Identifying the Determinants of Thresholds for Collective Crime

• In Event: Theoretical Perspectives of Co-Offending

Abstract

The group nature of offending has been recognized as an important characteristic of criminal behavior, yet our understanding of the factors that explain why an individual would participate in collective behavior is limited. A posited explanation for this phenomenon is offered by Granovetter’s (1978) notion of threshold models, which focuses on interdependent decision making. This framework has proven helpful, but no empirical work has identified the individual- and situational-level predictors of thresholds for collective crime. Using hypothetical scenarios with nearly 600 participants, this study provides information on the distribution of co-offending thresholds and the factors that differentiate them across people and conditions.

Authors

• Zachary Rowan, University of Maryland

• Jean Marie McGloin, University of Maryland