Date of Graduation

2000

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

The theory of presidential influence over public opinion is used to predict the impact of presidential time and attention focused on crime on the public's concern for crime as the “most important problem facing the country.” The more attention presidents give to the issue of crime, the more concerned the public becomes with crime. The study addresses the assumptions of the hypothesis by first assessing the history of presidential involvement in crime control policy; second, by delineating reasons why presidents have become involved in such policies; and, finally, by articulating the means presidents have available in order to engage in crime control policy. Utilizing a time-series regression analysis of data collected from the Gallup poll's “Most Important Problem” series for the dependent variable, and from the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States as the key independent variable, for the years 1945–1996, as well as controlling for other influencing variables such as crime rates, unemployment rates, and media influence, presidential attention to crime is found to influence the public's perception that crime is an important issue. The implications of this new role within the institution of the American Presidency, entitled the “Law & Order Presidency” is discussed in terms of its implications to crime control policy in the United States and a prescription for its future orientation is articulated.

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