---
title: "NEW RESOURCE: Craig Haney's New Book Explores Years of Death Penatly Research"
description: 'Craig Haney, professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has just published a new book, Death By Design: Capital Punishment as a…'
canonical: 'https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/new-resource-craig-haneys-new-book-explores-years-of-death-penatly-research'
section: news
date: '2005-09-27T23:11:28-04:00'
updated: '2025-03-14T14:24:03-04:00'
source: 'Death Penalty Information Center'
---

Craig Haney, professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has just published a new book, **Death By Design: Capital Punishment as a Social Psychological System** (Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 2005). Haney explores a number of areas that skew death penalty sentencing in America:

- **Jury selection**--By systematically screening out opponents of capital punishment, the process produces unrepresentative juries and juries that include a high concentration of people who are more inclined to convict defendants.
- **Sentencing instructions**--Numerous studies reveal that jurors do not understand the instructions they receive as they begin the sentencing phase of capital trials.
- **Cultural and media myths about crime**--Print and broadcast news, as well as crime-based television dramas, exaggerate the rate of violent crime and demonize violent criminals.

The book also offers a number of suggestions for reforms through the improvement of education, jury instructions, and media coverage of the issues. (U.C. Santa Cruz Press Release, Sept. 26, 2005).