Why are property crimes reported to the police? An empirical assessment for Peru

Peru has not only one of the highest victimization rates in Latin America (24%), but also the lowest rate of reported crimes (15%) (Latinobarómetro, 2016) The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of the crimes and the characteristics of the individuals that predict the decision of reporting four different property crimes (burglary, auto theft, auto parts theft, and motorcycle theft). To this end, a seven-year survey of households at the national level in Peru was used (2010-2016). The estimations were made using multilevel mixed effects logistics regression, in order to control for characteristics of the environment that also influence the decision to report. Use of a weapon by the criminal is the factor that most increases the probability of reporting any of the four assessed crimes. Repeated victimization is also an important predictor, although for a lower number of crimes. Trust in the police is not associated to the decision to report. This is the first study to quantitatively analyze the factors that affect the decision to report in Peru. Its results are useful for a better understanding of the low reporting rates in the country

Does context matter? Examining robbery reporting in a high crime country

Most empirical studies that examine why individuals report property crimes to the police have focused on Global North countries where crime rates are low. This study is situated in the most violent area of the world, Latin America, and examines Peru, which has the highest robbery victimization rate in the Americas. This article examines the applicability of theories of crime reporting in this Global South context using a large sample and multilevel modeling. We find that trust in the police has no impact on the reporting of the robbery of one’s cellphone, purse or wallet. The theories of rational choice and Black’s stratification of law provide strong explanations for the reporting of robbery of these personal items. Individuals of higher social status and those who reside in districts with low levels of social disadvantage are more likely to report, as well as those who have experienced violent victimization

Venezuelan Forced Migration to Peru During Sociopolitical Crisis: an Analysis of Perceived Social Support and Emotion Regulation Strategies

While many studies have examined the impact of forced migration on Venezuelan migrants in Latin America, to date scholars have not examined the effect of certain coping mechanisms, namely social support and emotion regulation. Using data from 386 Venezuelan migrants living in Peru (M = 20.22 years, SD = 1.33, 46.4% women), we investigated whether perceived social support from three different sources (family, friends, and significant other) correlated with emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and suppression) while controlling for the type of cohabitation and time of residence. The results (1) confirmed the originally proposed internal structure of the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, showing reliability and validity even in a sample of migrants. Findings demonstrated that (2) perceived social support from family positively predicted cognitive reappraisal strategy when including friends and significant other as covariates; (3) Venezuelans who have resided longer in Peru compared to more recent migrants used cognitive reappraisal strategy at a higher rate despite perceiving low family social support; (4) Venezuelans who resided in Peru for a longer period of time reported higher suppression strategy use when having low significant other support; and (5) there were gender differences regarding cognitive reappraisal as a dependent variable. More specifically, in men, family was a better predictor than friend or significant other support, while among women, family and significant other had the biggest impact. These results demonstrate the importance of social support elements and time of residence on the healthy management of emotions under difficult circumstances, such as forced migration

Venezuelan Forced Migration to Peru During Sociopolitical Crisis: an Analysis of Perceived Social Support and Emotion Regulation Strategies

Indexado en ScopusWhile many studies have examined the impact of forced migration on Venezuelan migrants in Latin America, to date scholars have not examined the efect of certain coping mechanisms, namely social support and emotion regulation. Using data from 386 Venezuelan migrants living in Peru (M=20.22 years, SD=1.33, 46.4% women), we investigated whether perceived social support from three diferent sources (family, friends, and signifcant other) correlated with emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and suppression) while controlling for the type of cohabitation and time of residence. The results (1) confrmed the originally proposed internal structure of the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, showing reliability and validity even in a sample of migrants. Findings demonstrated that (2) perceived social support from family positively predicted cognitive reappraisal strategy when including friends and signifcant other as covariates; (3) Venezuelans who have resided longer in Peru compared to more recent migrants used cognitive reappraisal strategy at a higher rate despite perceiving low family social support; (4) Venezuelans who resided in Peru for a longer period of time reported higher suppression strategy use when having low signifcant other support; and (5) there were gender diferences regarding cognitive reappraisal as a dependent variable. More specifcally, in men, family was a better predictor than friend or signifcant other support, while among women, family and signifcant other had the biggest impact. These results demonstrate the importance of social support elements and time of residence on the healthy management of emotions under difcult circumstances, such as forced migration.Revisión por pare

Situational factors shape moral judgements in the trolley dilemma in Eastern, Southern and Western countries in a culturally diverse sample

Indexado en ScopusThe study of moral judgements often centres on moral dilemmas in which options consistent with deontological perspectives (that is, emphasizing rules, individual rights and duties) are in conflict with options consistent with utilitarian judgements (that is, following the greater good based on consequences). Greene et al. (2009) showed that psychological and situational factors (for example, the intent of the agent or the presence of physical contact between the agent and the victim) can play an important role in moral dilemma judgements (for example, the trolley problem). Our knowledge is limited concerning both the universality of these effects outside the United States and the impact of culture on the situational and psychological factors affecting moral judgements. Thus, we empirically tested the universality of the effects of intent and personal force on moral dilemma judgements by replicating the experiments of Greene et al. in 45 countries from all inhabited continents. We found that personal force and its interaction with intention exert influence on moral judgements in the US and Western cultural clusters, replicating and expanding the original findings. Moreover, the personal force effect was present in all cultural clusters, suggesting it is culturally universal. The evidence for the cultural universality of the interaction effect was inconclusive in the Eastern and Southern cultural clusters (depending on exclusion criteria). We found no strong association between collectivism/individualism and moral dilemma judgements.Revisión por pare

Does context matter? Examining robbery reporting in a high crime country

Most empirical studies that examine why individuals report property crimes to the police have focused on Global North countries where crime rates are low. This study is situated in the most violent area of the world, Latin America, and examines Peru, which has the highest robbery victimization rate in the Americas. This article examines the applicability of theories of crime reporting in this Global South context using a large sample and multilevel modeling. We find that trust in the police has no impact on the reporting of the robbery of one’s cellphone, purse or wallet. The theories of rational choice and Black’s stratification of law provide strong explanations for the reporting of robbery of these personal items. Individuals of higher social status and those who reside in districts with low levels of social disadvantage are more likely to report, as well as those who have experienced violent victimization

Situational factors shape moral judgements in the trolley dilemma in Eastern, Southern and Western countries in a culturally diverse sample

The study of moral judgements often centres on moral dilemmas in which options consistent with deontological perspectives (that is, emphasizing rules, individual rights and duties) are in conflict with options consistent with utilitarian judgements (that is, following the greater good based on consequences). Greene et al. (2009) showed that psychological and situational factors (for example, the intent of the agent or the presence of physical contact between the agent and the victim) can play an important role in moral dilemma judgements (for example, the trolley problem). Our knowledge is limited concerning both the universality of these effects outside the United States and the impact of culture on the situational and psychological factors affecting moral judgements. Thus, we empirically tested the universality of the effects of intent and personal force on moral dilemma judgements by replicating the experiments of Greene et al. in 45 countries from all inhabited continents. We found that personal force and its interaction with intention exert influence on moral judgements in the US and Western cultural clusters, replicating and expanding the original findings. Moreover, the personal force effect was present in all cultural clusters, suggesting it is culturally universal. The evidence for the cultural universality of the interaction effect was inconclusive in the Eastern and Southern cultural clusters (depending on exclusion criteria). We found no strong association between collectivism/individualism and moral dilemma judgements