Citation

Bohm RM, Vogel RE, Maisto AA. J. Crim. Justice 1993; 21(1): 29-45.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1993, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/0047-2352(93)90004-7

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This study addressed the stability of informed death penalty opinions (and reasons for opinions) by examining them approximately two and three years after subjects completed a month-long college class on the death penalty. Among the results of the study were: (1) 'abstract' death penalty opinions changed significantly through exposure to 'classroom knowledge,' but after two or three years they 'rebounded' to near their initial pretest positions; (2) 'personal involvement' death penalty opinions did not change significantly from pretest to posttest to follow-up; and (3) the level of agreement with seven of the eleven reasons for death penalty opinions changed significantly between pretest and posttest, but on the follow-up they 'rebounded' to the initial pretest level of agreement; the level of agreement with two of the reasons changed significantly between the pretest and the posttest but remained relatively stable between the posttest and the follow-up; and the level of agreement for the other two reasons remained relatively stable over the three points in time. Implications of the findings are discussed.