NCJ Number
114941
Date Published
1988
Length
119 pages
Annotation
This study examines criminals' views toward their own illicit activities with a view toward developing crime prevention measures, based on a study of 589 inmates currently serving sentences for property crime.
Abstract
The central issues addressed in the study are how criminals perceive the risks and benefits associated with operating a criminal enterprise and how policymakers can change these risks and benefits to make crime appear less profitable to potential offenders. This report outlines ways in which an economic perspective can be useful in analyzing and preventing criminal behavior. The study found that 9 percent of the offenders accounted for 55 percent of the crimes, and half began their criminal careers before the age of 14. One-third cited drugs and alcohol as their primary motivation to commit crime. This report recommends that to prevent property crime, job training and drug and alcohol education should be provided to juveniles. Deterrence should be enhanced by increasing the chances of imprisonment and by lengthening prison sentences. The most effective security measure is a burglar alarm connected to a police agency. The least effective security measure is the marking of valuables with owner identification numbers. Tables, charts, 103-item bibliography, appended survey instrument.