Predictors of Death Sentencing for Minority,Equal, and Majority Female Juries in Capital Murder Trials

The relatively small body of prior research investigating whether the sex composition of juries impacts sentencing decisions has produced equivocal results. Exploring this topic further, the current study used a large sample of capital cases from North Carolina (n = 675) to examine (a) whether jury sex composition predicted jury capital punishment sentencing decisions; and (b) whether there were different models of sentencing for male-majority, equal male-female, and female-majority juries. When we controlled for a number of legal and extralegal factors, our findings indicated that jury sex composition was independently related to sentencing outcomes. Specifically, equal male-female juries were significantly more likely and female-majority juries were significantly less likely to choose the death penalty versus a sentence of life in prison. In addition, different models (predictors) of sentencing were revealed for each of the jury sex compositions. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.     

Risk,Credit Constraints and Financial Efficiency in Peruvian Agriculture

Based on a panel data set, we use a two-stage analysis to evaluate the effects of access to formal credit on financial efficiency of farms in northern Peru. The first stage uses non-parametric data envelope analysis to estimate farm-specific measures of financial efficiency; 28 per cent of farmers are financially inefficient and credit constraints reduce profits of these farmers by an average of between 17 and 27 per cent. The second stage uses Tobit regression to evaluate the determinants of financial inefficiency; the results point to uninsured risk as a key determinant of financial inefficiency and suggest that policies to strengthen agricultural insurance markets would likely pay large dividends in rural Peru.     

Africa's crisis

Africa in Economic Crisis. Edited by John Ravenhill. London: Macmillan, 1986. Pp.359. £35 and £14.95. ISBN 0 333 37173 9 and 37174 7.

Africa and the International Monetary Fund. Edited by Gerald K. Helleiner. Washington: International Monetary Fund, 1986. Pp.277. $10. ISBN 0 939934 61 2.

Strategies for African Development. Edited by Robert J. Berg and Jennifer Seymour Whitaker. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1986. Pp.603. £33.50 and £13.50. ISBN 0 520 05784 8 and 05782 1.

World Recession and the Food Crisis in Africa. Edited by Peter Lawrence. London: James Currey, 1986. Pp.314. £25 and £9.95. ISBN 0 85255 309 0 and 304 8.

Food in Sub‐Saharan Africa. Edited by Art Hansen and Della E. McMillan. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner; London: Frances Pinter, 1986. £28.50. Pp.410. ISBN 0 931477 59 X and 58 1 (Rienner)/0 86187 598 2 (Pinter).

Structural Distortions and Adjustment Programmes in the Poor Countries of Africa. By Hartmut Brandt, Ansgar Eussner, Hans Gsanger, Gudrun Lachenmann, Wolfgang Schneider‐Barthold and Wolfgang Zehender. Berlin: German Development Institute, 1985. Pp.377. DM20. ISBN 3 88985 042 1.     

Health care reform in britain and the united- states: Public or market-led? a review

The organization of health care in the US and Britain is based on different historical, ideological and political assumptions. This paper draws on those assumptions to describe the current health care crisis and proposed reforms. Central to the discussion is an analysis of the forms of public and market-led provision of health care in operation, particularly in relation to the role of the state and their implications for access, cost, and quality.     

Decrees,Laws, and Inter-Branch Relations in the Russian Federation

A UK-based political scientist presents a systematic analysis of the basic philosophical arguments and intellectual origins of fundamental conservative thought in Russia. Positing that fundamental conservatism seeks to displace interpretations of Western modernity in Russia with a culturally specific Russian version, she then probes more deeply into the methods and tasks of fundamental conservatism, before examining its main theoretical arguments. The fact that such thinking is increasingly prominent in Russia, including within political circles, is noted as a basis for the need to better understand it as a search for new forms of rationality and new forms of citizenship rooted in the Russian sociohistoric context.     

The International Criminal Court: limits,potential and conditions for the promotion of justice and peace

The International Criminal Court ( icc ) aims to promote not only justice, but also peace. It has been widely criticised for doing neither, yet it has to contend with some severe structural and political difficulties: it has limited resources, it faces institutional restrictions, it is manipulated by states, and it is criticised for an alleged selectivity in the way it dispenses justice. However, the icc could contribute significantly to the promotion of international justice and peace, and have a major impact on the prevention of crime, since its prosecutions represent a clear threat to highly placed individuals who commit serious crimes. While this article concentrates on the work of the icc in Africa, the only continent where it has issued indictments against suspected criminals, it also looks at its efforts on other continents. It argues that, in the larger international context, the contribution of the icc to international justice and peace depends on its institutional power and the support it receives from states, on its own impartial work, and on the way it is perceived by potential criminals and victims in the world.     

Book Reviews

The New Politics of British Local Governance. Edited by Gerry Stoker. Macmillan, 2000. Pp.xvii + 294, £16.99 pb.

Local Political Leadership. By Steve Leach and David Wilson. Policy Press, 2000. Pp.v + 228. £17.99.

Structural Reform of British Local Government: Rhetoric and Reality. By Michael Chisholm. Manchester University Press, 2000. Pp.194. £40.

The Careers of Councillors: Gender, Party and Politics. By Catherine Bochel and Hugh M. Bochel. Ashgate, 2000. Pp.143. £37.50 hb.

Communicating Successfully in Groups: A Practical Guide for the Workplace. By Marie Reid and Richard Hammersley. Routledge, 2000. Pp.188. £10.99 pb.

Using Psychology in Management Training: The Psychological Foundations of Management Skills. By David A. Statt. Routledge, 2000. £14.99.

Housing Associations and Housing Policy: A Historical Perspective. By Peter Malpass. Macmillan Press, 2000. Pp.298. £16.99 pb.

The State of UK Housing: A Factfile on Dwelling Conditions. By Philip Leather and Tanya Morrison. The Policy Press, 2000. £15.95 hb.

Allocating Social Housing: Law and Practice in the Management of Social Housing. By Hal Pawson, David Mullins and Siobhan McGrath. Lemos and Crane, 2000. £18.95 pb.