In Defense of the Right to Life: Analyzing Factors Affecting Filipino Opinion About Death Penalty iv. Alternatives to the death penalty The fourth set of factors to be independent variables considered were the opinions on alternatives to the death penalty. Previous research has shown that support for the death penalty is lower among those who were presented with punitive options other than the death penalty.55 One alternative was punishment by imprisonment, whether life sentence or life sentence with parole. Sandys & McGarrell (1995) found that support for the death penalty declined when the options of life without parole with work and restitution was offered.56 Other studies also showed the support for the death penalty among the American public decreased when the alternative life without parole was offered.57 The possibility of reform through rehabilitation may likewise affect support for the death penalty. Rehabilitation aims to restore a convicted offender to a constructive place in the society (Miethe & Lu, 2005).58 Support for the death penalty tended to be lower among those who support rehabilitation options (Lambert et al., 2004).59 Preference for alternatives to the death penalty was measured as the mean of five items: “If the crime did not result in killing a person, the person who committed the crime may be punished by a prolonged prison sentence instead of the death penalty,” “Life imprisonment is a sufficient penalty for people who commit heinous crimes,” It is more important that a person who commits heinous crime should suffer life in prison rather than be punished by death penalty,” “The possibility that a person who committed a heinous crimes could still change his/her life and be a good citizen is a good reason not to restore the death penalty,” and, “If a person who committed a heinous crime can pay, his sentence should be reduced to imprisonment and he should be allowed to pay damages to the victim or family of victims instead of suffering the death penalty”. The alpha reliability coefficient for these items is 0.65. The items were reverse coded (1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree) and then the means were derived to create an index score that ranged from 1 to 5. Higher values indicate greater support for the alternative forms of punishment over the death penalty. The index had a mean of 3.7. B. Analysis Plan The analysis was done in two steps. First, a correlational analysis of support for the death penalty and various predictors was conducted for a preliminary test of association between support and the expected predictors. Results from the zero-order correlations were used to delimit the number of predictors that will be used, aimed to come up with parsimonious models for the analysis. Binary logistic regression was then used to determine which of the variables, or a combination of the variables, are the best predictors of public support for the death penalty. Utilizing binary logistic regression methods allowed the study to identify the individual who would most likely support the death penalty – its socio-demographic characteristics, its opinions and attitudes on justice and on the death penalty – and eventually target this individual to change his or her mind towards not supporting the death penalty. A hierarchical logistic regression method was employed to allow the inclusion of the blocks of factors based on previous research. The socio-demographic variables were added first into the equation. Exposure to TV news and internet usage was added next, followed by the group of instrumental factors, and by the group of symbolic factors. Opinions on the alternatives to the death penalty was added last. Sandys and McGarrell (1995), supra note 21; Vollum, et al. (2004), supra note 22. 56 Id. Gross, supra note 52. 58 MIETHE & LU (2005), supra note 40. 59 Lambert, et al. (2004), supra note 51. 55 57 12