The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself Investigating the Relationship Between Fear of Falling and White-Collar Crime

Criminologists have long been interested in understanding why people commit crime. Perhaps an even more interesting question is what accounts for the offending of individuals who occupy white-collar positions. Most explanations of white-collar offending have relied on extant criminological theories that have been developed to account for street or juvenile offending. One theoretical explanation that was specifically developed to explain white-collar crime is the fear of falling hypothesis or the notion that the motivation for crime is the fear of losing what one has worked so hard to obtain. This study presents the results of an original data-collection effort designed to test this hypothesis. Data collected among business-experienced adults indicate that the fear of falling is inversely related to intentions to price-fix but positively related to internal and legal constraints against price-fixing. Taken together, these results suggest that the fear of falling may serve as a reminder of the attainments that could be lost, should the illegality be committed

Can general strain theory explain white-collar crime? A preliminary investigation of the relationship between strain and select white-collar offenses

Agnew's (1992) general strain theory (GST) had been tested across a wide range of populations and on numerous criminal and analogous behaviors. The ability of GST to predict white-collar offending, however, had yet to be explored. Using data from convicted white-collar offenders, this research examined the ability of GST to explain white-collar offenses. The results revealed that GST was useful for predicting a select group of white-collar offenses, but might not be generalizable to individuals committing corporate-type crimes. Additionally, the findings suggested that the types of strain and negative emotion at work for white-collar offenders might vary from those found in other criminal populations. Implications for white-collar crime studies are discussed and ideas for future research are presented. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Theories of White-Collar Crime and Public Policy

Unfortunately, the study of white-collar crime does not occupy a central place in the study of crime and criminality (although Travis Hirschi and Michael Gottfredson [1987] argue otherwise) and thus has done little to add to the policy discussion regarding what can and should be done to control crime and criminal behavior. Despite Edwin Sutherland’s early attempts to debunk the myopic view of crime and criminality as being only a street-level phenomenon engaged in by those of the less privileged classes, the study of white-collar crime still does not command the research attention of the vast majority of scholars workin

Because Crime Hurts, Justice Must Heal: John Braithwaite

John Braithwaite stands out as an academic whose ideas not only have shaped criminology and sociology but also have had a much larger impact on influencing the social movement towards restorative justice, both in policy and practice terms. He has been a highly productive and influential academic throughout his entire career so it is important to understand not only the scale of his scholarship's impact but also the key experiences and influences that have shaped him and his thinking over time. Here, Piquero and Mazerolle provide a sketch of the early influences on Braithwaite growing up in Australia, as well as the events and experiences that occurred later in his life, including those from the early stages of his professional career. They further explore some of the major events and circumstances that have influenced him professionally as well as various intellectual influences that have shaped his thinking and scholarship. Finally, they describe Braithwaite's perceptions of the future of restorative justice and the direction for criminology

Studying the correlates of fraud victimization and reporting

Little is known about the correlates of white-collar victimization, and even less is known about white-collar crime reporting. In this article, the extent to which predictors of fraud victimization are the same as the predictors of fraud reporting is examined. Using a national sample of fraud victims, these findings were consistent with prior research in that involvement in risky behaviors and age were found to be important predictors of fraud victimization. Additionally, the specific factors that are influential in predicting fraud victimization appear to vary across offense type. Unfortunately, little was revealed regarding the predictors of the official reporting of fraud victimizations. Future research needs to further unravel the importance of risky behavior in both victimization and reporting, as well as to focus on a broader array of white-collar crimes

Developmental Trajectories of White-Collar Crime

The criminal career paradigm represented a successful shift in criminological thinking, and ensuing research has generated important descriptive information about the key dimensions of active criminals; spurning both theoretical (developmental/life-course criminology) and methodological/statistical advances. Yet, the paradigm has failed to take into account acts of criminality that do not fit into the stereotypical image of street offending, in particular white-collar crime. The current study utilizes group-based trajectory modeling to examine trends of criminal behavior in a sample of convicted white-collar criminals over a more than 10-year follow-up period. Three offender trajectories are identified (low rate, intermittent, and persistent offenders) and suggest the importance of recognizing the variability of offending in a white-collar crime sample, and the overlap between white-collar and common crime criminal careers. This study also suggests the importance of recognizing both static and dynamic factors in the understanding of criminal careers. This research confirms a heterogeneous view of white-collar crime which recognizes that the white-collar crime category includes within it a broad diversity of offenders, and suggests that it is important to recognize that different models of explanation may be needed to provide explanations for different types of offenders

Causes and prevention of intellectual property crime

Intellectual property refers to the ownership and rights to use creative work that result from intellectual activity. Although there are four recognized categories of intellectual property (patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and copyright), copyright violations have garnered much attention of late because of the copying of software, movies, videogames, and music that deny publishers and authors' economic returns on their property. In order to understand this growing form of theft and the costs and consequences of such actions, the current research has three foci. First, the types of activities that fall under the rubric of intellectual property are identified and defined. Second, the causes or theoretical arguments developed to understand intellectual property theft are identified and discussed. Third, prevention techniques are examined in order to understand what is currently being done to control and prevent the misuse and theft of intellectual property. A research agenda outlining data collection efforts is also presented