Skepticism in Science and Punitive Attitudes

• In Event: Assessing COVID-19 Period Effects on Public Punitiveness

Abstract

Purpose: Longitudinal research has observed that American’s desire for punitiveness has generally decreased in the past several decades, but remains concentrated among certain groups. This study seeks to contribute to the literature on social sources of Americans’ punitiveness through the lens of anti-intellectualism by examining the association between science skepticism and punitiveness. Design: I present findings from two sets of Bayesian multi-level models based on the General Social Survey (GSS) – an age-period-cohort analysis covering 1972-2018, and subsequent panel modeling of the 2006, 2008, and 2010 GSS three-wave panels. Findings: I find that skepticism in the scientific community is associated with an enhanced desire for punishment, after controlling for a variety of relevant personal socio-demographic factors (e.g., demographics, education, conservativism), predictors of punitiveness (racial resentment and poverty animus), and period and cohort characteristics (violent crime, crime anxiety, and institutional distrust). The subsequent panel model suggests that this effect exists only between-subjects – individuals who are more likely to be skeptical in science are also more likely to desire greater punitiveness. I will situate these findings within the current literature on punitive attitudes.

Author

• Jason Rydberg, University of Massachusetts Lowell