TY  - JOUR
AU  - Dickens,William T.
TI  - Crime and Punishment Again:  The Economic Approach with a Psychological Twist
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 1884
PY  - 1987
Y2  - 1987
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w1884
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w1884.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
William Dickens
School of Public Affairs
University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland  20742-1821
Tel: 301 405-3494
E-Mail: wtdickens@gmail.com
AB  - Akerlof and Dickens (1982) suggested that in a model of criminal behavior which considered the effects of cognitive dissonance, increasing the severity of punishment could increase the crime rate. This paper demonstrates that that conjecture was correct. With cognitive dissonance, people may have to rationalize not committing crimes under normal circumstances if punishment is not severe. The rationalization may lead them to underestimate the expected utility of committing crimes when opportunities present themselves. If punishment is severe, then rationalization may not be necessary and people may be more likely to commit crimes when opportunities arise.
ER  -