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The problem of this study concerns the perception of the seriousness of corporate and property crime by groups from various social classes and groups with diverse exposure to prison. Hypotheses relating sex, race, age, exposure to prison, and social class to the perceived seriousness of the two types of crime are presented. In order that these hypotheses be tested, the 211 respondents from prison- and the 182 respondents from the general population ranked five corporate and five property crimes according to seriousness. The findings reveal no significant differences by sex, race, and age. Within all social classes and all categories of exposure to prison, no significant differences between the perceived seriousness of corporate and property crimes.exist.

Recently, empirical attention has been directed toward understanding public opinion about gun control laws. Despite this focus, three gaps are evident in extant scholarship. First, few current examinations have relied on recently collected, national data to explore predictors of public attitudes. Second, relatively little work systematically investigates whether type of weapon bans (e.g. handgun versus semi-automatic weapon) affects public support for a given gun control initiative. Third, and importantly, the general focus in prediction support for gun control measures has been on social and demographic factors. Little is known from a theoretical perspective about how other variables - such as knowledge of Constitutinal issues or perceptions of the U.S. Supreme Court - affect public attitudes toward gun control. Using national poll data collected in 2011 by Time magazine, this study addresses these research gaps by estimating several logistic regression analyses. Research and policy implications are discussed. / by Elizabeth Borkowski. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.