SERIOUSNESS OF OFFENSES - AN EVALUATION BY OFFENDERS AND NONOFFENDERS

• NCJ Number: 13771
• Author(s): R M FIGLIO
• Date Published: 1972
• Length: 171 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: DISSERTATION - UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Annotation

A COMPARISON OF THE RESPONSES OF INCARCERATED JUVENILES AND ADULTS AND A COLLEGE STUDENT CONTROL GROUP CONCERNING THE RELATIVE SERIOUSNESS OF SELECTED OFFENSES. CLASS CONVICTED OFFENDERS AND MIDDLE-CLASS NON-OFFENDERS.

Abstract

JUVENILES FROM ANNANDALE FARMS AND INMATES FROM RAHWAY PRISON (BOTH IN NEW JERSEY) AND UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA UNDERGRADUATES WERE ASKED TO RATE TYPES OF OFFENSES USING BOTH CATEGORY AND MAGNITUDE SCALES. THE CATEGORY RESULTS SUGGEST THAT THE ORDERING OF OFFENSE SEVERITIES AND THE SPACING OF THESE SEVERITIES WITHIN EACH RATING GROUP WAS SIMILAR. MAGNITUDE SCALE RATINGS SUGGEST THAT THEFT SERIOUSNESS EVALUATION IS LOGARITHMICALLY RELATED TO THE DOLLAR VALUE OF THE THEFT. THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GROUPS. THE STUDENTS WERE FOUND TO RATE OFFENSES MORE SEVERELY THAN THE JUVENILE OFFENDERS WHO IN TURN WERE MORE SEVERE THAN THE ADULT INMATES. BACKGROUND FACTOR CORRELATIONS SEEMED TO INDICATE THAT THOSE SUBJECTS WHO CONSIDER CRIMES MORE SERIOUS THAN OTHERS ARE MORE MOTIVATED, BETTER ACHIEVING INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY HAVE HAD SEVERAL ARRESTS FOR NARCOTICS USAGE. NUMEROUS CHARTS AND TABLES ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED) RESPONDERS, ALTHOUGH THE ANNANDALE VALUES WERE GENERALLY LOWER THAN THOSE OF THE PENN STUDENTS. BOTH OFFENDERS AND NONOFFENDERS AGREED AS TO THE ORDERING OF OFFENSES ALONG A SCALE FROM LEAST TO MOST SERIOUS. THEY AGREED LESS ON THE SPACING OF THE ITEMS AND DID NOT AGREE AT ALL ON THE ABSOLUTE VALUE OF THE HARM INFLICTED BY EACH OF THE DESCRIBED CRIMINAL ACTS. RESEARCHERS CONCLUDED THAT WHILE OFFENDERS ARE AWARE OF THE RELATIVE SERIOUSNESS OF VARIOUS FORMS OF CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR, THE SEVERITY DOES NOT MEAN AS MUCH TO THEM AS IT DOES TO ESSENTIALLY MIDDLECLASS NONOFFENDERS. TO DETERMINE IF SUBSETS OF THE GROUPS OF THE GROUPS EXISTED WHICH RESPONDED IN RECOGNIZABLY DIFFERENT PATTERNS, THE OFFENDER GROUPS WERE DIVIDED ACCORDING TO TYPE OF OFFENSE RESULTING IN IMPRISONMENT. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE VARIOUS OFFENDER TYPES DID NOT RESPOND IN SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT WAYS. IT WAS THEREFORE CONCLUDED THAT THE KIND OF OFFENSE COMMITTED HAS NO BEARING ON THE EVALUATION OF THE SEVERITY OF THAT OR ANY OTHER OFFENSE. A BIBLIOGRAPHY AND AN ALPHABETICAL INDEX ARE PROVIDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)