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Revisiting the Guilty Mind: The Neutralization of White-Collar Crime

NCJ Number
241164
Journal
Criminal Justice Review Volume: 37 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2012 Pages: 494-511
Author(s)
William A. Stadler; Michael L. Benson
Date Published
December 2012
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This study examined the issue that white-collar offenders do not regard themselves or their actions as criminal.
Abstract
Since Sutherland first addressed the topic, it has been well known that white-collar offenders do not regard themselves or their actions as criminal. Almost without exception white-collar offenders deny that they had a guilty mind when committing their offenses. Indeed, a distinguishing feature of the psychological makeup of white-collar offenders is thought to be their ability to neutralize the moral bind of the law and rationalize their criminal behavior. Although white-collar offenders are assumed to be different than other types of offenders in how they think about their crimes, no research has compared white-collar to other offenders on this matter. The current study fills this gap in the literature by comparing a sample of Federal prison inmates convicted of white-collar offenses with a sample convicted of other types of offenses. Findings indicate that white-collar offenders may not have different thinking patterns as previously thought. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.