Capital punishment politics and policies in the States, 1977–1997

Since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the death penalty constitutionalin 1976, thirty-eight states have readopted new capital punishmentstatutes consistent with Supreme Court decisions on procedural guidelines. While much of the literature about capital punishmentaddresses the legal aspects of the issue, this essay examines thepolitics of the major institutions of state government in the formulation of capital punishment policies. In some states, thereis agreement between key officials in the institutions on the desirability of, or opposition to, capital punishment. However, inmost other states, the debate over the appropriateness of deathpenalty policies is vigorously waged between the executive, legislative and judicial branches. Overall, 432 felons were executedin 30 states between 1977 and 1997. However, no executions haveoccurred in nine of these states. Twelve states have no provisionsfor the death penalty. The majority of executions since 1977 havetaken place in just six states. In addition to the abolitioniststates, the others can be categorized as (1) aggressive executioners,(2) occasional executioners, (3) reluctant executioners, and (4)nonusers where the death penalty has been restored for politicalpurposes but no executions have been carried out in over two decadesand none are likely to be in the immediate future given the minisculenumber of inmates on death row.     

Estimating mental health needs and service utilization among prison inmates.

A sample of 3,684 inmates in the New York State prison system was surveyed in May 1986 to determine the prevalence of psychiatric and functional disability and service utilization. It was estimated that 5 percent had a severe psychiatric disability, and 10 percent had significant psychiatric disability. The higher the level of disability, the greater the proportion of inmates that had received mental health services in the last 30 days and in the last year. Still, 45 percent of the severe disability group had no service contacts in the last year. Patterns of utilization differed significantly by sex (a greater proportion of women received services) and by race (a greater proportion of whites received services). The clinical factors associated with receipt of services varied considerably between men and women.     

Direct democracy in Switzerland: Do elites matter?

Abstract. Direct democratic institutions, while centrepieces of the Swiss political system, find themselves under attack. In this article, we challenge the widespread criticism that popular rights increasingly limit the political elite's control of the decisionmaking process. Our analysis is based on aggregate data of all acts voted on by the Swiss Parliament since 1947 – those brought about by popular initiatives or those subject to optional and mandatory referendum – and on individual survey data on most federal votes held since 1981. We underline the high support of government and the impact of elite consensus on the destiny of legislative acts in the plebiscitary phase (submitted to a vote or not, subsequently accepted or not). While congruent with the aggregate analysis, results obtained at the individual level are less clearcut. The influence of voting recommendations and information channels on the voter's decision appears rather weak.     

Occupational Class and Vote in the 1949 Norwegian Election. Research Note

In 1948–49 the Sociology Office of the University of Oslo, under the guidance of Prof. Paul Lazarsfeld of Columbia University, initiated a series of studies on the Norwegian economic planning system. Part of this Planning Project was a national election survey in the fall of 1949, on a modified probability sample of 2600 people. The results show the paramount influence of economic class on voting, interpreting class as a combination of employer/employee relationship, property ownership, prestige-status, and income. Indicators of the homogeneity of class environment also played a role. Given the occupational structure of Norway, the Labor party had to win over part of the non-working-class population to obtain control of the government. They did this by winning about 1/3 of the white-collar vote, and about 1/4 of the farmers and fishermen. The policies of economic stabilization - control of inflation through price controls, wage controls, food subsidies, and rationing, and maintenance of full employment under conditions of "suppressed inflation" - were crucial to winning over these white-collar and farm voters.     

Slovakia

European Journal of Political Research -