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Institutional Legitimacy and Crime in Venezuela

NCJ Number
217122
Journal
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice Volume: 22 Issue: 4 Dated: November 2006 Pages: 347-367
Author(s)
Freddy Crespo
Date Published
November 2006
Length
21 pages
Annotation
Based on LaFree's model of institutional legitimacy and crime, this study tested the hypothesis that the declining legitimacy of Venezuela's key institutions between 1957 and 2003 was associated with increasing crime rates.
Abstract
The study found that although the charts that graph trends in institutional legitimacy (stable living standards, stable family structures, an effective justice system, and quality educational and social services) and changes in recorded crime rates suggested a significant link between these two trends, statistical analysis showed that these trends were predominantly unrelated, with the partial exception of robbery. The authors caution, however, that alternative variables, additional measurement points, and alternative techniques of analysis might produce different results. These issues should be explored in future research. LaFree defined "institutions" as "patterned, mutually shared ways that people develop for living together." He argued that these patterns are based on norms that provide a regulatory function in modeling behaviors and attitudes. Institutions, according to LaFree, reduce crime by reducing individual motivation to commit crime and controlling criminal behaviors, as well as by protecting people against the criminal behavior of others; however, institutions can only fulfill these functions if they are perceived by participants to be legitimate. The current study tested LaFree's model by using Venezuelan government statistics for the measurement of institutional legitimacy and crime rates. Statistical analysis of the variables was based on autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) techniques and cross-correlation. 8 figures, 1 table, 12 notes, and 38 references