The influence of plaintiff's body weight on judgments of responsibility: the role of weight bias.

Problem: The current study investigated the influence of a plaintiff's weight and the location of an accident on a simulated jury's perceptions of plaintiff's personal responsibility for an accident.

Methods: Participants were 185 lean and overweight male and female adults (mean self-reported body mass index: 24.87±5.45) who read one of three vignettes describing an accident that occurred while leaving one of three different establishments (fast food burger restaurant; fitness gym; department store) while viewing one of two silhouettes of the alleged plaintiff (a lean female; an obese female).

Results: Participants were significantly more likely to report the plaintiff's weight entered into their perceptions of personal responsibility when they viewed the overweight plaintiff compared to the thin plaintiff. As respondent's self-reported weight bias increased, participants were more likely to hold the plaintiff responsible and more likely to blame plaintiff characteristics for the accident.

Conclusion: The weight of a plaintiff may affect juror perceptions of personal responsibility particularly if the juror possesses self-reported weight bias.