Social Class and Delinquency

Rolf Becker and Guido Mehlkop
Additional contact information
Rolf Becker: University of Berne, Switzerland, rolf.becker@sis.unibe.ch
Guido Mehlkop: Dresden University of Technology, Germany, guido.mehlkop@mailbox.tu-dresden.de

Rationality and Society, 2006, vol. 18, issue 2, 193-235

Abstract: The frequently predicted relationship between social class and criminal behavior is theoretically vacillating and empirically exiguous. We present an extended rational choice model which integrates the effects of an individual’s social status on his or her subjective evaluations of (1) costs, (2) utility, (3) the probability of apprehension, (4) the selective incentives, and (5) the internalization of social norms. We test the model against the offences of shop-lifting and tax-evasion. The data source derived from the German General Social Survey empirically supports the theoretical model. There exists no prevalent relationship between an individual’s social status and his or her incentives towards criminal comportment. However, the social status of an individual affects the type of offences committed. The subjectively expected probability of either failing or succeeding in a criminal act takes greater precedence over the fear of retribution or the expected utility. Additionally, internalized norms decrease the probability of committing a crime.

Keywords: deviant behavior; crime; rational choice theory; social structure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2006
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:ratsoc:v:18:y:2006:i:2:p:193-235

DOI: 10.1177/1043463106063323

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