Date of Award
Spring 6-13-2026
Document Type
Undergraduate Honors Thesis
Degree Name
B.A. in Criminology
Organizational Unit
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Sociology and Criminology
First Advisor
Scott Phillips
Second Advisor
Hava Gordon
Third Advisor
Michael Gibson-Light
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Keywords
Death penalty, Capital punishment, Religion, Christianity, Criminology, America, Colonial, Secularism
Abstract
Scholars have noticed a peculiar trend: the death penalty is disappearing. Over the course of centuries, government-sanctioned prisoner executions have been experiencing a steady decline. Many theories attempt to explain this phenomenon, ranging from its high cost to alternative methods of incapacitating criminals to a shifting political climate. However, this project takes a different approach. I will argue that the national decline of Christianity and widespread religion in the U.S. has been the lead factor contributing to the decline of the use of the death penalty. As I will unpack later, the reasoning behind conducting executions has been deeply saturated with religious rhetoric for centuries. Notions of deterrence, retribution, and penitence from the Christian Bible have fueled the American propensity for executions. The decline of religion comes from a long-term social trend known as the Enlightenment, which is a period defined by a societal shift from religious reasoning to scientific thought. This new secular logic for the death penalty is not convincing enough to continue it as frequently as it once was, which can explain its subsequent decline.
Copyright Date
5-17-2026
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. This work may only be accessed by members of the University of Denver community. The work is provided by permission of the author for individual research purposes only and may not be further copied or distributed. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Samantha Campbell
Provenance
Received from Author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
52 pgs
File Size
844 KB
Recommended Citation
Campbell, Samantha, "The Long-Term Decline of the American Death Penalty: The Role of Secularization" (2026). Restricted Access ETDs. 126.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/restrictedetd/126