Public opinion on the death penalty in Latin America: exploring the individuals determinants in 11 jurisdictions

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Cléber Lopes ◽  
William De Soto ◽  
Ednaldo Ribeiro ◽  
Julio Gonzalez
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Death Penalty

Inequality, Exclusion, and Tolerance for Political Dissent in Latin America

2021 ◽  
pp. 001041402199716
Author(s):  
Jana Morgan ◽  
Nathan J. Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Political Tolerance ◽  
Time Analysis ◽  
Political Dissent ◽  
Structural Context ◽  
Democratic Rights ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Cross National

Although many countries meet electoral standards of democracy, often these regimes fail to promote social inclusion or meaningful representation. We argue that systems of exclusion have deleterious consequences for how people think about democracy, undermining tolerance for political dissent. Using cross-national public opinion data together with contextual measures of economic and political marginalization along ethnoracial lines, we evaluate the relationships between exclusion and political tolerance across Latin America. Over-time analysis in Bolivia further probes the mechanisms linking exclusion to intolerance. We find that tolerance of dissent is depressed where ethnoracial hierarchies are pronounced. We advance understanding of oft-unexplained society-level differences in political tolerance and emphasize the importance of the macro-structural context in shaping citizens’ commitments to basic democratic rights.

Public Opinion and Capital Punishment: A Close Examination of the Views of Abolitionists and Retentionists

1983 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phoebe C. Ellsworth ◽  
Lee Ross
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Death Penalty ◽  
Capital Punishment ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
The United States ◽  
United States Supreme ◽  
Self Image ◽  
Legal Implications

A survey designed to examine the attitudinal and informational bases of people's opinions about the death penalty was administered to 500 Northern California residents (response rate = 96 percent). Of these, 58.8 percent were proponents of capital punishment, 30.8 percent were opponents, and 10.4 percent were undecided. When asked whether they favored mandatory, discretionary, or no death penalty for various crimes, respondents tended to treat these options as points on a scale of strength of belief, with mandatory penalties favored for the most serious crimes, rather than considering the questions of objectivity and fairness that have influenced the United States Supreme Court's considerations of these options. For no crime did a majority favor execution of all those convicted, even when a mandatory penalty was endorsed. Respondents were generally ignorant on factual issues related to the death penalty, and indicated that if their factual beliefs (in deterrence) were incorrect, their attitude would not be influenced. When asked about their reasons for favoring or opposing the death penalty, respondents tended to endorse all reasons consistent with their attitudes, indicating that the attitude does not stem from a set of reasoned beliefs, but may be an undifferenti ated, emotional reflection of one's ideological self-image. Opponents favored due process guarantees more than did Proponents. A majority of respondents said they would need more evidence to convict if a case was capital. Theoretical and legal implications of the results are discussed.

Informed Public Opinion and Death Penalty Attitudes

1981 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Vidmar ◽  
Tony Dittenhoffer
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Death Penalty

scholarly journals Public opinion on crime, punishment and the death penalty in Barbados

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 302-320
Author(s):  
Lynsey Black ◽  
Lizzie Seal ◽  
Florence Seemungal
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Death Penalty ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
Crime And Punishment ◽  
Focus Group Research ◽  
The Past ◽  
Group Research ◽  
Global North ◽  
New Perspective

The bulk of extant research on public opinion on crime and punishment is focused on Global North nations. This article contributes a new perspective to the literature on punitivism by examining public opinion on crime, punishment and the death penalty in Barbados. The article presents insights from exploratory focus group research conducted in Barbados in 2017. These findings are particularly relevant as Barbadian lawmakers navigate reform of the nation’s death penalty law. While the focus groups reveal anxieties that echo those identified in other jurisdictions, related to nostalgia for the past and concern regarding social order for instance, they also demonstrate the specific relevance of time and place. Using approaches from Caribbean Criminology and drawing on post-colonial perspectives, the article examines the context of views on punishment in Barbados, including perceptions of ‘neo-colonial’ interference and concerns about what can be lost in the process of ‘progress’.

scholarly journals Abrupt and Gradual Realignments: The Case of Costa Rica, 1958–2018

2020 ◽  
pp. 1866802X2096773
Author(s):  
Lucas Perelló ◽  
Patricio Navia
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Party System ◽  
System Change ◽  
Election Cycle ◽  
Public Opinion Surveys ◽  
Election Cycles

Studies on party system change in Latin America commonly label similar processes as constituting dealignment or realignment. To clarify the boundaries between both concepts, we distinguish between abrupt and gradual realignments. While both imply change, they differ in the number of election cycles involved. Abrupt realignments occur in a single election cycle, while gradual realignments take place in two or more. We apply this conceptualisation to Costa Rica, Latin America’s longest-running democracy, and a country where the party system has decayed without collapsing. To better identify the type of change that has taken place, we use canton-level election data from 1958 to 2018 and public opinion surveys from 1978 to 2018. The evidence contests the notion of electoral dealignment. Instead, we show that the party system experienced an abrupt realignment in the 2002 election and gradual realignment in more recent election cycles.

scholarly journals Crime and Public Support for the Rule of Law in Latin America and Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 153-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon I. Smithey ◽  
Mary Fran T. Malone
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Sub Saharan

Abstract Crime poses a formidable obstacle to democratization in many parts of the developing world. New democracies in Central America and sub-Saharan Africa face some of the highest homicide rates in the world. Politicians, citizens, and policy-makers have raised the alarm about the growing tide of criminality. Public insecurity, coupled with inefficient and often corrupt justice systems, makes democratization uncertain. Even if new democracies do not revert to dictatorship, the quality of democracy may suffer if crime continues to rise. One particularly vulnerable component of democracy is the rule of law, as public insecurity may fuel support for extra-legal justice, and a willingness to disregard the law while aggressively pursuing suspected criminals. To test these relationships, we assess the ways in which criminal victimization, as well as fear of crime, affect citizen support for the rule of law. We utilize public opinion data collected in select countries in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa through two widely used sources – the Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) and the Afrobarometer surveys.

scholarly journals Labor Divides, Informality, and Regulation: The Public Opinion on Labor Law in Latin America

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Berens ◽  
Achim Kemmerling
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Labor Market ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Voting Behavior ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Labor Law ◽  
Formal Sector ◽  
Protective Function ◽  
Using Data

While scholarship on the politics of labor market divides and labor law in Latin America has bloomed in recent years, this literature rarely looks at the role of public opinion. Using data on public attitudes towards labor law for 18 Latin American countries, we start filling this gap. We follow the literature on labor market divides to see how far those at the margins of the formal labor market differ in their opinions from the formally employed. We find that large segments of the people perceive labor law as protective for workers, but there are also important divides: Whereas formal sector workers indeed assess the protective function of labor law positively, informal sector workers are more sceptical. Moreover, we find feedback effects of labor law on these differences of opinion. We conclude with a discussion how these divides in attitudes also have political effects, especially on voting behavior.

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