Gender in the Courtroom Workgroup: Understanding the Relationship Between the Composition of Workgroups and the Gender Gap in Punishment

For decades, research has revealed a gender disparity in criminal case outcomes. This phenomenon was traditionally explained as a product of male court actors’ protectiveness of women and the minimization of female threat. In the current study, we capitalize on the increasing gender diversity of cou...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Bowman, Rachel (Author)
Contributors: Oramas Mora, Daniela ; Mitchell, Ojmarrh ; Spohn, Cassia
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2023
In: Criminal justice and behavior
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Keywords:
Criminal Justice
Decision-making
Female offenders
Gender
Sentencing
Description
Summary:For decades, research has revealed a gender disparity in criminal case outcomes. This phenomenon was traditionally explained as a product of male court actors’ protectiveness of women and the minimization of female threat. In the current study, we capitalize on the increasing gender diversity of courts to examine if the gender gap in punishment is explained by the gender composition of the decision-making body in criminal courts: the courtroom workgroup. Using a sample of felony cases from Florida’s circuit courts in 2017 (N = 10,605), we measure workgroups as judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys assigned to the same division. We find that the gender diversity of the workgroup does not explain variations in court outcomes, nor does it explain the presence of gender disparities we observed in all but one of our case outcomes. As such, male protectionism is insufficient to explain the more lenient treatment of women in Florida’s criminal courts.
ISSN:1552-3594
DOI:10.1177/00938548221140362