Literature Review Work Sheet
1) Printing out the articles.
Print out the two articles (Stack & Ellsworth and Gross) on e-reserves (see directions below) and
the third article by JonesArticle.pdf
Bring the hard copies of all the articles to the next class.
Instructions on accessing e-reserve articles:

Copy and paste (DO NOT TRY TO LINK ):
http://towson.docutek.com/eres/coursepage.aspx?cid=61

The password is "cappun.".

Accept copyright

Click on each article

Click on 'click here for more information'

click on PDF full text/open entire document, download, save, and print both articles.
2): Coding the themes. Use four different colored high lighters and assign each color to one of
the four themes listed below. As you move through the articles, color code information for each
of the themes in the literature review. Do not struggle with information in the articles that you do
not understand and do not try to read the articles in their entirety. Hunt for the information. Do
no less and no more than is needed.
See themes below for details
Theme 1
Jones
Theme 4
Esp. pgs/. 21-
policy
23& 43-44
Esp. pgs 20-21
&40
Socio-demographic
Esp. p.21-22
correlates of DPS
Theoretical Explanations
of DPS
Stack
Gross
Effect of DPS on law and
Theme 2 Trends over time in DPS:
Theme 3
Ellsworth and
xxx
xxx
Pg. 165
Pages. 163-169
only
Literature Review Work Sheet
3) Taking notes for the four themes: Copy the Themes in the literature notes chart.doc (see last
page) into a word document and type in notes and page/paragraph references. Make two copies
of the chart. You will submit one for grading and use the other for additional note taking in class.
Details about each theme are found below:
Theme 1: Effect of DPS on law and policy: Focus on two main issues: Supreme Court cases
on the death penalty and capital punishment as an issue in presidential elections. (Note: the terms
capital punishment and death penalty are used interchangeably). Look for any mention of death
penalty support (DPS) by the general public at the time of key Supreme Court decisions and
Presidential races.
Theme 2: Trends over time in DPS: Look for overall support for the death penalty among
Americans through the year 2000. Be sure to get the year when DPS was at its lowest and at its
highest. You might find charting some percentages the easiest way to get a sense of the trend.
Theme 3: Socio-demographic correlates of DPS: Look for mention of prior research findings
about how DPS varies by sociodemographic variables such as age, race, region, etc. You will not
find percentages, but you will find which groups have the higher DPS. You will find more
specific information with percentages about DPS differences by political orientation
(conservative v. liberal) and political party (Democrat v. Republican) and you will find the most
information on gender differences in DPS. There is a lot on this with percentages for different
years.
Theme 4: Theoretical Explanations of DPS: You are looking just for theoretical explanations
and these can all be found in the literature review section of Stack. You do not need to report
Stack's findings in this section. You want information on three main categories of theoretical
explanations: 1) Symbolic orientations such as authoritarianism, religiosity, and prejudice; 2)
crime saliency, and 3) demographic factors, which include differential socialization and
hormonal differences. Note the tone and word choices that Stack uses to discuss possible
theoretical explanations.
Literature Review Work Sheet
4) Writing the literature review
Work on presenting the information in clear, concise paragraphs. The number and content of the
paragraphs required for each theme are in the table below. When composing the paragraphs,
report the information as concisely as possible, with no superfluous wording. All information
should be cited, and it is better to over cite than to under cite. Do not include any of your own
opinion. This is simply a review and synopsis of the literature for your reader. Use the third
person only and refer to the authors, prior research, previous research findings, etc. Review the
LITERATURE REVIEW RUBRIC.pdf before you begin to write to guide you in form and
content. After you have completed your draft, print out the rubric and use it to review your work.
A completed copy of the rubric should be attached to your literature review draft when you bring
it in for peer review and when you submit it for final grading.
Theme 1
Theme 2
Effect of DPS on law and
policy
Trends over time in DPS:
number of
subtheme
subtheme
subtheme
paragraphs
paragraph #1
paragraph#2
paragraph#3
Supreme Court
2
cases on Capital
Punishment
1
Trends in DPS
since the 1960's
The role of
DPS in
presidential
n/a
campaigns
n/a
n/a
Focus on DPS
Theme 3
Socio-demographic correlates
of DPS
2
DPS variation
variation by
by a number of
gender and
variables
political
n/a
orientation
Theme 4
Theoretical Explanations of
DPS
3
Symbolic
Crime
orientation
Saliency
explanations
explanations
Differential
Socialization
and Hormonal
differences
Literature Review Work Sheet
5) Adding paragraphs to the skeletal structure of chapter
Literature Review
Introduction
A review of the relevant literature suggests four main themes relevant to public support
for the death penalty (DPS): 1) The effect of public opinion on death penalty law and policy; 2)
trends over time in support for the death penalty; 3) socio-demographic correlates of death
penalty support, with gender and political orientation emerging as particularly strong predictors
of DPS; and 4) theoretical explanations for variations in death penalty support, with models that
offer explanations for gender and political orientation variations in DPS particularly salient.
The effect of public opinion on death penalty law and policy
Trends over time in support for the death penalty
Socio-demographic correlates of death penalty support
Explanations DPS variations by gender and political orientation
Summary
Literature Review Work Sheet
Themes in the literature
notes chart.doc
Theme 1
Jones
Ellsworth/Gross
Stack
Esp. pgs/. 21-23& 4344
Effect of DPS on law and
policy
Supreme Court cases on
Capital Punishment
The role of DPS in
presidential campaigns
Esp. pgs 20-21
&40
Theme 2 Trends over time in DPS:
Trends in DPS since the
1960's
Theme 3
Socio-demographic
correlates of DPS
DPS variation by variables
other than gender &
political orientation
Esp. p.21-22
Pg. 165
DPS variation by gender
and political orientation
Theme 4
Theoretical Explanations
of DPS
Symbolic orientation
Crime Saliency
Differential Socialization &
hormonal differences
xxx
xxx
Pages. 163-169 only