Soc 411 Blog #3 Rational Choice Theory

Soc 411 Blog #3 -Rational Choice Theory

 

           Have you ever read about a crime and thought to yourself, "Who would do that? Why would people do that?"  Well, chances are, you have. Your either in my Criminology class or came across this blog because your searching criminology information. I often wondered this before learning about Rational Choice Theory. I often thought about why people might choose to sell drugs, or break into someone's home.  This theory gives an explanation for that. This theory is based on the idea of people who commit crimes. The theory asserts that people make rational choices when committing crimes.
          One of the most important details of rational choice theory is that people will weigh possible pleasure against possible pain. Then they will make their decision for action. This is termed Hedonistic calculus. Like in the video with the burglar weighing out the possibility getting caught burglarizing a home. It is from the perspective of desire and preference (Wortley and Townsley, 2017:21).
      This theory is not without it's weakness though, as with any theory. Also as explained in the video one of the holes in this theory is that everyone is acting rationally. Crimes of passion or crimes without forethought may or may not be accounted for in this theory.  Although this can explain many different situations. So it limits itself to crimes that have hedonistic calculus present.
       Another example that is used with this theory is corporate or sometimes called "White Collar Crime".  An example of some of these crimes are: price-fixing, toxic dumping, and insider trading.  These crimes will better an individual and/or corporation.  Some may remember Martha Stewart was convicted of insider trading. This is the type of crime where a persons desires and preference out weigh the risk. One of the token details of this type of crime is that the person committing this type of crime is often not in a situation where it is for survival and the crime is committed due to desire of the reward outweighs the possible punishment of the crime (Clark, 2008:37-38). 

     For myself, this gave me some perspective on why some crimes may be committed. I thought of debt much like these crimes. Our society is known for being in great debt. Often it is done through the use of credit, which in fact is money being borrowed that a person doesn't have. I am reminded of times where I wanted the instant gratification of having something and wanting it so badly that I charged it to a card that I couldn't pay back. When the initial high of the purchase wore off I was stuck with the consequences of debt.  Or further back in my life in middle school, when I shoplifted. I wanted makeup and certain clothes so badly and I wanted to fit in.  So, when a new friend said we could shoplift and showed me how, I weighed the consequences and decided to do it. (I now regret it) So I ask you? Does this help you understand why someone may commit some types of crime?  Have you ever wanted something so bad, that you didn't care what had to be done? 
 
Amadae, S.M. "Rational Choice Theory." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., n.d. Web. 04 May 2017.

Clarke, Ronald V. Routine Activity and Rational Choice. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publ., 2008. Print.

Legal, Inc. US. "USLegal." Rational-Choice Theory [Criminology] Law and Legal Definition | USLegal, Inc. US Legal, n.d. Web. 04 May 2017.

"The Rational Choice Theory of Criminology." Study.com. Study.com, n.d. Web. 04 May 2017.

Wortley, Richard, and Michael Townsley. Environmental Criminology and Crime Analysis. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2017. Print.