Over half of incarcerated individuals self-report a history of mental illness. Applying focal concerns theory, it is possible that sentencing agents might view mental illness as reducing culpability and/or increasing practical constraints, potentially leading to shorter sentences. However, due to stereotypes of the unpredictability of mental illness, it may also heighten concerns about risk of recidivism, resulting in longer sentences. Furthermore, how sentencing agents view mental illness may differ by race, gender, and their intersection, as well as the type of crime. This study uses five waves of data from the Survey of Prison Inmates (1986–2016) to examine how mental illness relates to sentencing outcomes over time, and how these patterns vary by crime type, race, gender, and their intersection.
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