Redlich Allison D, Silverman Melissa, Steiner Hans
Policy Research Associates, Inc., 345 Delaware Avenue, Delmar, NY 12054, USA.
Behav Sci Law. 2003;21(3):393-410. doi: 10.1002/bsl.543.
There are several different types of legal competence, such as competence to waive Miranda rights, competence to confess, and competence to stand trial. Although it can be surmised that many of the underlying factors that influence the different legal competencies are similar, little research has been conducted to empirically test this hypothesis. In the present study, juveniles' and young adults' understanding and appreciation of their Miranda rights and their ability to stand trial were measured. Age, suggestibility, average grades in school, and frequency of previous police involvement were also examined as possible factors that influence both types of legal knowledge. Results indicated that Miranda competence and adjudicative competence are indeed strongly related, especially for juveniles. Also, age and suggestibility were found to predict Miranda competence, whereas suggestibility and average school grades predicted competence to stand trial. Patterns of findings often diverged for juveniles and young adults. Implications for legal policy are discussed.
存在几种不同类型的法律行为能力，例如放弃米兰达权利的能力、供述的能力以及受审的能力。尽管可以推测影响不同法律行为能力的许多潜在因素是相似的，但很少有研究对这一假设进行实证检验。在本研究中，对青少年和年轻人对米兰达权利的理解与认知以及他们受审的能力进行了测量。年龄、易受暗示性、学校平均成绩以及之前与警方接触的频率也作为可能影响这两种法律知识类型的因素进行了考察。结果表明，米兰达权利行为能力和审判行为能力确实密切相关，尤其是对青少年而言。此外，发现年龄和易受暗示性可预测米兰达权利行为能力，而易受暗示性和学校平均成绩则可预测受审能力。青少年和年轻人的研究结果模式往往存在差异。文中还讨论了对法律政策的影响。
