Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
6-2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Program
Criminal Justice
Advisor
Kevin Wolff
Committee Members
Amy Adamczyk
David Green
Robert Apel
Subject Categories
Comparative Politics | Criminology | Criminology and Criminal Justice | Economic Policy | Inequality and Stratification | Politics and Social Change | Sociology of Culture
Keywords
neoliberalism, individualism, punitiveness, penal populism, group threat, cross-national, othering
Abstract
A large body of research has been produced to explain global punitive trends in recent decades. Neoliberalism, an economic philosophy expressed by market deregulation, privatization, and the retrenchment of social supports, has been offered as an explanation for increases in cross-national punitiveness. According to neoliberal penality theory, neoliberalism has shifted principles guiding punishment practices and the treatment of offenders, which has resulted in harsher national responses to crime. However, many tenets of this theory have not yet been tested empirically. Drawing heavily on propositions from neoliberal penality, group-threat, and penal populism literature, this dissertation examines the relationship between economic shifts, cultural ideologies, and political arrangements to explain variations in punitiveness cross-nationally.
Recommended Citation
Fera, Beth A., "The Punitive Laboratory of Neoliberalism: A Cross-national Examination" (2023). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/5376
Included in
Comparative Politics Commons, Criminology Commons, Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons, Economic Policy Commons, Inequality and Stratification Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons