ABSTRACT
Francis T. “Frank” Cullen’s contributions to the scholarship on public opinions about criminal justice issues span five decades and sundry dimensions of this area. This chapter summarizes the evidence and insights he has added to the discipline by discussing five key lessons that emerge from his work: (1) the public is punitive; (2) public punitiveness is not as extensive or entrenched as it is sometimes portrayed; (3) the public endorses rehabilitation as an integral part of correctional policy; (4) the public supports other progressive responses to crime as well; (5) the public is not polarized, but religion and race mark meaningful divisions. The chapter concludes by reminding scholars that public opinion plays an important role in conversations about a future crime policy agenda.
