Elite versus citizen attitudes on capital punishment: Incongruity between the public and policymakers

The results of a survey of Tennessee legislators, prosecutors, and public defenders were compared to the results of a general citizen survey to analyze attitudes toward capital punishment in the two groups. The study is a replication of McGarrell and Sandys’s study of Indiana legislators, which foun...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of criminal justice 1999-05, Vol.27 (3), p.249-258
Main Authors: Whitehead, John T, Blankenship, Michael B, Wright, John Paul
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitudes
Capital punishment
Citizens
Comparison
Criminal justice
Legal professions
Policy makers
Policy making
Public opinion
Replication studies
Surveys
Tennessee
USA
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Summary:The results of a survey of Tennessee legislators, prosecutors, and public defenders were compared to the results of a general citizen survey to analyze attitudes toward capital punishment in the two groups. The study is a replication of McGarrell and Sandys’s study of Indiana legislators, which found some degree of pluralistic ignorance: both legislators and citizens had misperceptions of the other’s attitudes. Results suggested that, similar to their Indiana counterparts, Tennessee legislators overestimate the degree of citizen support for the death penalty.
ISSN:0047-2352
1873-6203
DOI:10.1016/S0047-2352(98)00063-4