CAREER: Equitable Access to Justice: Determinants of Engagement with the Civil Justice System

职业：公平诉诸司法：参与民事司法系统的决定因素

• 批准号: 2337293
• 负责人: Ashley Votruba
• 金额: $ 66万
• 依托单位: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-07-01 至 2029-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2337293&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Equitable; Access; Justice; Determinants

The United States justice system faces a serious crisis known as the civil justice gap. Not only do more people need civil legal assistance than are able to obtain it but also evidence indicates that many people who need legal assistance do not seek help. Although little is known about why the civil justice gap exists, available research suggests that the barriers to legal assistance are complex and multi-faceted. As society grapples with reducing the civil justice gap, there is a growing need to understand (1) public perceptions of the legal system and civil justice problems and (2) when, why, and how people seek legal assistance or resolve civil justice problems on their own. This research offers a nuanced understanding of these aims that specifically considers group differences in public perceptions and legal assistance seeking. Of special concern are people whom the legal system has historically underserved, such as people of color and those in low-income households. The empirical foundation provided through this research is essential for developing much needed models of civil justice assistance-seeking behavior. Through integrated research, education, and outreach activities, this CAREER project addresses several objectives: (1) map community members’ perceptions of the legal system, civil justice problems, and legal self-efficacy to examine group differences in these perceptions; (2) identify predictors of legal assistance seeking for civil justice problems and successful problem-solving outside of the legal system; (3) develop, implement, and disseminate a community-based access-to-justice program using participatory action research methods; and (4) develop experiential learning opportunities that prepare students to work in diverse communities with cultural competence and cultural humility. The first two objectives center on a multi-part field study, including a large-scale, national community survey to assess community members’ perceptions and a longitudinal multi-method study examining civil justice problems and resolution pathways. The project also engages local communities collaboratively to develop a program aimed at addressing local needs related to civil justice problems, including the production of materials for nation-wide dissemination. Findings from this project provide an empirical foundation for models of civil justice decision-making that inform theory development in the field of access to justice and provide evidence needed to design effective initiatives to reduce the civil justice gap. This project is jointly funded by Law and Science and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

美国司法系统面临着一个严重的危机，称为民法差距。不仅需要获得民事法律援助的人，而且还表明，许多需要法律援助的人不寻求帮助。尽管对民间正义差距的存在知之甚少，但可用的研究表明，法律援助的障碍是复杂且多方面的。随着社会努力减少民法差距，越来越需要了解（1）公众对法律制度和民法问题的看法以及（2）何时，为什么以及人们如何自行寻求法律援助或解决民事司法问题。这项研究提供了对这些目标的细微理解，该目标专门考虑了公众看法和寻求法律援助的群体差异。特别令人担忧的是法律体系历史上服务不足的人，例如有色人种和低收入家庭中的人。通过这项研究提供的经验基础对于开发急需的民司法寻求援助行为的模型至关重要。通过综合研究，教育和外展活动，该职业项目解决了几个目标：（1）地图社区成员对法律制度的看法，民间司法问题和法律自我效果，以在这些看法中进行检查小组差异； （2）确定法律援助的预测指标，以寻求民间司法问题并在法律制度之外成功解决问题； （3）使用参与行动研究方法开发，实施和传播基于社区的访问权限计划； （4）建立经验丰富的学习机会，使学生能够在文化能力和文化谦卑中为潜水员社区工作。前两个目标集中在多部分现场研究中，包括一项大规模的国家社区调查，以评估社区成员的看法以及一项纵向多方法研究，研究了民间正义问题和解决方案途径。该项目还合作开展当地社区，以制定旨在满足与民间司法问题有关的当地需求的计划，包括生产国民范围的传播材料。该项目的发现为民法决策模型提供了一个经验基础，该模型为司法途中的理论发展提供了依据，并提供了设计有效计划以减少民间正义差距的证据。该项目由法律和科学共同资助，启发竞争性研究的既定计划（EPSCOR）。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响来审查标准，被认为是通过评估来获得的支持。