NCJ Number
199895
Date Published
2002
Length
30 pages
Annotation
This article discusses international differences in public attitudes toward punishment.
Abstract
The latest and most complete results from a question in the International Crime Victimization Survey (ICVS) are analyzed. The question is about the sentence respondents would recommend for a recidivist burglar. Fifty-eight countries were represented. Interviews were conducted by telephone in the industrialized countries. Elsewhere, personal interviews were used. Results show that just over 4 in 10 of all respondents chose imprisonment as the most appropriate sentence for the young recidivist burglar. Regionally, the figure was 69 percent in Africa, 60 percent in Asia, and about 50 percent in Latin America. Support was lowest in Western Europe. There was a clear divide between developing countries and others. There were country differences within each region, and the range of opinion was most marked in Western Europe and Asia. Those in the United States and Canada were more punitive than those in Australia and New Zealand. Support for imprisonment was strongest in the United Kingdom and Malta; it was weakest in France, Austria, and Catalonia. Fines and even more so a suspended sentences, generally attracted little support. The most evident polarization was between support for imprisonment on the one hand and support for community service on the other. Community service was the most favored sentencing option overall in Western Europe and East and Central Europe. It attracted strong support in France, Catalonia, and Austria. Support was surprisingly high in Latin America One of the firmest findings was that the less educated held more punitive views. Men were usually found to be more punitive than women. There was no consistent evidence that experience of victimization increased punitiveness. People age 16 to 40 were more punitive in the industrialized countries, Asia, and Africa. 3 figures, 5 tables, appendix, 5 notes, 30 references