NCJ Number
121800
Journal
Journal of Quantitative Criminology Volume: 5 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1989) Pages: 353-372
Date Published
1989
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Economists have modeled criminal behavior as a problem in time allocation under uncertainty with Friedman-Savage utility models based on the binomial probability distribution and tested using aggregate data on crime rates.
Abstract
A shortcoming of these models is that they neglect the nonpecuniary aspects of crime. The empirical model uses an underlying geometric probability process and explicitly accounts for the moral social compromise involved in becoming a criminal. The quantification of the criminal's moral and social sensitivity is done using data based on a consolidated file of police records and a cohort survey of criminals and noncriminals. It is found, on the basis of this unique data set, that the included individual criminals are risk averse and that gang membership reduces social sensitivity. Figures, tables, 22 references. (Author abstract modified)