ATTITUDES TOWARD SEX OFFENDERS BY FEMALE UNDERGRADUATE UNIVERSITY-STUDENTS ENROLLED IN A PSYCHOLOGY PROGRAM

A survey of first and third year psychology students was undertaken to investigate whether longer enrolment in a university program would ha ve an impact on attitude formation toward sexual offenders. All studen ts were administered a battery of standardized tests to obtain a perso nality profile and their attitudes. Overall the third year students ha d a greater sense of well being, intellectual efficiency, self control , psychological mindedness, were more repressed, and tolerant than fir st year students. Although third year students had different personali ty traits than first year students they held similar attitudes regardi ng sexual offenders. Both student groups believed that sexual offender s should receive incarceration of more than two years for their first offense but should receive parole and indefinite treatment following t heir release from jail.