Term Paper on "Death Penalty Theoretical Perspectives"

Term Paper 3 pages (1203 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Death Penalty

Theoretical Perspectives Death Penalty

Overview of Social Theory and Death Penalty

According to Aguirre & Baker (1993) support for the death penalty has steadily increased since the 1960s, particularly for individuals convicted of murder according to Gallup Reports (p.150). Despite this capital punishment is often considered one of the most "contentious public policy debates in the U.S." (Galiher & Galiher, 307). There are claims and then there are counterclaims regarding the death penalty that social theorists have well documented in an attempt to identify whether the death penalty is just or not and whether it should be continued or banned. Many of those that support the death penalty state that they would continue to support it whether or not it actually deterred crime (Aguirre & Baker, 1993; Galiher & Galiher, 201)).

Proponents often feel that the death penalty is a deterrent to crime. Social construct theorists suggest that human beings construct their reality and that criminal behavior is a result of lack of conformity or cultural conflict (Galiher & Galiher, 2001). Cognitive dissonance theory suggest that people attempt to avoid inconsistency be "selective perception" and disagreements often prevail because people vary in their perception as to how effective the death penalty is (Galiher & Galiher, 2001). Many theorists simply use commonsense theory, which suggest that capital punishment is a deterrent to crime, whether or not it actually deters crime (Galiher & Galiher, 2001).

Much of the literature that does not support the deterrence viewpoint according to theorists was published "by liberal social scientists opposed to capital punishment" and therefore may not be ideological in nature nor conclusive (Galiher & Galiher, 2001). Of course there are an equal number of supporters who publish data that reflects their own biases. This is part of the reason the debate regarding capital punishment is one that has been so long standing. Legislators, citizens and even social theorists simply can't come to terms as to whether capital punishment is justified or effective. There are simply to may interpretations of the issue at present, and it is unlikely that this will become less of a factor over time.

Symbolic Interactionism and Death Penalty

One major theoretical perspective explaining support for the death penalty is symbolic interactionism. Interactionist theorists believe that human beings continually adjust their behavior to that of others because they interpret or "denote them symbolically" and therefore treat actions as symbolic in nature (McLelland, 2000). People according to this theory have a habit of considering their personas as symbolic actions and individuals as capable of constructing their social world rather than as passive creature (McLelland, 2000). "Organized and patterned interactions" should dictate social order based on this theory. People basically create their reality based on this theory; hence anyone committing murder creates a negative reality for themselves and deserve punishment, as action breeds reaction (Ulmer, 2003). Symbolic interaction theories are sometimes referred to as labelist theories, suggesting that certain actions are inherently wrong and evil and therefore should be punished.

The death penalty is not "color blind" (Aguirre & Baker, 150). Along these lines studies have shown that white persons are more likely than black persons to support the death penalty. From a symbolic perspective some studies suggest that white persons' support "is a form of symbolic racism" (Aguirre & Baker, 1993; Jelen, 1990). Still others suggest that certain social rules and codes are dictated through socialization and govern how people should act. These same rule socialize most people to avoid crime because such activity is common and desirable in society as a whole (Gamson, 1988). Negative behaviors should be restricted and controlled,… READ MORE

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