NCJ Number
75767
Date Published
1980
Length
91 pages
Annotation
The results of a survey of Fortune 1000 senior executives are given concerning their companies responses to and experience with crime and the executives' personal perception of crime and reactions to it.
Abstract
A total of 53 percent of the executives secure their homes with electronic safety devices. Over 25 percent have unlisted telephone numbers and keep the location of their residence confidential. Over 33 percent vary their daily route to work, and 25 percent thoroughly inspect their hotel rooms for hidden intruders when traveling away from home. The executives have also taken extensive measures to protect their corporations with strategies such as electronic devices, electronic card identification systems, or armed guards. A total of 39 percent of the executives report fear of kidnapping for themselves, their relatives, or their associates. Executives concerned about kidnapping are far more likely to take security precautions than those who are not. During the 1970's businesses paid an estimated $250 million in ransoms; multinational concerns lost twice that, overall, to terrorist activities. Generally, the executives feel that prison and the death penalty are better preventive approaches than do the public as a whole; however, neither group has a great deal of faith in the nation's prison system. A total of 55 percent of the executives feel that the major cause of crime is a breakdown of traditional values and family structure, while 38 percent cite court leniency, and 30 percent identify economic factors as the major cause. A copy of the survey, tabular data, graphs, and footnotes are included.