Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God: Fundamentalist Fears about Drunken Driving

Abstract

Using data from four yearly probability surveys (1972-1975) in a deep-south city, an effort is made to explore the feasibility of deterrence theory for understanding how involvement in Protestant religious subcultures affects drunken driving. Among the more religious respondents, fundamentalists are more likely than others to believe there is a higher risk of receiving specific sanctions for dunken driving. This relationship is strongest among males, the better educated, and respondents over 35. To the extent that these differences in fear of sanctions are linked to variations in deviant conduct, deterrence theory is a promising approach for understanding the consequences of religion for deviance.