TY - JOUR PY - 2011// TI - Support for the death penalty: Chinese and American college students compared JO - Punishment and society A1 - Yuning Wu, A1 - Sun, Ivan Y. A1 - Wu, Zongxian SP - 354 EP - 376 VL - 13 IS - 3 N2 - While a substantial number of studies have examined public opinion on the death penalty in the USA, very little research effort has been devoted to assessing Chinese attitudes toward the death penalty in general or comparing Chinese and American attitudes in particular. Using survey data collected from college students in several universities, this study compares and contrasts Chinese and American attitudes toward the death penalty and identifies factors that have similar or distinctive effects on such attitudes. The results indicate that Chinese students display a higher level of support for capital punishment than their US counterparts. Gender, victimization, and criminal justice-oriented concerns significantly shape both Chinese and American students' attitudes toward the death penalty. Country differences are also identified, with fear of crime influencing Chinese but not American students' support for the death penalty and crime control orientation affecting American but not Chinese support for the ultimate punishment. Implications for policy and future research are discussed.

LA - SN - 1462-4745 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1462474511404337 ID - ref1 ER -