범죄통제의 사회적 맥락: 경제위기, 정치적 상황과 징역선고율의 변화

This article examines social contextual determinants of crime control practices, especially the imprisonment decisions over the past 40 years in Korea. With the conflict perspective as an analytical tool, it attempts to find out economic and political factors in influencing criminal sentencing decisions to prison. According to previous studies, crime control practices are not only determined by the scope and quality of criminal incidents. They are also determined by various social, economic, political contexts. As a result, crime control activities such as arrest, prosecution, court decision are affected by economic conditions, political environment and social changes. Using crime data, court data, and various social indicators during the years of 1964-2002, this study analyses whether court decisions of imprisonment are explained by extra-legal factors of economic crises and political environment in Korea. After controlling crime rates and court caseload, it found that unemployment seemed affect imprisonment decisions for property crimes and APVO(Act concerning punishment for violent offenses) crimes but not for violent crimes. Indicators for political changes also influenced court decisions for property and APVO crimes. However the most consistent and significant factor in deciding imprisonment is the crime rate and court caseload. Generally speaking, thus, it is safe to say that the social contextual effects are minimal in crime control decisions in the past Korean society. A few speculations are provided about the lack of relationship between social changes and criminal court decisions.