In this chapter, we examine how social psychology has been applied productively in the areas of health and law. We first look at elements of the courtroom trial, including the credibility and accuracy of eyewitness testimony, influenced by police line-up procedures, stress, time elapsed between incident and recall, the nature of the protagonist, and biased questioning. Juror biases have been identified, in the characteristics of defendants as well as characteristics of jurors. Attributions of responsibility, such as for causing a negative outcome, are influenced by the severity of consequences of the act. Inconsistencies in sentencing are related to the characteristics of the defendant and the crime, prior record, the values and legal philosophy of the judge and the social climate regarding crime. There are several forms of justice, particularly what is fair (distributive justice) and how such decisions are arrived at (procedural justice). Distributive justice may be governed by norms of equity, equality or need. People vary in their belief that the world itself is just. Health care is a global concern, involving more than medical treatment of disease. Social psychological factors play a role. The socioeconomic status gradient effect links health to relative status in society. People may behave in health-risky or health-enhancing ways, and there does not seem to be a consistency across various behaviours. Social modelling is a major influence. Stress may derive from both major life events and the hassles of daily life. Social support enhances health, both by buffering the effects of stress and by alleviating loneliness. Perceived lack of control can affect health. The Type A personality linked to a risk of heart attacks consists of high achievement orientation, impatience, and especially cynical hostility towards others. Close relationships with specific others can enhance health, and loneliness is an established health risk. The health beliefs model begins with a perception that one is at risk of illness, leading to a readiness to act, which becomes translated into an action depending on the rewards and costs attributed to that action. Fear-arousing communications can be effective if an appropriate and realistic action is recommended to deal with the threat. Being sick can be seen as involving a social role with a script for being sick. Patient noncompliance with the recommendations of caregivers, including taking prescription drugs, is a widespread problem. After beneficial change in behaviour, relapse is common. The abstinence violation effect, specific to addictive behaviours, converts a momentary slip into a full-blown relapse. There are two models of well-being: subjective, or hedonic, well-being defined in terms of high positive affect, low negative affect and a positive life satisfaction; and psychological, or eudaimonic, well-being, living a life that is personally meaningful and including self-acceptance, positive relations with others, a sense of personal efficacy, and finding meaning in life.

KEYWORDS: distributive justice, eyewitness testimony, inconsistent sentencing practices, juror bias, just world hypothesis, procedural justice

1. Eyewitness testimony is generally accurate if the eyewitness is sure of what he or she witnessed.

2. In a study, subjects who had viewed a videotaped reenactment of a crime and who had been asked to pick the suspect from a group of ‘mugshot’ photos (none of which were of the assailant) were later less likely to make the correct choice in a ‘line-up’.

3. People are generally good at detecting what a person’s ‘true feelings’ are, even when he or she is trying to hide them from us.

4. The US Supreme Court has identified five criteria for evaluating an eyewitness and the research evidence give us reasons to be confident in all of them.

5. In a study, less responsibility was attributed to people having experienced an accident who were also described as highly anxious or paranoid.

6. People engage in behaviours which are health risks primarily because of various addictions.

7. People in pubs drink more in large groups because they spend a longer period of time in the pub.

8. People who lack supportive bonds with others are more likely to suffer illness and less likely to recover quickly.

9. Secondary prevention refers to the reduction of the rate of occurrence of disease.

10. Most cigarette smokers who quit effectively do so after several relapses.

1. F

2. T

3. F

4. F

5. F

6. F

7. T

8. T

9. T

10. T

MCQ's for Chapter 15

1. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of jury simulation studies?

2. Discuss the severity of outcome effect on attribution of responsibility, and relate to legal issues.

3. What personality factors are related to health and recovery from illness?

4. Outline the health beliefs model and critically discuss it.

5. What is the relationship between social support and health, and why?

6. Discuss the proposition that people are usually accurate in detecting whether someone is telling the truth.

7. Discuss advantages and disadvantages of the adversarial and inquisitional models of courtroom procedure.

8. What is the ‘patient non-compliance’ problem and what can be done about it?

9. What type(s) of questions lead to the greatest accuracy?

9. Why is maintenance of behaviour change such a major problem in health promotion?

10. What are some factors that have been identified as leading to feelings of injustice?

1. Outline the US Supreme Court criteria for evaluating eyewitness accuracy and evaluate these criteria in the light of social psychology research.

2. Compare and contrast the three principles of distributive justice.

3. To what extent do the research findings and concepts presented in this chapter support Osler’s statement that ‘it is much more important to know what sort of patient has the disease than what sort of disease the patient has?’

4. Given what is known about vulnerability to disease and the variables which influence whether people engage in health-risk or health-promotion behaviours, how can medical practice be modified to promote good health and recovery?