On shoplifting and tax fraud: An action-theoretic analysis of crime

The article evaluates different theories of action in the area of crime research. A narrow version of rational choice theory assumes actors to choose in an instrumental, outcome-oriented way. It hypothesises that individuals weight the costs and benefits of criminal acts with subjective probabilities. In contrast, a wide version of the theory allows individuals to derive utility directly from choosing certain actions. Previous studies either do not directly test these theories or yield inconsistent results. We show that a meaningful test of these rival rational choice explanations can only be conducted if a broader view is adopted that takes into account the interplay of moral norms and instrumental incentives. Such a view can be derived from the Model of Frame Selection (Kroneberg 2005) and the Situational Action Theory of Crime Causation (Wikström 2004). Based on these theories, we analyze the willingness to engage in shoplifting and tax fraud in a sample of 2,130 adults from Dresden, Germany. In line with our theoretical expectations, we find that only respondents who do not feel bound by moral norms consider instrumental incentives. Where norms have been strongly internalised and in the absence of neutralisation techniques which legitimise norm-breaking, instrumental incentives are irrelevant.

Determinanten des Familienklimas unter besonderer Berücksichtigung sozialökologischer Kontextfaktoren

'Ziel des vorliegenden Beitrages ist es, die Frage zu untersuchen, inwieweit Arbeitslosigkeit und sozioökonomische Deprivation im Kontext des sozialökologischen Umfeldes einer Familie einen Einfluss auf die Qualität der Familienbeziehung hat. Im Mittelpunkt meines Interesses steht dabei, in welcher Weise sozialökologische Kontextfaktoren, wie Wohnverhältnisse und Wohnumweltbedingungen aber auch Nachbarschaften, im Zusammenhang mit sozialer Deprivation infolge von Arbeitslosigkeit auf das Familienklima einwirken. Für die empirischen Analysen verwende ich Daten einer postalischen Befragung von Dresdner Haushalten, welche im Herbst 1999 durchgeführt wurde. Die Befunde zeigen einerseits, dass eine größere Anzahl von Kindern einen Stressfaktor hinsichtlich abträglicher Familienbeziehungen darstellt. Anderseits ergeben sich kognitiv-emotionale Folgen von Arbeitslosigkeit, die sich in häufigeren Konflikten und Auseinandersetzungen zwischen den Familienmitgliedern entladen. Außerdem darf der Einfluss sozialökologischer Kontextfaktoren nicht überschätzt werden. Lediglich ungünstige strukturelle Merkmale des Stadtviertels, wie eine hohe Arbeitslosigkeit, können über häufige innerfamiliale Streitigkeiten des Familienklima negativ beeinflussen.' (Autorenreferat)'The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent to which parental unemployment and socio-economic deprivation in a family's socioecological environment influence the quality of family relations. I am primarily interested in how socioecologic contextual factors such as living conditions, the residential environment, and neighbourhoods, in combination with social deprivation due to unemployment, influence the atmosphere within a family. For the empirical investigation, I used data from a postal survey of households conducted in the autumn of 1999 in Dresden, Germany. The results show that while families with more children are at higher risk for conflicts, cognitive-emotional impacts of unemployment also increase the frequency of conflicts and arguments among family members. Additionally, the influence of socioecologic contextual factors should not be overestimated. Merely unfavourable structural characteristics of the residential district, such as high unemployment, can increase family quarrels and have a negative effect on family climate.' (author's abstract)

On shoplifting and tax fraud : an action-theoretic analysis of crime

The article evaluates different theories of action in the area of crime research. A narrow version of rational choice theory assumes actors to choose in an instrumental, outcome-oriented way. It hypothesises that individuals weight the costs and benefits of criminal acts with subjective probabilities. In contrast, a wide version of the theory allows individuals to derive utility directly from choosing certain actions. Previous studies either do not directly test these theories or yield inconsistent results. We show that a meaningful test of these rival rational choice explanations can only be conducted if a broader view is adopted that takes into account the interplay of moral norms and instrumental incentives. Such a view can be derived from the Model of Frame Selection (Kroneberg 2005) and the Situational Action Theory of Crime Causation (Wikström 2004). Based on these theories, we analyze the willingness to engage in shoplifting and tax fraud in a sample of 2,130 adults from Dresden, Germany. In line with our theoretical expectations, we find that only respondents who do not feel bound by moral norms consider instrumental incentives. Where norms have been strongly internalised and in the absence of neutralisation techniques which legitimise norm-breaking, instrumental incentives are irrelevant

Social ecology, unemployment and growing up. The impact of socioecologic contextual factors on educational mobility of children in selected urban quarters of Dresden

Ziel dieses Beitrages ist es, zu untersuchen, welchen Einfluss sozialökologische Kontextfaktoren einer Familie bei Arbeitslosigkeit auf die intergenerative Transmission von Human-kapital ausüben. Im Mittelpunkt des Interesses steht dabei die Frage, ob sozialräumliche Kontexte, wie z.B. sozialstrukturelle Merkmale verschiedener Stadtteile, soziale Netzwerke oder auch Nachbarschaften, im Zusammenhang mit Arbeitslosigkeit einen wesentlichen Erklärungsbeitrag für die Varianz der elterlichen Bildungsentscheidungen leisten. Für die empirische Analyse werden Daten einer postalischen Befragung von Dresdner Haushalten verwendet, welche im Herbst 1999 durchgeführt wurde. Die Befunde zeigen, dass der Einfluss sozialökologischer Kontextfaktoren auf die intergenerative Weitergabe von Humankapital nicht überschätzt werden sollte. Elterliche Arbeitslosigkeit erweist sich - in Verbindung mit niedrigem Sozialstatus - mehr denn je als indirekter Stressor für die schulische Entwicklung der Kinder. Günstige soziale Umweltfaktoren werden relativ irrelevant, wenn Arbeitslosigkeit in der Familie auftritt. (DIPF/Orig.)The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent to which the family\u27s socioecologic contextual factors and parental unemployment influence the children\u27s opportunities for participation in higher education. We are primarily interested in the question whether socioecological environment such as residential environment and neighborhoods in combination with unemployment make an important contribution to the variance of the educational opportunities of children. For the empirical investigation, we use data from a postal survey of households conducted in autumn 1999 in Dresden Saxony. The results show that the influence of socioecologic contextual factors should not be overestimated. Socioecologic contextual factors loose their influence for the educational opportunities of children as soon as unemployment occurs in the family.(DIPF/Orig.

The interplay of moral norms and instrumental incentives in crime causation

Rational choice theories (RCTs) of crime assume actors behave in an instrumental, outcome-oriented way. Accordingly, individuals should weight the costs and benefits of criminal acts with subjective probabilities that these outcomes will occur. Previous studies either do not directly test this central hypothesis or else yield inconsistent results. We show that a meaningful test can be conducted only if a broader view is adopted that takes into account the interplay of moral norms and instrumental incentives. Such a view can be derived from the Model of Frame Selection (Kroneberg, 2005) and the Situational Action Theory of Crime Causation (Wikstrom, 2004). Based on these theories, we analyze the willingness to engage in shoplifting and tax fraud in a sample of 2,130 adults from Dresden, Germany. In line with our theoretical expectations, we find that only respondents who do not feel bound by moral norms show the kind of instrumental rationality assumed in RCTs of crime. Where norms have been strongly internalized, and in the absence of neutralizations, instrumental incentives are irrelevant