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Punishment & Society, Vol. 10, No. 3, 227-252 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1462474508090227

Methods of execution as institutional fads

Megan Denver

University of Delaware, USA

Joel Best

University of Delaware, USA

Kenneth C. Haas

University of Delaware, USA

The history of capital punishment in the USA reveals a cyclical pattern: critiques of existing methods of execution inspire the adoption of a new method that is presented as more humane and less problematic; this in turn leads to a new round of criticism. The historical shift from hanging to death by electrocution, gas chamber, and — most recently — lethal injection reflects an institutional fad cycle.

Key Words: capital punishment • electrocution • execution • fads • lethal injection


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