Exploring the Impact of Narrative Persuasion on Student Attitudes Towards the Death Penalty: A Qualitative Approach
Start Date
29-4-2022 3:45 PM
Location
Alter Hall Poster Session 2 - 2nd floor
Abstract
Attitude change on the death penalty is highly relevant issue to both legal and public policy actors. Previous studies on students’ death penalty attitudes used vignettes in quasi-experimental methodologies to measure attitude change on the death penalty. Few studies have explored the impact of nonfiction narrative on death penalty attitudes. The current study adopted a novel approach to student attitude change through exposure to first-person narratives in the context of community engaged learning. Senior capstone students (n = 28) completed projects on the death penalty. Four journal reflection entries, submitted by individual students in three-week intervals, captured attitude change and learning experiences over time. Coders examined 119,522 words and conducted thematic analysis. Participants who connected with a narrative experienced a significant reduction in death penalty support as well as increased advocacy intentions, attitude strength, and subject knowledge. Implications for narrative persuasion in legal and learning contexts are discussed.
Exploring the Impact of Narrative Persuasion on Student Attitudes Towards the Death Penalty: A Qualitative Approach
Alter Hall Poster Session 2 - 2nd floor
Attitude change on the death penalty is highly relevant issue to both legal and public policy actors. Previous studies on students’ death penalty attitudes used vignettes in quasi-experimental methodologies to measure attitude change on the death penalty. Few studies have explored the impact of nonfiction narrative on death penalty attitudes. The current study adopted a novel approach to student attitude change through exposure to first-person narratives in the context of community engaged learning. Senior capstone students (n = 28) completed projects on the death penalty. Four journal reflection entries, submitted by individual students in three-week intervals, captured attitude change and learning experiences over time. Coders examined 119,522 words and conducted thematic analysis. Participants who connected with a narrative experienced a significant reduction in death penalty support as well as increased advocacy intentions, attitude strength, and subject knowledge. Implications for narrative persuasion in legal and learning contexts are discussed.
