Perception of the Presumption of Innocence in the Context of Media Depictions of Violence: The Role of Participant’s Gender, Type of Crime, and Defendant’s Socioeconomic Status

• Published in: Journal of interpersonal violence 2023-06, Vol.38 (11-12), p.7824-7842
• Main Authors: Łyś, Agnieszka E., Bargiel-Matusiewicz, Kamilla, Studzińska, Anna
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Crime; Defendants; Female; Humans; Male; Mass media effects; Mass media images; Media coverage; Media violence; Perception; Rape; Sex crimes; Sex Offenses; Social Class; Socioeconomic factors; Socioeconomic status; Violence
• ISSN: 0886-2605; 1552-6518
• DOI: 10.1177/08862605221150461

The #MeToo movement has provoked a worldwide discussion about sexual violence. Some critics of the movement argue that it violates the presumption of innocence. In the current study, we investigated the determinants of the perception of the presumption of innocence in the context of media depictions of violence. We took into account previous studies that suggest that people view more favorably defendants in rape trials than they do men accused of other crimes and that people view more favorably defendants with a high socioeconomic status than they do those with a low socioeconomic status. The current study investigated whether the perception of the presumption of innocence is related to the type of crime (sexual vs. nonsexual assault) or to the socioeconomic status of the defendant (a famous writer vs. a maintenance worker). We conducted a vignette-based study with a sample of Polish people (N = 158). The type of crime did not influence the perception of the presumption of innocence; however, women who participated in the study endorsed the presumption of innocence to a greater extent when the defendant had a high socioeconomic status. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.