THE BACKBONE OF CLOSING SPEECHES - THE IMPACT OF PROSECUTION VERSUS DEFENSE LANGUAGE ON JUDICIAL ATTRIBUTIONS

Subtle attribution cues embedded in language were investigated in a si mulated courtroom setting. Lawyers in training as well as lay attorney s gave closing speeches for the defense and for the prosecution. In a first study, distinct linguistic strategies were identified. Prosecuto rs attributed internal causality to defendants, whereas defense attorn eys supported negative intentional attributions to the victim. In a se cond study, lay persons judged the closing speeches and decided on ver dict and punishment. Severity of punishment depended on speaker's role (defense or prosecution), severity of crime, and 2 linguistic strateg ies, indicating intentionality of negative behavior and dispositionali ty of negative behavior. It is concluded that subtle language strategi es db have a noticeable effect on the attribution of blame and guilt i n a legal setting.