Who Controls Criminal Law? Racial Threat and the Adoption of State Sentencing Law, 1975 to 2012

2020 ◽  
pp. 000312242096764
Author(s):  
Scott W. Duxbury
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Racial Differences ◽  
Group Size ◽  
Criminal Law ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Public Support ◽  
State Level ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Sentencing Policy

Threat theory argues that states toughen criminal laws to repress the competitive power of large minority groups. Yet, research on threat suffers from a poor understanding of why minority group size contributes to social control and a lack of evidence on whether criminal law is uniquely responsive to the political interests of majority racial groups at all. By compiling a unique state-level dataset on 230 sentencing policy changes during mass incarceration and using data from 257,362 responses to 79 national surveys to construct new state-level measures of racial differences in punitive policy support, I evaluate whether criminal sentencing law is uniquely responsive to white public policy interests. Pooled event history models and mediation analyses support three primary conclusions: (1) states adopted new sentencing policies as a nonlinear response to minority group size, (2) sentencing policies were adopted in response to white public, but not black public, support for punitive crime policy, and (3) minority group size and race-specific homicide victimization both indirectly affect sentencing policy by increasing white public punitive policy support. These findings support key theoretical propositions for the threat explanation of legal change and identify white public policy opinion as a mechanism linking minority group size to variation in criminal law.

scholarly journals Evaluating Public Policy Support for Agricultural Cooperatives

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (14) ◽  
pp. 3769
Author(s):  
Erika Ribašauskienė ◽  
Diana Šumylė ◽  
Artiom Volkov ◽  
Tomas Baležentis ◽  
Dalia Streimikiene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Agricultural Cooperatives ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public ◽  
Support Measures ◽  
Major Stakeholder

Creation of a sustainable agricultural sector involves boosting the cooperation activities as these contribute to the societal and economic development of the farms, farmers and rural societies. This paper contributes to the literature on the analysis of the drivers and obstacles of cooperation development in agriculture. The case of Lithuania is considered as the cooperation activities are lagging behind the European Union (EU) practice here. Specifically, analysis of the public support measures and the expert survey are carried out to analyse the effectiveness of the public policy measures as represented in the relevant legal acts. The experts involve policy makers, farmers’ organisations and academia, which are the major stakeholder groups in Lithuania. The results indicate the effectiveness of the measures linked to capacity building (in the sense of human capital) requires improvement, whereas those related to financial support and promotion of the farmers’ organisations are much better perceived. Thus, public support measures are available to promote cooperation in agriculture, yet the legal system of Lithuania still requires improvement in accommodating effective agricultural cooperatives.

scholarly journals Public Support for E-Cigarette-related Policies among a Nationally Representative Sample of US Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 1179173X2095970
Author(s):  
Lauren Czaplicki ◽  
Randall Simpson ◽  
Yitong Zhou ◽  
Minal Patel ◽  
Alison F. Cuccia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Indoor Air ◽  
Public Support ◽  
State Level ◽  
Geographic Region ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Cigarette Use ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Tobacco Products ◽  
Nationally Representative

Background: The wide availability of flavored e-cigarettes and broad use of e-cigarettes in public places may contribute to the rapidly increasing rates of use among youth and young adults in the U.S. However, policies at the federal, state and local levels can address these factors. Objective: Assess public support for 5 e-cigarette-related policies and evaluate response patterns by demographics, tobacco use, e-cigarette harm perceptions, geographic region, and strength of state-level clean indoor air policies. Methods: Data were collected Oct-Dec 2018 from a nationally representative online panel of U.S. adults (n = 3211). We measured support for 5 policies: (1) a ban on the sale flavored e-cigarettes; (2) requiring tobacco products, like e-cigarettes, be kept out of view in stores where adolescents shop; and prohibiting e-cigarette use in (3) all public places; (4) restaurants; and (5) bars. Weighted, adjusted logistic regressions modeled variation in policy support. Results: A majority of respondents (63.3%) supported a flavor ban, with no differences in support by smoking status. Most respondents supported keeping tobacco products out of view (78.0%) and prohibiting e-cigarette use in indoor public places (82.9%), restaurants (86.5%), and bars (76.1%). In the adjusted models, current e-cigarette users had significantly lower odds of policy support compared to never users. We observed no differences in support by geographic region or strength of state-level clean indoor air policies. Conclusion: Results suggest high levels of public support to regulate e-cigarette flavors, marketing, and use in public places. Targeted messaging may be needed to increase support among current e-cigarette users.

scholarly journals State level agreed-upon factors contributing to more effective policymaking for public sector services for effective local-level work with NEETs

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi Paabort ◽  
◽  
Mai Beilmann ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Information Flow ◽  
Support System ◽  
Process Management ◽  
Local Level ◽  
State Level ◽  
Individual Case ◽  
Policy Coordination ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Structured Interviews

Supporting young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) represents a new global policy challenge. There is a need to increase knowledge about policymaking connected to multidisciplinary approaches in order to provide better services for NEET youth. This study focuses on interpretations by specialists in the youth field in Estonia regarding the current public policy support system for NEETs and the associated factors affecting the achievement of policy goals. Based on document analysis and semi-structured interviews with specialists from all levels of the national NEET support system, this study demonstrates that the cross-sectoral and multi-level public policy system for NEETs lacks sufficient understanding of the central aims. The support strategy is, rather, created for use within a single structure and does not have a common meaning from a system-wide perspective. State-level coordinating parties need a common understanding at the beginning of policy creation concerning the system’s long-term aims, information flow and performance, agreed-upon roles transcending sectors, and process management across structures. This change would enable better outreach and integrated services at the local level and be accurately based on the needs of youth with heterogeneous backgrounds whilst avoiding barriers at the individual case level. Keywords: NEET; policy creation; policy coordination; information flow; multidisciplinary service; Youth Guarantee; Estonia. ······ Sprijinirea tinerilor care nu se află nici în sistemul educațional nici în cel ocupațional sau de pregătire (NEET) reprezintă o provocare globală de tip nou. Există o nevoie de a spori cunoașterea asupra design-ul politicilor, în conexiune cu abordarea multidiciplinară, spre a pune la dispoziție servicii mai bune celor NEET. Acest articol se concentrează pe interpretările specialiștilor în domeniul tineretului din Estonia cu privire la sistemul actual de politici publice pentru NEET și la factorii asociați care influențează îndeplinirea scopurilor acestor politici. Pe baza analizelor de documente și a interviurilor semi-structurate cu specialiști de la toate nivelurile din sistemul de suport NEET, acest studiu demonstrează că politicile publice cros-sectoriale și de multinivel din Estonia duc lipsă de înțelegerea pe deplin a problemelor centrale. Strategia de suport este creată, mai degrabă, pentru a fi folosită într-o singură structură și nu are un înțeles comun cu perspectivă largă, de sistem global. Părțile care coordonează aceste strategii de la nivel de autoritate de stat necesită o înțelegere globală de la începutul creării politicilor cu privire la scopurile pe termen lung ale sistemului, cu privire la fluxul de informații și la performanțe, să se pună de comun acord asupra rolurilor transsectoriale și asupra proceselor manageriale transstructurale. Această schimbare va permite o mai bună putere de pătrundere a acestor servicii integrate la nivel local și o centrare mai precisă pe nevoile tinerilor cu backgrounduri diferite, în timp ce barierele diferitelor cazuri individuale vor fi evitate. Cuvinte-cheie: NEET; design de politici; coordonare de politici; flux de informații; servicii multidisciplinare; Youth Guarantee; Estonia.

The different roles of relative ingroup prototypicality in the outgroup attitudes of majority and minority groups

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 319-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Wang ◽  
Lei Wang ◽  
Yu Kou
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minority ◽  
Group Size ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Ethnic Minority Group ◽  
Projection Model ◽  
Majority Group

Based on the argument that the ingroup projection model may not be applicable to the minority group when addressing the effect of relative ingroup prototypicality (RIP) on outgroup attitudes, two studies investigated whether RIP and its effects on outgroup attitudes differ for the majority (Han) and an ethnic minority group (Tibetan). We measured RIP and outgroup attitudes in Study 1 ( N = 164) and manipulated RIP in Study 2 ( N = 145). The results indicated that the Hans presented high RIP, whereas the Tibetans presented low RIP. The effects of RIP on outgroup attitudes were moderated by group size: High RIP among Hans resulted in negative outgroup attitudes, whereas high RIP among Tibetans led to positive outgroup attitudes. These findings imply that improving the minority group’s RIP by making its culture prototypicality equal to that of the majority group would lead to positive outgroup attitudes.

Framework for Country-Level Sustainable Transportation Policy Learning using Public Support as a Measure of Cultural Distance

2020 ◽  
pp. 036119812097052
Author(s):  
Xuenan Ni ◽  
Joanna Moody ◽  
Jinhua Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Cultural Distance ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Transportation Policy ◽  
Sustainable Transportation ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Policy Learning ◽  
The Public ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Transportation Policies

As the world shapes a global agenda to mitigate climate change, national governments are looking to define sustainable development strategies for the transportation sector. In this international landscape, countries will look to learn from one another, but identifying peer countries for this learning can prove a challenge. In this study, we measure public support for transportation policies and use this as a measure of cultural distance to identify peer countries. We modeled public support for 11 transportation policies in an international sample of 41,932 individuals in 51 countries or regions. Using a model that controls for individual effects, we measure pure country-level differences in public policy support. Measuring public support for different transportation policies can help policymakers understand how the public evaluates and envisions the role of government in shaping the current as well as future transportation system, and to anticipate difficulties of implementing certain types of policy because of public resistance. In general, we find the highest public support for a given policy appears in countries that have not yet seen significant investment in the target infrastructure or service. We show that considering public support for transportation policies gives a different perspective than traditional indicators of economic development or level of motorization, helping policymakers understand what the public wants and how they might build support for new transportation policies. Finally, we present a clustering framework that goes beyond development status and geographical adjacency to help identify peer countries for policy learning using public policy support as a measure of cultural distance.

Collective References and Identity Threat among Lebanese and Lebanese-Armenians in the Context of Continuous Intergroup Conflict

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy R. Tavitian ◽  
Michael Bender ◽  
Fons J. R. Van de Vijver ◽  
Athanasios Chasiotis ◽  
Hrag A. Vosgerichian
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Identity Management ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Intergroup Conflict ◽  
Identity Threat ◽  
Identity Processes ◽  
Identity Threats ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sectarian Group

How people deal with adversity, in terms of threats to their social or ethnic identity has been extensively investigated. However, most studies have focused on samples (e.g. minority groups) from prototypical Western contexts. It is unclear how individuals perceive and deal with identity threats within non-Western plural contexts characterized by intergroup conflict. We therefore assess whether self-affirmation by recalling a past success can buffer against identity threat in the plural, non-Western context of Lebanon. In two studies we investigate how threats are negotiated at a national (Lebanon) (Study 1) and ethnic minority (Armenian) level (Study 2). In Study 1, we show that in a context characterized by a history of intergroup conflict, a superordinate national identity is non-salient. When investigating the content of memories of a sectarian group in Study 2, we find a hypersalient and chronically accessible ethnic identity, a pattern specific to Armenian Lebanese. We suggest that this hyper-salience is employed as a spontaneous identity management strategy by a minority group coping with constant continuity threat. Our findings point to the importance of expanding the study of identity processes beyond the typically Western contexts and in turn, situating them within their larger socio-political and historical contexts.

scholarly journals Understanding and Promoting Racial Diversity in Healthcare Settings to Address Disparities in Pandemic Crisis Management

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 215013272110183
Author(s):  
Azza Sarfraz ◽  
Zouina Sarfraz ◽  
Alanna Barrios ◽  
Kuchalambal Agadi ◽  
Sindhu Thevuthasan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Health Disparities ◽  
Racial Discrimination ◽  
Clinical Training ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
Healthcare Delivery ◽  
The United States ◽  
Majority Group

Background: Health disparities have become apparent since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. When observing racial discrimination in healthcare, self-reported incidences, and perceptions among minority groups in the United States suggest that, the most socioeconomically underrepresented groups will suffer disproportionately in COVID-19 due to synergistic mechanisms. This study reports racially-stratified data regarding the experiences and impacts of different groups availing the healthcare system to identify disparities in outcomes of minority and majority groups in the United States. Methods: Studies were identified utilizing PubMed, Embase, CINAHL Plus, and PsycINFO search engines without date and language restrictions. The following keywords were used: Healthcare, raci*, ethnic*, discriminant, hosti*, harass*, insur*, education, income, psychiat*, COVID-19, incidence, mortality, mechanical ventilation. Statistical analysis was conducted in Review Manager (RevMan V.5.4). Unadjusted Odds Ratios, P-values, and 95% confidence intervals were presented. Results: Discrimination in the United States is evident among racial groups regarding medical care portraying mental risk behaviors as having serious outcomes in the health of minority groups. The perceived health inequity had a low association to the majority group as compared to the minority group (OR = 0.41; 95% CI = 0.22 to 0.78; P = .007), and the association of mental health problems to the Caucasian-American majority group was low (OR = 0.51; 95% CI = 0.45 to 0.58; P < .001). Conclusion: As the pandemic continues into its next stage, efforts should be taken to address the gaps in clinical training and education, and medical practice to avoid the recurring patterns of racial health disparities that become especially prominent in community health emergencies. A standardized tool to assess racial discrimination and inequity will potentially improve pandemic healthcare delivery.

Language policy and language planning in mainland Southeast Asia: Myanmar and Lisu

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bradley
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Language Policy ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Minority Group ◽  
National Language ◽  
Minority Languages ◽  
Language Policy And Planning ◽  
Educational Strategies ◽  
Policy And Planning ◽  
Mainland Southeast Asia

AbstractMost nations in mainland Southeast Asia and elsewhere have one national language as a focus of national identity and unity, supported by a language policy which promotes and develops this language. Indigenous and immigrant minority groups within each nation may be marginalized; their languages may become endangered. Some of the official national language policies and ethnic policies of mainland Southeast Asian nations aim to support both a national language and indigenous minority languages, but usually the real policy is less positive. It is possible to use sociolinguistic and educational strategies to maintain the linguistic heritage and diversity of a nation, develop bilingual skills among minority groups, and integrate minorities successfully into the nations where they live, but this requires commitment and effort from the minorities themselves and from government and other authorities. The main focus of this paper is two case studies: one of language policy and planning in Myanmar, whose language policy and planning has rarely been discussed before. The other is on the Lisu, a minority group in Myanmar and surrounding countries, who have been relatively successful in maintaining their language.

Racial Sentiment and Public Support for Arming Teachers with Guns in the United States

2021 ◽  
pp. 215336872110389
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Baranauskas
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Public Support ◽  
The United States ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Racial Issue ◽  
Racial Resentment ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Negative Feelings

In the effort to prevent school shootings in the United States, policies that aim to arm teachers with guns have received considerable attention. Recent research on public support for these policies finds that African Americans are substantially less likely to support them, indicating that support for arming teachers is a racial issue. Given the racialized nature of support for punitive crime policies in the United States, it is possible that racial sentiment shapes support for arming teachers as well. This study aims to determine the association between two types of racial sentiment—explicit negative feelings toward racial/ethnic minority groups and racial resentment—and support for arming teachers using a nationally representative data set. While explicit negative feelings toward African Americans and Hispanics are not associated with support for arming teachers, those with racial resentments are significantly more likely to support arming teachers. Racial resentment also weakens the effect of other variables found to be associated with support for arming teachers, including conservative ideology and economic pessimism. Implications for policy and research are discussed.

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