Robert MacCoun

All Publications

• Third Millennium Thinking: Making Sense in a World of Nonsense Perlmutter, S., Campbell, J., MacCoun, R. Little, Brown. 2024
• BALANCING COMPASSION, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND CAUSAL CLARITY. Addiction (Abingdon, England) MacCoun, R. J. 2020

  View details for DOI 10.1111/add.15164

  View details for PubMedID 32643245

• Behind Schedule - Reconciling Federal and State Marijuana Policy. The New England journal of medicine Haffajee, R. L., MacCoun, R. J., Mello, M. M. 2018

  View details for PubMedID 29996065

• Multiple gateways. Addiction (Abingdon, England) MacCoun, R. J. 2018

  View details for PubMedID 29573364

• Enhancing research credibility when replication is not feasible BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES MacCoun, R. J. 2018; 41

  View details for DOI 10.1017/S0140525X18000778

  View details for Web of Science ID 000458790700057

• Enhancing research credibility when replication is not feasible. The Behavioral and brain sciences MacCoun, R. J. 2018; 41: e142

  Abstract

  Direct replications are not always affordable or feasible, and for some phenomena they are impossible. In such situations, methods of blinded data analysis can help minimize p-hacking and confirmation bias, increasing our confidence in a study's results.

  View details for DOI 10.1017/S0140525X18000778

  View details for PubMedID 31064554

• How Medical Marijuana Smoothed the Transition to Marijuana Legalization in the United States. Annual review of law and social science Kilmer, B., MacCoun, R. J. 2017; 13 (1): 181-202

  Abstract

  Public support for legalizing marijuana use increased from 25% in 1995 to 60% in 2016, rising in lockstep with support for same-sex marriage. Between November 2012 and November 2016, voters in eight states passed ballot initiatives to legalize marijuana sales for nonmedical purposes-covering one-fifth of the US population. These changes are unprecedented but are not independent of the changes in medical marijuana laws that have occurred over the past 20 years. This article suggests five ways in which the passage and implementation of medical marijuana laws smoothed the transition to nonmedical legalization in the United States: (a) They demonstrated the efficacy of using voter initiatives to change marijuana supply laws, (b) enabled the psychological changes needed to destabilize the "war on drugs" policy stasis, (c) generated an evidence base that could be used to downplay concerns about nonmedical legalization, (d) created a visible and active marijuana industry, and (e) revealed that the federal government would allow state and local jurisdictions to generate tax revenue from marijuana.

  View details for DOI 10.1146/annurev-lawsocsci-110615-084851

  View details for PubMedID 34045931

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC8152576

• COMPUTATIONAL MODELS OF SOCIAL INFLUENCE AND COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR COMPUTATIONAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY MacCoun, R. J., Vallacher, R. R., Read, S. J., Nowak, A. 2017: 258–80

  View details for Web of Science ID 000445825500013

• Brains, environments, and policy responses to addiction. Science (New York, N.Y.) Humphreys, K. n., Malenka, R. C., Knutson, B. n., MacCoun, R. J. 2017; 356 (6344): 1237–38

  View details for PubMedID 28642399

• Commentary on Niesink et al. (2015): Interpreting trends in tetrahydrocannabinol potencythree stories, one of which may be true ADDICTION Maccoun, R. J. 2015; 110 (12): 1951-1952

  View details for DOI 10.1111/add.13170

  View details for Web of Science ID 000364868900011

  View details for PubMedID 26564524

• The Impact of Psychological Science on Policing in the United States: Procedural Justice, Legitimacy, and Effective Law Enforcement PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST Tyler, T. R., Goff, P. A., MacCoun, R. J. 2015; 16 (3): 75-109

  View details for DOI 10.1177/1529100615617791

  View details for PubMedID 26635334

• Hide results to seek the truth NATURE MacCoun, R., Perlmutter, S. 2015; 526 (7572): 187-189

  View details for Web of Science ID 000362399000021

• Blind analysis: Hide results to seek the truth. Nature MacCoun, R., Perlmutter, S. 2015; 526 (7572): 187-189

  View details for DOI 10.1038/526187a

  View details for PubMedID 26450040

• Balancing evidence and norms in cultural evolution ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES MacCoun, R. J. 2015; 129: 93-104

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.obhdp.2014.09.009

  View details for Web of Science ID 000358468800009

• Half-baked--the retail promotion of marijuana edibles. New England journal of medicine MacCoun, R. J., Mello, M. M. 2015; 372 (11): 989-991

  View details for DOI 10.1056/NEJMp1416014

  View details for PubMedID 25760351

• The Epistemic Contract: Fostering an Appropriate Level of Public Trust in Experts MOTIVATING COOPERATION AND COMPLIANCE WITH AUTHORITY: THE ROLE OF INSTITUTIONAL TRUST MacCoun, R. J. 2015; 62: 191-214

  View details for DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-16151-8_9

  View details for Web of Science ID 000370256300010

  View details for PubMedID 26410926

• NEW EVIDENCE ON THE TENUOUS STATE OF EVIDENCE-BASED DRUG POLICY ADDICTION MacCoun, R. J. 2014; 109 (8): 1234-1235

  View details for DOI 10.1111/add.12533

  View details for Web of Science ID 000339476700005

  View details for PubMedID 25041197

• Public Intuitions About Fair Child Support Allocations: Converging Evidence for a "Fair Shares" Rule PSYCHOLOGY PUBLIC POLICY AND LAW Braver, S. L., Ellman, I. M., MacCoun, R. J. 2014; 20 (2): 146-163

  View details for DOI 10.1037/law0000003

  View details for Web of Science ID 000335333000003

• Alternative maps of the world of collective behaviors BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES MacCoun, R. J. 2014; 37 (1): 88-90

  Abstract

  I compare the collective behavior map proposed by Bentley et al. ("BOB" for short) with a similar "balance of pressures" (BOP) map proposed by MacCoun (2012). The BOB and BOP maps have important points of convergence, but also some differences. The comparison suggests that they are analogous to different map "projections" for maps of Earth - different ways of simplifying a complex reality.

  View details for DOI 10.1017/S0140525X13001787

  View details for Web of Science ID 000332474000044

  View details for PubMedID 24572230

• Cheap talk and credibility: The consequences of confidence and accuracy on advisor credibility and persuasiveness ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND HUMAN DECISION PROCESSES Sah, S., Moore, D. A., MacCoun, R. J. 2013; 121 (2): 246-255

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.obhdp.2013.02.001

  View details for Web of Science ID 000320092200009

• Is the leniency asymmetry really dead? Misinterpreting asymmetry effects in criminal jury deliberation GROUP PROCESSES & INTERGROUP RELATIONS Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J. 2012; 15 (5): 585-602

  View details for DOI 10.1177/1368430212441639

  View details for Web of Science ID 000308652000002

• Design considerations for legalizing cannabis: lessons inspired by analysis of California's Proposition 19 ADDICTION Caulkins, J. P., Kilmer, B., MacCoun, R. J., Pacula, R. L., Reuter, P. 2012; 107 (5): 865-871

  Abstract

  No modern jurisdiction has ever legalized commercial production, distribution and possession of cannabis for recreational purposes. This paper presents insights about the effect of legalization on production costs and consumption and highlights important design choices.Insights were uncovered through our analysis of recent legalization proposals in California. The effect on the cost of producing cannabis is largely based on existing estimates of current wholesale prices, current costs of producing cannabis and other legal agricultural goods, and the type(s) of production that will be permitted. The effect on consumption is based on production costs, regulatory regime, tax rate, price elasticity of demand, shape of the demand curve and non-price effects (e.g. change in stigma).Removing prohibitions on producing and distributing cannabis will dramatically reduce wholesale prices. The effect on consumption and tax revenues will depend on many design choices, including: the tax level, whether there is an incentive for a continued black market, whether to tax and/or regulate cannabinoid levels, whether there are allowances for home cultivation, whether advertising is restricted, and how the regulatory system is designed and adjusted.The legal production costs of cannabis will be dramatically below current wholesale prices, enough so that taxes and regulation will be insufficient to raise retail price to prohibition levels. We expect legalization will increase consumption substantially, but the size of the increase is uncertain since it depends on design choices and the unknown shape of the cannabis demand curve.

  View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03561.x

  View details for Web of Science ID 000302344500003

  View details for PubMedID 21985069

• RESPONSE TO COMMENTARIES ADDICTION Caulkins, J. P., Kilmer, B., MacCoun, R. J., Pacula, R. L., Reuter, P. 2012; 107 (5): 876-877

  View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.03833.x

  View details for Web of Science ID 000302344500007

  View details for PubMedID 22471568

• Abstract Principles and Concrete Cases in Intuitive Lawmaking LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR Ellman, I. M., Braver, S. L., MacCoun, R. J. 2012; 36 (2): 96-108

  Abstract

  Citizens awaiting jury service were asked a series of items, in Likert format, to determine their endorsement of various statements about principles to use in setting child support amounts. These twenty items were derived from extant child support systems, from past literature and from Ellman and Ellman's (2008) Theory of Child Support. The twenty items were found to coalesce into four factors (principles). There were pervasive gender differences in respondent's endorsement of the principles. More importantly, three of these four principles were systematically reflected, in very rational (if complex) ways, in the respondents' resolution of the individual child support cases they were asked to decide. Differences among respondents in their endorsement of these three principles accounted for differences in their patterns of child support judgments. It is suggested that the pattern of coherent arbitrariness (Ariely et al., Q J Econ 118(1):73-105, 2003) in those support judgments, noted in an earlier study (Ellman, Braver, & MacCoun, 2009) is thus partially explained, in that the seeming arbitrariness of respondents' initial support judgments reflect in part their differing views about the basic principles that should decide the cases.

  View details for DOI 10.1037/h0093956

  View details for Web of Science ID 000302725300003

  View details for PubMedID 22471414

• The Burden of Social Proof: Shared Thresholds and Social Influence PSYCHOLOGICAL REVIEW MacCoun, R. J. 2012; 119 (2): 345-372

  Abstract

  Social influence rises with the number of influence sources, but the proposed relationship varies across theories, situations, and research paradigms. To clarify this relationship, I argue that people share some sense of where the "burden of social proof" lies in situations where opinions or choices are in conflict. This suggests a family of models sharing 2 key parameters, one corresponding to the location of the influence threshold, and the other reflecting its clarity--a factor that explains why discrete "tipping points" are not observed more frequently. The plausibility and implications of this account are examined using Monte Carlo and cellular automata simulations and the relative fit of competing models across classic data sets in the conformity, group deliberation, and social diffusion literatures.

  View details for DOI 10.1037/a0027121

  View details for Web of Science ID 000302968200005

  View details for PubMedID 22352358

• What can we learn from the Dutch cannabis coffeeshop system? ADDICTION MacCoun, R. J. 2011; 106 (11): 1899-1910

  Abstract

  To examine the empirical consequences of officially tolerated retail sales of cannabis in the Netherlands, and possible implications for the legalization debate.Available Dutch data on the prevalence and patterns of use, treatment, sanctioning, prices and purity for cannabis dating back to the 1970s are compared to similar indicators in Europe and the United States.The available evidence suggests that the prevalence of cannabis use among Dutch citizens rose and fell as the number of coffeeshops increased and later declined, but only modestly. The coffeeshops do not appear to encourage escalation into heavier use or lengthier using careers, although treatment rates for cannabis are higher than elsewhere in Europe. Scatterplot analyses suggest that Dutch patterns of use are very typical for Europe, and that the 'separation of markets' may indeed have somewhat weakened the link between cannabis use and the use of cocaine or amphetamines.Cannabis consumption in the Netherlands is lower than would be expected in an unrestricted market, perhaps because cannabis prices have remained high due to production-level prohibitions. The Dutch system serves as a nuanced alternative to both full prohibition and full legalization.

  View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03572.x

  View details for Web of Science ID 000296046000009

  View details for PubMedID 21906196

• Assessing Drug Prohibition and Its Alternatives: A Guide for Agnostics ANNUAL REVIEW OF LAW AND SOCIAL SCIENCE, VOL 7 MacCoun, R. J., Reuter, P. 2011; 7: 61-78

  View details for DOI 10.1146/annurev-lawsocsci-102510-105442

  View details for Web of Science ID 000299297100004

• THE IMPLICIT RULES OF EVIDENCE-BASED POLICY ANALYSIS, UPDATED ADDICTION MacCoun, R. J. 2010; 105 (8): 1335-1336

  View details for Web of Science ID 000279719100006

  View details for PubMedID 20653614

• Intuitive Lawmaking: The Example of Child Support JOURNAL OF EMPIRICAL LEGAL STUDIES Ellman, I. M., Braver, S., MacCoun, R. J. 2009; 6 (1): 69-109

  View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1740-1461.2009.01138.x

  View details for Web of Science ID 000207806300003

• HARM REDUCTION IS A GOOD LABEL FOR A CRITERION ALL DRUG PROGRAMS SHOULD MEET ADDICTION MacCoun, R. J. 2009; 104 (3): 341-342

  View details for DOI 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2008.02388.x

  View details for Web of Science ID 000263132500005

  View details for PubMedID 19207338

• Citizens' Perceptions of Ideological Bias in Research on Public Policy Controversies POLITICAL PSYCHOLOGY MacCoun, R. J., Paletz, S. 2009; 30 (1): 43-65

  View details for Web of Science ID 000262513600003

• The benefits of knowing what you know (and what you don't): How calibration affects credibility JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Tenney, E. R., Spellman, B. A., MacCoun, R. J. 2008; 44 (5): 1368-1375

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.jesp.2008.04.006

  View details for Web of Science ID 000259162800018

• Bridging the gap between science and drug policy: From "what" and "how" to "whom" and "when" BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES MacCoun, R. J. 2008; 31 (4): 454-?

  View details for DOI 10.1017/S0140525X08004901

  View details for Web of Science ID 000260783700045

• The implicit rules of evidence-based drug policy: A US perspective INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DRUG POLICY MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 2008; 19 (3): 231-232

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.drugpo.2008.02.012

  View details for Web of Science ID 000256992900011

  View details for PubMedID 18424113

• The negative impacts of starting middle school in sixth grade JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT Cook, P. J., MacCoun, R., Muschkin, C., Vigdor, J. 2008; 27 (1): 104-121

  View details for DOI 10.1002/pam.20369

  View details for Web of Science ID 000251625000007

• Calibration trumps confidence as a basis for witness credibility PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE Tenney, E. R., MacCoun, R. J., Spellman, B. A., Hastie, R. 2007; 18 (1): 46-50

  Abstract

  Confident witnesses are deemed more credible than unconfident ones, and accurate witnesses are deemed more credible than inaccurate ones. But are those effects independent? Two experiments show that errors in testimony damage the overall credibility of witnesses who were confident about the erroneous testimony more than that of witnesses who were not confident about it. Furthermore, after making an error, less confident witnesses may appear more credible than more confident ones. Our interpretation of these results is that people make inferences about source calibration when evaluating testimony and other social communication.

  View details for Web of Science ID 000244797500011

  View details for PubMedID 17362377

• Psychological constraints on transparency in legal and government decision making SWISS POLITICAL SCIENCE REVIEW MacCoun, R. J. 2006; 12 (3): 112-123

  View details for Web of Science ID 000241779000007

• Does social cohesion determine motivation in combat? An old question with an old answer ARMED FORCES & SOCIETY MacCoun, R. J., Kier, E., Belkin, A. 2006; 32 (4): 646-654

  View details for DOI 10.1177/0095327X05279181

  View details for Web of Science ID 000238493700011

• Competing accounts of the gateway effect: The field thins, but still no clear winner ADDICTION Maccoun, R. J. 2006; 101 (4): 473-474

  View details for Web of Science ID 000235936400005

  View details for PubMedID 16548926

• Voice, control, and belonging: The double-edged sword of procedural fairness ANNUAL REVIEW OF LAW AND SOCIAL SCIENCE MacCoun, R. J. 2005; 1: 171-201

  View details for DOI 10.1146/annurev.lawsocsci.1.041604.115958

  View details for Web of Science ID 000255488900010

• What does it mean to decriminalize marijuana? A cross-national empirical examination 24th Arne Ryde Symposium on Economics of Substance Use Pacula, R. L., MacCoun, R., Reuter, P., Chriqui, J., Kilmer, B., Harris, K., Paoli, L., Schafer, C. JAI-ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC. 2005: 347–369

  Abstract

  Although frequently discussed as a singular policy, there is tremendous variation in the laws and regulations surrounding so-called decriminalization policies adopted by Western countries, with many jurisdictions adopting depenalization policies rather than policies that actually change the criminal status of cannabis possession offences. This paper provides a discussion of the liberalization policies being adopted in Western countries, highlighting distinct elements about particular policies that are important for proper analysis and interpretation of the policies. It then discusses some of the environmental factors that also shape these policies, and hence influence their potential impact, using data from the U.S.A. as a particular example. The results clearly show that researchers should be careful conducting intra- or international comparisons of policies because important aspects of these policies are frequently ignored.

  View details for Web of Science ID 000232940500017

  View details for PubMedID 17867248

• Misguided drug policy ISSUES IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MacCoun, R. 2004; 21 (1): 5-6

  View details for Web of Science ID 000224330100002

• Population thinking as an adjunct to the clinical trial perspective PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES MacCoun, R. 2004; 55 (5): 509-?

  View details for Web of Science ID 000222759900006

  View details for PubMedID 15128958

• Limited rationality and the limits of supply reduction JOURNAL OF DRUG ISSUES Caulkins, J. P., MacCoun, R. 2003; 33 (2): 433-464

  View details for Web of Science ID 000184198000008

• Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for generalized causal inference (Book Review) JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT Book Review Authored by: MacCoun, R. 2003; 22 (2): 330-332

  View details for DOI 10.1002/pam.10129

  View details for Web of Science ID 000181501900020

• Is the addiction concept useful for drug policy? Conference on Choice, Behavioural Economics and Addiction MacCoun, R. PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD. 2003: 383–407

  View details for Web of Science ID 000188744500014

• Heroin maintenance: Is a US experiment needed? Conference on 100 Years of Heroin Reuter, P., MacCoun, R. AUBURN HOUSE PUBL CO. 2002: 159–180

  View details for Web of Science ID 000185614200011

• American distortion of Dutch drug statistics Conference on the Uses and Misuses of Science in Public Discourse MacCoun, R. J. TRANS TECH PUBLICATIONS LTD. 2002: 31–38

  View details for Web of Science ID 000185577200004

• Cannabis regimes - a response BRITISH JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 2001; 179: 369-370

  View details for Web of Science ID 000171814600023

  View details for PubMedID 11581124

• Comparative cannabis use data - Authors' reply BRITISH JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 2001; 179: 176-177

  View details for Web of Science ID 000170453700020

• American distortion of Dutch drug statistics SOCIETY MacCoun, R. J. 2001; 38 (3): 23-26

  View details for Web of Science ID 000166910300003

• Evaluating alternative cannabis regimes BRITISH JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 2001; 178: 123-128

  Abstract

  Cannabis policy continues to be controversial in North America, Europe and Australia.To inform this debate, we examine alternative legal regimes for controlling cannabis availability and use.We review evidence on the effects of cannabis depenalisation in the USA, Australia and The Netherlands. We update and extend our previous (MacCoun & Reuter, 1997) empirical comparison of cannabis prevalence statistics in the USA, The Netherlands and other European nations.The available evidence indicates that depenalisation of the possession of small quantities of cannabis does not increase cannabis prevalence. The Dutch experience suggests that commercial promotion and sales may significantly increase cannabis prevalence.Alternatives to an aggressively enforced cannabis prohibition are feasible and merit serious consideration. A model of depenalised possession and personal cultivation has many of the advantages of outright legalisation with few of its risks.

  View details for Web of Science ID 000166887500006

  View details for PubMedID 11157425

• The costs and benefits of letting juries punish corporations: Comment on Viscusi STANFORD LAW REVIEW MacCoun, R. J. 2000; 52 (6): 1821-1828

  View details for Web of Science ID 000165243300004

• Epistemological dilemmas in the assessment of legal decision making LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR MacCoun, R. J. 1999; 23 (6): 723-730

  View details for Web of Science ID 000084352500010

• What harm reduction is and isn't AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGIST MacCoun, R. J. 1999; 54 (10): 843-844

  View details for Web of Science ID 000083112500012

• Does Europe do it better? Lessons from Holland, Britain and Switzerland NATION MacCoun, R. J., Reuter, P. 1999; 269 (8): 28-30

  View details for Web of Science ID 000082436400018

• Goal conflict in juror assessments of compensatory and punitive damages LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR Anderson, M. C., MacCoun, R. J. 1999; 23 (3): 313-330

  View details for Web of Science ID 000081714100003

• Toward a psychology of harm reduction AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGIST MacCoun, R. J. 1998; 53 (11): 1199-1208

  Abstract

  This article discusses 3 different strategies for dealing with the harmful consequences of drug use and other risky behaviors: We can discourage people from engaging in the behavior (prevalence reduction), we can encourage people to reduce the frequency or extent of the behavior (quantity reduction), or we can try to reduce the harmful consequences of the behavior when it occurs (harm reduction). These strategies are not mutually exclusive; this article offers a framework for integrating them. The framework is useful for examining frequent claims that harm reduction "sends the wrong message." Opposition to harm reduction is based in part on a recognition of potential trade-offs among the strategies, but it is also fueled by several more symbolic psychological factors. Strategies for successfully integrating prevalence reduction, quantity reduction, and harm reduction are explored.

  View details for Web of Science ID 000076932800003

  View details for PubMedID 9830372

• Biases in the interpretation and use of research results ANNUAL REVIEW OF PSYCHOLOGY MacCoun, R. J. 1998; 49: 259-287

  Abstract

  The latter half of this century has seen an erosion in the perceived legitimacy of science as an impartial means of finding truth. Many research topics are the subject of highly politicized dispute; indeed, the objectivity of the entire discipline of psychology has been called into question. This essay examines attempts to use science to study science: specifically, bias in the interpretation and use of empirical research findings. I examine theory and research on a range of cognitive and motivational mechanisms for bias. Interestingly, not all biases are normatively proscribed; biased interpretations are defensible under some conditions, so long as those conditions are made explicit. I consider a variety of potentially corrective mechanisms, evaluate prospects for collective rationality, and compare inquisitorial and adversarial models of science.

  View details for Web of Science ID 000073046400011

  View details for PubMedID 15012470

• Interpreting Dutch cannabis policy: Reasoning by analogy in the legalization debate SCIENCE MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 1997; 278 (5335): 47-52

  Abstract

  The Dutch depenalization and subsequent de facto legalization of cannabis since 1976 is used here to highlight the strengths and limitations of reasoning by analogy as a guide for projecting the effects of relaxing drug prohibitions. While the Dutch case and other analogies have flaws, they appear to converge in suggesting that reductions in criminal penalties have limited effects on drug use-at least for marijuana-but that commercial access is associated with growth in the drug-using population.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1997XZ12400030

  View details for PubMedID 9311925

• Is melioration the addiction theory of choice? BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN SCIENCES MacCoun, R. J. 1996; 19 (4): 586-587

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996WY84900016

• Bias in judgment: Comparing individuals and groups PSYCHOLOGICAL REVIEW Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J., KRAMER, G. P. 1996; 103 (4): 687-719

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996VM90000004

• Harm reduction and social policy: Should addicts be paid? 7th International Conference on the Reduction of Drug-Related Harm Reuter, P., MacCoun, R. J. TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD. 1996: 225–30

  Abstract

  Harm reduction principles have not been applied to social policy programs that affect drug users. This paper considers whether income supports for the drug-dependent poor might be harm reducing, given that a principal harm related to drug dependence is crime committed to finance drug use. We examine the political fate of the principal income support program in the United States that targeted the drug dependent. Revelations that the money was being used in part for the purchase of drugs has led to a scaling back and tightening of the program. We suggest that the program might have been more effectively defended if attention had been paid to community harms rather than only to drug consumption by recipients. European and Australian governments provide income support which is no doubt also used for drug consumption, but in the context of universalist income support programs they do not require a harm reduction defense. We conclude that great potential for reducing drug-related harm may fall well outside the domain of targeted drug policy, whether of the supply reduction, demand reduction or harm reduction variety.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996VK63700002

  View details for PubMedID 16203376

• Estimating liability risks with the media as your guide 1993 Annual Meeting of the Law-and-Society-Association Bailis, D. S., MacCoun, R. J. AMERICAN JUDICATURE SOCIETY. 1996: 64–67

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996VR36500004

• Estimating liability risks with the media as your guide: A content analysis of media coverage of tort litigation LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR Bailis, D. S., MacCoun, R. J. 1996; 20 (4): 419-429

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996VF24200003

• Assessing alternative drug control regimes 5th International Conference on the Reduction of Drug-Related Harm MacCoun, R., Reuter, P., Schelling, T. WILEY-BLACKWELL. 1996: 330–52

  Abstract

  The debate over alternative regimes for currently illicit psychoactive substances focuses on polar alternatives: harsh prohibition and sweeping legalization. This study presents an array of alternatives that lies between these extremes. The current debate lacks an explicit and inclusive framework for making comparative judgments. In this study, we sketch out such a framework, as a reminder of possible policy levers and their costs and benefits that might otherwise be neglected or go unrecognized. The framework identifies a range of pharmacological and economic characteristics of substances, potential harms and their bearers, and the sources of those harms, including drug use, trafficking, law enforcement, and illegal status per se. The framework highlights the difficulty of making objective, rigorous comparisons among regimes, but we believe that it can serve a useful heuristic role in promoting more constructive debate and identifying fruitful questions for research.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996UU64400002

  View details for PubMedID 10848158

• Differential treatment of corporate defendants by juries: An examination of the ''Deep-Pockets'' hypothesis 1991 Annual Meeting of the Law-and-Society-Association MacCoun, R. J. LAW AND SOC ASSN. 1996: 121–61

  View details for Web of Science ID A1996UJ50100005

• On the ubiquity of drug selling among youthful offenders in Washington, DC, 1985-1991: Age, period, or cohort effect? JOURNAL OF QUANTITATIVE CRIMINOLOGY Saner, H., MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 1995; 11 (4): 337-362

  View details for Web of Science ID A1995TM19900001

• Comparing drug policies in North America and Western Europe European Scientific Seminar on Strategies and Policies to Combat Drugs MacCoun, R., Model, K., PhillipsShockley, H., Reuter, P. MARTINUS NIJHOFF PUBL. 1995: 197–220

  View details for Web of Science ID A1995BE32B00013

• PHANTOM RISK - SCIENTIFIC INFERENCE AND THE LAW - FOSTER,KR, BERNSTEIN,DE, HUBER,PW (Book Review) JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT Book Review Authored by: MacCoun, R. J. 1995; 14 (1): 168-171

  View details for Web of Science ID A1995QH40400017

• Assessing the legalization debate European Scientific Seminar on Strategies and Policies to Combat Drugs Reuter, P., MacCoun, R. MARTINUS NIJHOFF PUBL. 1995: 39–49

  View details for Web of Science ID A1995BE32B00004

• A CONTENT-ANALYSIS OF THE DRUG LEGALIZATION DEBATE JOURNAL OF DRUG ISSUES MacCoun, R. J., Kahan, J. P., GILLESPIE, J., Rhee, J. 1993; 23 (4): 615-629

  View details for Web of Science ID A1993MB17900004

• DRUGS AND THE LAW - A PSYCHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF DRUG PROHIBITION PSYCHOLOGICAL BULLETIN MacCoun, R. J. 1993; 113 (3): 497-512

  Abstract

  There is an ongoing American policy debate about the appropriate legal status for psychoactive drugs. Prohibition, decriminalization, and legalization positions are all premised on assumptions about the behavioral effects of drug laws. What is actually known and not known about these effects is reviewed. Rational-choice models of legal compliance suggest that criminalization reduces use through restricted drug availability, increased drug prices, and the deterrent effect of the risk of punishment. Research on these effects illustrates the need for a more realistic perspective that acknowledges the limitations of human rationality and the importance of moral reasoning and informal social control factors. There are at least 7 different mechanisms by which the law influences drug use, some of which are unintended and counterproductive. This framework is used to explore the potential behavioral effects of decriminalization and legalization.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1993LB44800007

  View details for PubMedID 8316611

• ARE THE WAGES OF SIN 30-DOLLAR AN HOUR - ECONOMIC-ASPECTS OF STREET-LEVEL DRUG DEALING CRIME & DELINQUENCY MacCoun, R., Reuter, P. 1992; 38 (4): 477-491

  View details for Web of Science ID A1992JP70000005

• DRUG POLICIES AND PROBLEMS - THE PROMISE AND PITFALLS OF CROSS-NATIONAL COMPARISON 3RD INTERNATIONAL CONF ON THE REDUCTION OF DRUG-RELATED HARM : FROM FAITH TO SCIENCE MacCoun, R. J., Saiger, A. J., Kahan, J. P., Reuter, P. WHURR PUBL LTD. 1992: 103–117

  View details for Web of Science ID A1992BZ11W00009

• UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF COURT ARBITRATION - A CAUTIONARY TALE FROM NEW-JERSEY JUSTICE SYSTEM JOURNAL MacCoun, R. J. 1991; 14 (2): 229-243

  View details for Web of Science ID A1991FM26000006

• THE EMERGENCE OF EXTRALEGAL BIAS DURING JURY DELIBERATION CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND BEHAVIOR MacCoun, R. J. 1990; 17 (3): 303-314

  View details for Web of Science ID A1990DV67600005

• IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER - TORT LITIGANTS EVALUATIONS OF THEIR EXPERIENCES IN THE CIVIL JUSTICE SYSTEM LAW & SOCIETY REVIEW LIND, E. A., MacCoun, R. J., Ebener, P. A., FELSTINER, W. L., Hensler, D. R., Resnik, J., Tyler, T. R. 1990; 24 (4): 953-996

  View details for Web of Science ID A1990ET24700003

• EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON JURY DECISION-MAKING SCIENCE MacCoun, R. J. 1989; 244 (4908): 1046-1050

  Abstract

  Because trial juries deliberate in secrecy, legal debates about jury functioning have relied heavily on anecdote and speculation. In recent years, investigators have begun to challenge many common assumptions about jury behavior. An important tool in this effort has been the mock jury experiment, in which research participants are randomly assigned to alternative trial conditions and asked to reach a verdict in a simulated case. Researchers have used mock jury experiments to test hypotheses about causal influences on jury behavior and to develop theoretical models of the jury deliberation process.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1989U836500023

  View details for PubMedID 17741042

• THE BASIS OF CITIZENS PERCEPTIONS OF THE CRIMINAL JURY - PROCEDURAL FAIRNESS, ACCURACY, AND EFFICIENCY LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR MacCoun, R. J., Tyler, T. R. 1988; 12 (3): 333-352

  View details for Web of Science ID A1988Q099500008

• ASYMMETRIC INFLUENCE IN MOCK JURY DELIBERATION - JURORS BIAS FOR LENIENCY JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY MacCoun, R. J., Kerr, N. L. 1988; 54 (1): 21-33

  Abstract

  Investigators have frequently noted a leniency bias in mock jury research, in which deliberation appears to induce greater leniency in criminal mock jurors. One manifestation of this bias, the asymmetry effect, suggests that proacquittal factions are more influential than proconviction factions of comparable size. A meta-analysis indicated that these asymmetry effects are reliable across a variety of experimental contexts. Experiment 1 examined the possibility that the leniency bias is restricted to the typical college-student subject population. The decisions of college-student and community mock jurors in groups beginning deliberation with equal faction sizes (viz., 2:2) were compared. The magnitude of the asymmetry effect did not differ between the two populations. We hypothesized that the asymmetry effect was caused by an asymmetric prodefendant standard of proof--the reasonable-doubt standard. In Experiment 2, subjects received either reasonable-doubt or preponderance-of-evidence instructions. After providing initial verdict preferences, some subjects deliberated in groups composed with an initial 2:2 split, whereas other subjects privately generated arguments for each verdict option. A significant asymmetry was found for groups in the reasonable-doubt condition, but group verdicts were symmetrical under the preponderance-of-evidence instructions. Shifts toward leniency in individual verdict preferences occurred for group members, but not for subjects who performed the argument-generation task. The theoretical and applied significance of these findings is discussed.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1988L778300003

  View details for PubMedID 3346806

• GAINING AND LOSING SOCIAL SUPPORT - MOMENTUM IN DECISION-MAKING GROUPS JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J., Hansen, C. H., HYMES, J. A. 1987; 23 (2): 119-145

  View details for Web of Science ID A1987J049500002

• STEREOTYPES AND NONSTEREOTYPIC JUDGMENTS - THE EFFECTS OF GENDER-ROLE ATTITUDES ON RATINGS OF LIKABILITY, ADJUSTMENT, AND OCCUPATIONAL POTENTIAL PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN Jackson, L. A., MacCoun, R. J., Kerr, N. L. 1987; 13 (1): 45-52

  View details for Web of Science ID A1987G706100004

• FREE PRESS AND FAIR TRIAL - THE ROLE OF BEHAVIORAL-RESEARCH LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR Carroll, J. S., Kerr, N. L., Alfini, J. J., Weaver, F. M., MacCoun, R. J., Feldman, V. 1986; 10 (3): 187-201

  View details for Web of Science ID A1986D710900001

• ROLE EXPECTATIONS IN SOCIAL DILEMMAS - SEX-ROLES AND TASK MOTIVATION IN GROUPS JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J. 1985; 49 (6): 1547-1556

  View details for Web of Science ID A1985AXZ3600009

• THE EFFECTS OF JURY SIZE AND POLLING METHOD ON THE PROCESS AND PRODUCT OF JURY DELIBERATION JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J. 1985; 48 (2): 349-363

  Abstract

  The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly assumed the functional equivalence of different sized juries (at least in the range of 6- to 12-person groups). Several formal models of jury decision making predict that larger juries should hang more often, particularly for very close cases. Failures to confirm this prediction in several previous studies were attributed to inadequate sample sizes or to insufficiently close cases. An experimental simulation study that minimized these problems was undertaken to test the models' prediction. Social decision scheme and social transition scheme analyses permitted comparisons of the decision-making processes of the different-sized mock juries. The effect of the method used to poll group members' verdict preferences was also examined. As group size increased, the observed probability of a hung jury increased significantly. No process differences between 6- and 12-person groups were detected, but 3-person groups did exhibit several process differences from the larger groups. When cases were very close, the likelihood of a hung jury for typically sized juries was found to be lower when the group was polled by secret ballot than when a show-of-hands polling method was used.

  View details for Web of Science ID A1985ADH6400007

  View details for PubMedID 3981399

• EFFECTS OF VICTIM ATTRACTIVENESS, CARE AND DISFIGUREMENT ON THE JUDGEMENTS OF AMERICAN AND BRITISH MOCK JURORS BRITISH JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kerr, N. L., BULL, R. H., MacCoun, R. J., Rathborn, H. 1985; 24 (FEB): 47-58

  View details for Web of Science ID A1985ACM2200005

• SEX COMPOSITION OF GROUPS AND MEMBER MOTIVATION .2. EFFECTS OF RELATIVE TASK ABILITY BASIC AND APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Kerr, N. L., MacCoun, R. J. 1984; 5 (4): 255-271

  View details for Web of Science ID A1984TV39100001