EUTHANASIA ON TRIAL - EXAMINING PUBLIC-ATTITUDES TOWARD NONPHYSICIAN-ASSISTED DEATH

This study investigated the influence of various contextual effects on the decisions of subjects evaluating a case of nonphysician-assisted suicide. Subjects viewed a videotaped deposition of an individual emot ionally or nonemotionally describing how he assisted in the death of h is terminally ill wife by disconnecting her respirator or shooting her in the head, The deposition was followed by jury instructions that ou tlined the duties of the subject and, in some cases, was followed by a nullification instruction that informed the subjects of their right t o ignore the law in this case if they felt it would culminate in an un fair verdict. After viewing the videotape, subjects were asked to rate she guilt of the individual as well as their confidence in this ratin g, Results indicate that the means of death and the type of instructio n significantly affect guilt ratings. The implications of these findin gs are discussed.