In a recent article, Stafford and Warr (1993) presented a reconceptualization of the deterrence doctrine, in which general deterrence is viewed as the result of persons' vicarious experiences. Such vicarious experiences include, among other things, knowledge of the criminal activity of others and the consequences or lack of consequences of that activity. Specific deterrence is taken to be the result of persons' own personal experiences. These personal experiences include, among other things, one's own experience with punishment and punishment avoidance. In their reconceptualized deterrence theory, persons may concurrently be subject to both general and specific deterrent effects; some persons may be affected more by one type of deterrence than the other; and the two types of deterrent effects may reinforce one another. Additionally, they argue that their version of deterrence theory promises some insight into current controversies in the literature. The authors' empirical testing involved the administration of a questionnaire to all 10th-grade students who attended nine high schools in and around a city in the southeastern United States. The study found evidence for the simultaneous presence of what Stafford and Warr have conceptualized as general and specific deterrence. The overall deterrent effect of perceived risk to self on minor forms of illegal substance use (alcohol and marijuana) was due to a combination of personal (specific deterrent) and vicarious (general deterrent) experiences. 6 tables, appended questionnaire, 14 notes, and 28 references