Team Events:
September 29, 2009
Framing Punishment: A New Look at Incarceration and Deterrence
Emily Owens, Prof., Policy Analysis and Management, Cornell
3:00 p.m., The Rushmore Room, MVR 114
Sponsored by PAM
We present empirical evidence to support the role of framing, a component of prospect theory, in the criminal
decision making process. Taking advantage of a 2001 legal change that altered recommended, but not actual,
punishments for certain offenses, we find that individuals whose punishments were low relative to potential
punishment were five percentage points more likely to be rearrested, and were rearrested twenty percent
sooner than those whose potential punishments were high. Our results suggest that behavioral economic
modeling of criminal decision making may help evaluate criminal justice policy, and that incarceration can
potentially be used in a more cost effective way.
April 28, 2010
Kick-off Lecture
Judgment, Decision Making and Social Behavior
4:30-6:00 p.m., 423 ILR Conference Center
Please join us for this lecture introducing the 2009-2012 theme project. Ted O'Donoghue, Team Leader and Professor of Economics will discuss the team's key research questions, specific research projects, and public activities. Team members will be on hand for Q & A following the lecture.
Related Speaker Series:
Behavioral Workshops (BEDR Workshop & Behavioral Economics Workshop)
Law Psychology and Human Development Speaker Series
Psychology Colloquium
