What makes thieves to deter: Effect of certainty and severity of punishment

• In Event: Robberies & Burglaries: Contexts and Trends

Abstract

Unlike other countries which tested the empirical researches on deterrence effect and have tried to apply to real criminal justice procedure, there is no research to test the deterrence effect empirically. The traditional deterrence theory states that severity, certainty and celerity of punishment are most important factors to deter the future crime in terms of special deterrence as well as general deterrence. Many empirical researches on deterrence effect revealed that the certainty is the most important factor among three factors. The purpose of present study is to test deferent factors among thieves. We collected the survey data from 115 thieves who were in four prisons in Korea. The result shows that the certainty of punishment and the severity of punishment are significant factors to deter thieves future crime. The power of the explanation of certainty of the punishment is bigger than severity of punishment on deterrence among thieves. Detailed policy implication will be discussed in the context.

Author

• MiRang Park, Hannam University