Date of Award
8-1998
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Sociology
First Advisor
Dr. Ronald C. Kramer
Second Advisor
Dr. David Hartmann
Third Advisor
Dr. Charles Crawford
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Open Access
Abstract
Many studies have been done concerning the seriousness of traditional street crime. There is a need in the field of criminology to expand our knowledge about how serious corporate crimes are. A key feature of seriousness is how researchers measure it. Using a survey, I analyzed people's perceptions of corporate crime. I had the respondents indicate the seriousness of the crime and harm by using a Likert Scale as well as identifying the appropriate sanction/sentence for the company convicted of the crime. This proved useful in attempting to identify how seriousness is measured by the sanctions/sentences imposed by the respondents. Utilizing this method, I found that respondents were more likely to give harsher, more punitive sanctions to those corporate crimes involving physical harm. It was also found that corporate crimes involving environmental harm were more serious than corporate crimes involving economic harm.
Recommended Citation
Ardovini-Brooker, Dale J., "Perceptions of Corporate Crime: Assessing the Seriousness" (1998). Masters Theses. 4161.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4161