Legitimacy and Restorative Justice: A Multilevel, Multimethod Analysis of Economic Sanctions and Recidivism

本项目审查程序正义和恢复性司法如何与支付对被定罪罪犯实施的经济制裁以及罪犯随后的犯罪活动相联系。该提案还测试了两种相互矛盾的预测，即付款与累犯之间的关系。一方面，除了生活费用外，还必须支付罚款、费用和赔偿，这很困难，可能导致犯罪活动增加。另一方面，定期付款可能会使罪犯认识到他们造成的伤害，并可能教导他们承担责任，这两种内在动机应该会导致犯罪活动减少。本项目使用三种方法来调查这些问题。首先，一项实验解决了为什么一些罪犯不支付法院下令的经济制裁的两个原因：(a)不了解他们欠了多少钱以及他们的付款指向哪里；(b)认为制裁是不公平的。该实验评估了信息操纵和支付理由对支付给法院下令的经济制裁的金额和比例以及对犯罪活动措施（例如逮捕）的影响。其次，调查问卷的重点是支付如何干扰罪犯？其他财务责任和测试是否缺乏理解，认为制裁是不公平的，以及认为不付款不太可能导致惩罚与违法者的实际付款和犯罪活动有关。第三，该项目使用了四年的全州范围内的数据来检查每年大约280万经济制裁的支付/不支付与违法者之间的关系。随后的犯罪活动。通过涵盖多个层面（个人、县、州的地区）和多个指标（支付、犯罪、态度、信仰），这项研究可以提高我们对经济制裁如何起作用以及它们是否可以有效替代监禁的理解。

This project examines how procedural justice and restorative justice relate both to the payment of economic sanctions imposed on convicted offenders and to the offenders' subsequent criminal activity. The proposal also tests two conflicting predictions about how payment relates to recidivism. On the one hand, having to pay fines, fees, and restitution in addition to living expenses is difficult and may lead to increased criminal activity. On the other hand, making regular payments may make offenders cognizant of the harm they caused and could teach responsibility, two internal motivations that should lead to less criminal activity. This project uses three methods to investigate these issues. First, an experiment addresses two reasons why some offenders do not pay their court-ordered economic sanctions: (a) lack of understanding of how much they owe and where their payments are directed and (b) a belief that the sanctions are unfair. The experiment assesses the impact of manipulations of information and rationale for payment on the amount and proportion of money paid toward the court-ordered economic sanctions and on measures of criminal activity (e.g., arrest). Second, a survey questionnaire focuses on how payment interferes with offenders? other financial responsibilities and tests whether lack of understanding, a belief that the sanctions are unfair, and a belief that nonpayment is unlikely to result in punishment are related to offenders' actual payments and criminal activity. Third, the project uses four years of statewide data to examine how the payment/nonpayment of the roughly 2.8 million economic sanctions imposed annually is related to offenders? subsequent criminal activity. By encompassing multiple levels (individuals, counties, regions of the state) and multiple indicators (payment, crime, attitudes, beliefs), the research can improve our understanding of how economic sanctions work and whether they can serve as an effective substitute for incarceration.