NCJ Number
140977
Journal
Deviance et societe Volume: 14 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1990) Pages: 253-273
Date Published
1990
Length
21 pages
Annotation
Conducted in December 1984, this statistical analysis surveyed the attitudes of 1,830 French individuals toward 33 types of offenses.
Abstract
The sample population ranked the offenses on a scale of 1 to 10 according to what priority the police should give to each offense. Nearly all subjects ranked offenses involving physical violence (robbery resulting in murder or rape) as the top priority, followed by heroin trafficking, industrial pollution, and neglect of worker safety regulations resulting in death. Petty theft, disobeying police orders to disperse during a demonstration, working without paying taxes, public display of pornographic books, sexual relations between an adult and a consenting minor, and establishing an illegal residence in France received the lowest rating of disapproval. The survey then established a typology of six different attitudes according to gender, age, social class, education, and values of the respondents. When compared to attitude studies in the 1970's, the results show a greater general tolerance of sexual immorality as a consequence of the sexual revolution. The great rift in attitudes of the 1970's between the defenders of public property and those of the common interest persists, although somewhat altered. 24 references