Co-Offending and Offense Severity: An Analysis of Individuals and Groups in the NIBRS Data

• In Event: The Role of Anger, Self-Control, and Deindividuation on Co-Offending

Abstract

Crime can be best understood, reacted to, and prevented if it is seen as both the product of social influence within small groups and the consequence of individual decision making. That is, people commit acts as members of groups that they would not commit if they were alone. Although the group nature of offending has been documented for decades, current knowledge is grounded in the study of the individual offender. But, co-offenders act interdependently. This project uses data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) to examine the interaction between co-offending groups and the individual members of these groups within the situational context of an offense. Specifically, the current project draws on theories of group behavior and social exchange to examine the impact that the group context of offending has on offending outcomes. Individuals may, for example, “deindividuate” in the presence of others, and become more subject to situational group norms. In the context of potential criminal contexts, this process may result in a lowered threshold for negative behavior and increased antisocial behavior. Following this research, the current project investigates the hypothesis that companions facilitate more severe offending (e.g., increased violence).

Author

• Brendan Lantz, Pennsylvania State University