Cross-national attitudes to punishment

Abstract

Despite the fact that opinion polls have explored public attitudes to punishment for over 50 years now, surprisingly little is known about international differences. The reason for this is that – with a few exceptions – researchers have explored public opinion within, rather than across, jurisdictions. However, international comparisons are now possible thanks to the International Crime Victimisation Survey. Analyses of responses to this survey permits us to explore variation across national boundaries as well as to test some hypotheses about public attitudes to punishment, using a truly international rather than simply a national sample.