ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses jury selection procedures used by courts in the United States as well as other nations where jury trials occur. This chapter explores the process of jury selection, and review social science research investigating the accuracy of attorney assumptions regarding juror verdict inclination. In the context of jury decision-making, the influence of a variety of personality factors have been explored, including general personality traits and more specific attitudinal inclinations towards issues such as legal claims, the death penalty, and psychiatrists. Frederick found that community survey results were useful at identifying desirable and undesirable jurors, and that specific personality factors were related to non-verbal behaviors observed during voir dire and were predictive of verdict preferences. Unfortunately, there has been almost no research that has directly investigated the utility of nonverbal behavior for jury selection purposes. The chapter concludes with recommendations for future research to allow for a more complete understanding of the true utility of scientific jury selection.
