The Council for the Judiciary has responded to the findings of a study conducted by Professor Olivier Marie (Erasmus School of Economics), Kyra Hanemaaijer (University of Gothenburg) and Nadine Ketel (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam). The research shows that a sudden increase in public attention towards Moroccan-Dutch individuals following the murder of lawyer Derk Wiersum in 2019 led to significantly harsher sentences being imposed in Dutch criminal courts.
The influence of ‘salience shocks’ on judicial decision-making
On Tuesday 28 October, researcher Kyra Hanemaaijer appeared on the NPO Radio 1 programme De Nieuws BV. As co-author of the article 'Minority Salience and Criminal Justice Decision', she explained how so-called salience shocks, a sudden rise in the public visibility of certain minority groups, can influence judicial decision-making. According to Hanemaaijer, in such situations unconscious thought patterns or cognitive shortcuts may replace impartial reasoning, leading to less objective judgements.
Noticeable increase in sentencing severity
Following the murder of Derk Wiersum on 18 September 2019, there was intense public and media interest in the background of the perpetrators. ‘Both in traditional media and on social platforms such as Twitter, we observed a strong focus on the Moroccan migration background and on crime,' Hanemaaijer explains. The study found that, in the weeks after the murder, judges imposed prison sentences on average three months longer for defendants with a Moroccan-Dutch background, an increase of 72% compared to prior rulings. This trend lasted for several weeks and was particularly visible in courts with less experience in cases involving defendants from this background.
Response from the Council for the Judiciary
The Dutch Council for the Judiciary acknowledges the importance of these findings. In a written statement, the Council says: ‘Signals of potentially unjustified distinctions or unequal treatment based on unconscious processes or bias are of great concern to us. Such tendencies contradict the core values of the judiciary. That is why we continue to focus on awareness and training around impartial judicial decision-making.’ The Council reports that discussions and meetings on this topic are currently being organised in almost all courts and courts of appeal, involving both judges and judicial staff. The issue also receives explicit attention in meetings with judicial administrators and managers. In addition, an updated and expanded training programme for both prospective and sitting judges will be launched early next year.
Further steps and research
In the interview, Hanemaaijer emphasises that little is yet known about which types of training are most effective in counteracting unconscious bias: ‘Something clearly needs to be done, but the question is: what works best? I’m pleased that this issue is now firmly on the agenda.’
- More information
Listen to the (Dutch spoken) interview with Kyra Hanemaaijer in the De Nieuws BV broadcast on NPO Radio 1 here. Voor more information please contact Ronald de Groot, Media & Public Relations Officer at Erasmus School of Economics: rdegroot@ese.eur.nl, mobile: +31 6 53 641 846.
