NCJ Number
216609
Journal
Criminology Volume: 44 Issue: 4 Dated: November 2006 Pages: 835-866
Date Published
November 2006
Length
32 pages
Annotation
This study investigated the hypothesis that Americans who reported having a close relationship with a loving God were less likely to support the death penalty.
Abstract
Results supported the hypothesis: Americans who claimed to have a personal relationship with a loving God were less likely to support the death penalty for convicted murderers. The belief that one has a close relationship with a loving God acted as a symbolic predisposition that influenced individuals’ opinions on major public policy issues. Other findings revealed that people with a personal relationship with a loving God were more likely to be empathetic, altruistic, and socially benevolent. Americans with a conservative worldview and those who harbored racial resentments, on the other hand, were significantly more likely to support capital punishment. Data were drawn from the 2004 General Social Survey (GSS), which interviewed a full-probability sample of adults living in the United States. The current analysis focused on 701 individuals who answered questions about an array of religion-related factors, demographic variables, political orientation, racial animus, empathy, altruism, trust in government, and prior victimization. Support for the death penalty was examined using binary logistic regression. Researchers should focus on creating precise measures of the links between having a relationship with a loving God and forgiveness of others. Future research should also attempt to discover the nuanced ways that religious beliefs result in the rejection of the use of the death penalty for convicted murderers. Tables, references