Decisions to Participate in and Desist from four Types of Common Delinquency: Deterrence and the rational Choice Perspective

Abstract

Empirical tests of the deterrence doctrine have suffered from two deficiencies: they have rarely been conducted within the context of a more general theory of social control, and they have confounded the effects of sanction threats on different kinds of offending decisions. This chapter includes deterrence variables into a rational choice model of common delinquent offending. The rational choice perspective presumes that crime and delinquency are the products of imperfectly informed choice and that decisions to offend are made, assessed, and remade. Deterrence research conducted at the ecological level has utilized implicit models of human action similar to the expected utility theory of economics. The chapter illustrates the deterrence/rational choice model of offending for common delinquent offenses and the kinds of offending decisions that are typically made during a "career." The dependent variables in the participation models are the respondents' self-reported involvement in four common delinquent offenses: marijuana use, drinking liquor under age, petty theft, and vandalism.

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