Long-term Consequences of Victimization by White-collar Crime (From Victims of Crime and the Victimization Process, P 301-324, 1997, Marilyn McShane and Frank P. Williams, III, eds. - See NCJ-171054)

• NCJ Number: 171060
• Author(s): N Shover; G L Fox; M Mills
• Date Published: 1997
• Length: 24 pages
• Sale Source: Garland Publishing, Inc.
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. Reprinted from Justice Quarterly, V 11, N 1 (March 1994), P 75-98

Annotation

Ethnographic data collected from 47 individuals who lost money when a loan company collapsed largely due to criminal conduct by its officers and employees were used to examine victims' experiences and determine whether victimization by white-collar crime affected confidence and trust in political and economic leaders and institutions.

Abstract

The analysis focused on the Southland Industrial Banking Corporation, which collapsed in 1983. Data were collected by means of interviews in 1990-91. Results revealed that the participants had invested an average of $16,000 and that the investments ranged from $1,400 to $205,000. Results suggested that the overall impact of victimization on individuals and families ranged from minimal, for a majority of victims, to severe. In addition, loss of confidence in economic and political leaders increased, but the long-term effects of the loss of confidence in the institution were nonexistent to weak in most cases. Moreover, the strongest effects on confidence were produced by the actions of government officials who devised and implemented a plan to resolve financial problems caused by the company's collapse. The study design and data limitations mean that results should be interpreted with caution. However, findings point to the importance of victims' perceptions of procedural fairness as a possible determinant of loss of confidence. Findings also suggest that victims' past experiences and the vocabularies they use to make sense of institutional failure and personal misfortune may constrain the long-term effects at the individual level. Tables and 46 references (Author abstract modified)