NCJ Number
145141
Journal
Justice Quarterly Volume: 10 Issue: 2 Dated: (June 1993) Pages: 289-314
Date Published
1993
Length
26 pages
Annotation
Results from a survey showed evangelical/fundamentalist Protestants to be more punitive than people of certain other or no religious affiliation.
Abstract
In-person interviews were conducted among 370 adults in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1991. Support for five types of punitiveness was cross-referenced with religious affiliation. The proportion who favor juvenile death penalty, adult death penalty, harsh courts, and stiffer laws was greater among evangelical/fundamentalist Protestants than among Catholics and liberal/moderate Protestants, this was not true regarding police use of deadly force. Across all five categories, those with no religious affiliation tended to be the least punitive. Overall, liberal/moderate Protestants were the next least punitive. On the categories of harsh courts and stiffer laws, Catholics were halfway between evangelical/fundamentalist and liberal/moderate Protestants. However, on the two death penalty measures, they more closely resembled liberal/moderate Protestants. Gender, race, and political affiliation factors are also examined. 2 tables and 84 references