Expanding Offender Decision-Making: A Choice Set Approach

• In Event: New Perspectives in Offender Decision Making

Abstract

Offender decision-making is grounded in the belief that when considering “alternative courses of action, the individual will choose that which has the greatest sum of benefits over costs” (Paternoster, 2010, p. 771). While the weighing of alternative courses of action (e.g. a choice set) is a staple of a rational actor’s choice of behavior, criminologists have discussed, but not measured the choice set people see when considering an act. By leveraging Thoughtfully Reflective Decision Making (TRDM) (Paternoster and Pogarsky, 2009), which entails evaluating all potential options one has – along with heterogeneity in available courses of action from cultural sociology (Swidler, 1986), this study extends the research-imposed dichotomy (crime or conformity) and appraises what alternatives of action people perceive within ambiguous scenarios that have a potential crime solution. A community sample was obtained where respondents were presented one of two randomly selected scenarios (drunk at a bar deciding how to get home or seeing a man drop a wallet in front of you). After reading the scenario, respondents were asked to list the options they perceived to have, choose one, and explain why they chose that option. Preliminary results are discussed along with implications for criminological theory and offender decision-making.

Authors

• Matthew Kijowski, University at Albany, SUNY

• Theodore Wilson, University at Albany, SUNY