NCJ Number
118252
Date Published
1979
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This article first examines the "correctional" approach to white-collar crime, reviews the work of Edwin Sutherland on white-collar crime, and presents some social psychological constructs for the examination of white-collar crime.
Abstract
"Correctionalism" represented by the Nader group's approach to white-collar crime aims at providing structural remedies to correct corporate abuses. A more fruitful approach is to examine occupational offenses so as to develop a typology helpful for countering them. The researcher might group offenses by occupation, task, offender status, and the legal definition of the violation. Some categories of white-collar offenders are those in finance, in business, and in politics. An example of crime that occurs in an occupational context can be seen in the medical profession, where various strategies are used to gain wealth at patients' or the public's expense through deceptive and unprofessional means. The socializing of doctors within their professions should be examined to determine flaws in their preparation, values, and motives. Insights from the social-psychological literature show how the white-collar offender fails to perceive the seriousness of his acts and how the white-collar offenders' peers fail to appreciate the acts' seriousness. This research suggests that if white-collar crime is to be reduced, the public must view it with greater alarm and disgust, as must offenders' reference groups. 61 references.