One hundred and fifteen Christchurch residents judged the seriousness of 25 crimes, identified either by labels or vignettes, using the method of magnitude estimation. Judgments of the labels and vignettes were highly correlated, and overall the results suggested a social consensus on the relative seriousness of the crimes. The median estimates were highly correlated with the average sentences imposed by New Zealand courts and moderately correlated with the maximum sentences prescribed by legislation and police clearance priorities.
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