 
In summarizing the reasoning for each option, note that the central theme is how implicit or explicit judgments based on appearance can sway legal outcomes, particularly sentencing, rather than definitive predictors of future crime or objective guilt assessments. The third option is the one that reflects the documented influence of appearance-based bias on sentencing decisions in murder cases, while the others misapply appearance effects to unrelated or unsupported claims about behavior or punishment.

psyc_468_120251_243897 Week 5 Quiz

People who are convicted of murder who look less trustworthy are

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