Punitivism: Its Dimensions from a Psychological Perspective and Its Impact in Argentina
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1344/cpyp.2024.27.46687Keywords:
Punitivism, Punitive Tendency, Punishment, psychologyAbstract
In its beginnings, punitivism was approached from a political-criminal perspective. In this context, a punitive demand from citizens is observed in response to the trend of more severe policies. In recent years, punitivism has focused on other areas of interest such as the media, sociology, and psychology. Despite having extensive academic literature, this construct presents scarce research in the psychological field. Therefore, the objective of this work was to investigate the relationship between punitive tendencies and motivations for punishment from a psychological perspective. To this end, the present work consists of a literature review, for which information from different repertoires was used, seeking a global view of punitivism; and then a focus on the Argentine context. In conclusion, extensive literature has been found on punitivism specialized in its origins, methodologies, and the relationship of sociodemographic factors in punitive tendencies. However, regarding the relationship between punitivism and psychological variables; victimization experiences, the media, and the need for cognitive closure, research on this topic tends to be scarce. Future research could relate the phenomenon of punitivism to psychological aspects, such as emotional and cognitive, generating novel knowledge for the Argentine territory
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