Cultural cognition and public policy: the case of outpatient commitment laws.
What explains controversy over outpatient commitment laws (OCLs), which authorize courts to order persons with mental illness to accept outpatient treatment? We hypothesized that attitudes toward OCLs reflect "cultural cognition" (DiMaggio, P. Annl Rev Sociol 23:263-287, 1997), which motivates individuals to conform their beliefs about policy-relevant facts to their cultural values. In a study involving a diverse sample of Americans (N = 1,496), we found that individuals who are hierarchical and communitarian tend to support OCLs, while those who are egalitarian and individualistic tend to oppose them. These relationships, moreover, fit the cultural cognition hypothesis: that is, rather than directly influencing OCL support, cultural values, mediated by affect, shaped individuals' perceptions of how effectively OCLs promote public health and safety. We discuss the implications for informed public deliberation over OCLs.
Kahan
Dan M
DM
Yale Law School, PO Box 208215, New Haven, CT 06520, USA. dan.kahan@yale.edu
Braman
Donald
D
Monahan
John
J
Callahan
Lisa
L
Peters
Ellen
E
D000328:Adult; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003068:Coercion; D003134:Commitment of Persons with Psychiatric Disorders / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003156:Community Mental Health Services / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005260:Female; D006708:Homicide / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007298:Insanity Defense; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology; D011057:Politics; D011329:Prisoners / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000523:psychology*; D011639:Public Opinion; D011640:Public Policy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000534:rehabilitation; D012933:Social Identification; D012945:Social Values