Crime seriousness ratings: The relationship of information accuracy and general attitudes in Western Australia †

Abstract

A sample 278 Western Australians completed questions asking them to suggest penalties for 27 “crime vignettes” based on a cross cultural study by Scott and Althakeb (1977). A moral indignation score (average number of days in gaol) was then calculated and compared to other factors such as information about Criminal Justice, general punitive or non-punitive attitude and demographic factors such as location, sex, age, marital status, education, political status, etc. Overall results showed considerable variance in response even with crimes defined as violent or very serious. The sample produced scores (averaged for all crimes) higher than for other comparable data. Non punitive and punitive groups were highly correlated with moral indignation. Information while statistically significant was not a useful predictor of moral indignation score. Assumed penalties also were not a useful predictor of attitude or moral indignation. On average, assumed penalties were approximately half the suggested penalty, and was independent of suggested sentences. The survey concludes noting the high degree of variance observed, except in those crimes defined victimless (eg suicide, prostitution, homosexuality, abortion) where suggested penalty was predominantly no penalty and emphasizing the role the media played in the development and formation of attitudes to crime.

The study of criminology depends directly on the labelling and definition of certain behaviour as crime. This identification process is often assumed to reflect community attitudes to these behaviours and is the goal of moral indignation studies, Scott and Althakeb (1977); Wilson and Brown (1973); and crime seriousness rating studies, Sheley (1980); Sebba (1980); Walker (1978). Sheley (p 123) suggests that this field has become “a fairly important concern in the field of criminology” and that “as research into the deterrence of crime Erickson (et al (1977)): Silberman (1976): and moral commitment to societal norms (Hirschi (1969) increases, the use of crime seriousness ratings will also increase”. Also as Sebba writes “since the publication of Sellin and Wolfgang's ”The Measurement of Delinquency“ (1964) much scholarship has been devoted to the topic of seriousness scales”. Some of the studies have emphasized the validity and reliability of the scales while others have raised doubts about their methodology and usefulness, Walker (1971).