NCJ Number
177363
Journal
Security Journal Volume: 12 Issue: 1 Dated: 1999 Pages: 9-27
Date Published
1999
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This paper reviews British research on measuring, explaining, and preventing the crime of shoplifting; police and court records show that there are more thab 100,000 recorded offenders each year and 4 to 5 percent of citizens up to 40 years of age are convicted of shoplifting.
Abstract
Surveys of retailers suggest there are more thab 4 million known shoplifting incidents, 1.3 million apprehended shoplifters, and 800,000 shoplifters reported to the police each year. Self-report surveys show the median age of the onset of shoplifting for males is 10 years, while the median age of desistance is 14 years. About 1 in 7 offenders is convicted sooner or later but only about 1 in 150 offenses leads to a conviction. Systematic observations at two stores suggested about 500 items per week were stolen. Repeated counting of items showed that about 10 percent of all items were stolen as opposed to sold. A shoplifting prevention experiment is described that indicates store redesign and electronic tagging represent effective short-term solutions to the problem of shoplifting. Further research is recommended to evaluate characteristics of shoplifters and the effectiveness of shoplifting prevention strategies. 61 notes and 5 tables