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Applying the revenge system to the criminal justice system and jury decision-making

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2012

S. Craig Roberts  and
Jennifer Murray
S. Craig Roberts
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, School of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, Scotland, United Kingdom. [email protected]://www.psychology.stir.ac.uk/staff/staff-profiles/academic-staff/craig-roberts
Jennifer Murray
Affiliation:
Nursing, Midwifery, and Allied Health Professions Research Unit, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA Scotland, United Kingdom. [email protected]://stir.academia.edu/JenniferMurray/About
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Abstract

McCullough et al. propose an evolved cognitive revenge system which imposes retaliatory costs on aggressors. They distinguish between this and other forms of punishment (e.g., those administered by judges) which are not underpinned by a specifically designed evolutionary mechanism. Here we outline mechanisms and circumstances through which the revenge system might nonetheless infiltrate decision-making within the criminal justice system.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 36 , Issue 1 , February 2013 , pp. 34 - 35
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013

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