TRUST, WELFARE AND POLITICAL ECONOMY: EXPLAINING NATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN THE USE OF IMPRISONMENT

This essay explores explanations for differences in penal severity in industrialized countries. The focus is not restricted to the Anglophonic world, but encompasses also the Scandinavian countries, western and eastern continental Europe, and the Baltic countries. The analyses include cross-sectional and trend analyses taking account of a large number of factors related to crime: social, economic, and political factors and survey data on sentiments, fears, and public beliefs. Differences in imprisonment rates cannot be explained by differences in crime. Penal severity instead is closely associated with public sentiments (fears, levels of trust, and punitivity), the extent of welfare provision, differences in income equality, and political culture.