Death penalty as an effective deterrence with respect to criminal psychology

One of the first arguments for capital punishment was deterrence—the idea that the institution of the death click here sentence would deter potential murderers from actually committing murder. Barbarous methods of execution, including beheading, burning at the stake, decapitation, and disembowelment, were deemed to be particularly successful at inspiring the dread needed to deter potential capital offenders.

The study does not support the deterrent impact of the death penalty, despite the intuitive appeal of this hypothesis. Neither the adoption of the death penalty nor its removal resulted in an increase in murder rates. Numerous studies have looked into the deterrent power of the death penalty. These studies have analysed homicide rates over time when the death penalty was abolished or reinstated, as well as homicide rates in jurisdictions with and without the death sentence (such as neighbouring states).

Social scientists have attempted to statistically control for variables that are known to affect rates of violence, such as the size of the police force, the proportion of young males in the population, and unemployment rates, in order to examine the potential for a deterrence effect.

Studies have been done to see if the quantity of executions (rather than whether the death penalty is an option for punishment) is what deters crime. Specific analyses have also been done to see if only crimes punishable by death (such as aggravated murder) are deterred. The death penalty does not deter killers, according to the general conclusion of more than 40 years of research.

Despite the fact that some researchers have discovered a deterrent impact for particular jurisdictions over a certain amount of time, other researchers have discovered what is known as the “brutalization effect,” a small but steady rise in the frequency of murders in the weeks after an execution.

Large data sets that have been gathered over extended time are frequently used in deterrence research. However, the deterrence theory also relies on a psychological theory to explain what goes on in the thoughts of potential killers. The likelihood that a murderer will be apprehended, found guilty, sentenced to death, and then put to death must be high enough for the death penalty to serve as an effective deterrent.

The potential killer would also need to consider the likelihood of eventual execution as significantly more terrifying than the idea of spending the rest of his or her life in jail if the availability of the death penalty were to have a deterrent impact beyond that offered by life in prison.

Even a logical evaluation of these probabilities would not necessarily deter a potential murderer, and given that the majority of killings are carried out while the perpetrator is under the influence of drugs or strong emotions, it seems improbable that murderers would weigh their options in a logical manner.