NCJ Number
218178
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice: An International Journal Volume: 35 Issue: 2 Dated: March/April 2007 Pages: 151-163
Date Published
March 2007
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This study compared perceptions of punishment for street crimes versus white-collar crimes.
Abstract
The results suggest that policymakers should develop strategies to increase the ability of the threat of formal legal punishments to deter individuals from committing white-collar crime. Results indicated that when the street crime of robbery was compared with the white-collar crime of fraud in terms of perceptions of punishment certainty and severity, respondents’ viewed robbery and fraud as generally similar. However, respondents’ perceived that the street crime of robbery was more likely to be detected and the offenders more likely to be sentenced to more severe punishments than fraud offenders. Results revealed a divide between the perceptions of the punishment white-collar offenders were likely to receive and the punishment respondents’ thought they should receive. Other findings suggested that more educated respondents and those with higher incomes were more likely to believe that street crimes were more likely to be detected and punished more severely than respondents who had less education and income. Data were drawn from the National Public Survey on White-Collar Crime conducted by the National White-Collar Crime Center during a 12-week period beginning in January 1999. Participants were 1,169 citizens who were randomly selected using random digital dialing. Participants completed single-session telephone interviews using the CATI system. Interview questions focused on the distinction between white-collar and street crimes, perceptions of punishment certainty, perceptions of punishment severity, and demographic information, including whether the respondent had been a previous victim of crime. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the data. Differences in perceptions of demographic backgrounds discovered in this study warrant further research exploration. Tables, appendix, references