Envy and Crime: Exploring the Development and Validation of a New Measure of Envy

• In Event: Scale Development, Validation, and Invariance Testing

Abstract

Social science research has focused much attention on the relationship between negative emotions and human behavior. Specifically, most criminological research in this area has focused on the effects of anger, depression and anxiety on deviance and crime while much less attention has been given to envy. Indeed, envy has been a neglected emotion in criminology despite its theoretical connection to aggression and other forms of deviance. While few negative emotions appear to successfully explain some criminal behavior, it is important to remember that previously ignored emotions may be better able to explain certain types of crime. Before being able to explore the true effect of envy on crime, however, it is crucial to have a validated measure that taps the different elements of envy. Existing measures of envy are treated as unidimensional and are therefore limited. Using a university-based sample, the current study introduces a refined multidimensional measure of envy and examines its correlation with criminal activity. Implications for theory and research are discussed.

Author

• Ana Zuniga, Arizona State University