Victimless Crimes: Shifting Views and Demographic Indicators Öffentlichkeit
Worsham, Katrina Liang (2014)
Abstract
In this honors thesis I examine how views towards victimless crimes have changed. In particular, I focus on marijuana use and prostitution. Drawing upon previous literature, I explain the origins of the concept of victimless crimes and philosophical ideas used to justify criminalization. I also rely on prior research to identify potential demographic indicators of views toward victimless crimes. I use two representative datasets, the General Social Survey and the American subsample of the World Values Survey to quantify and evaluate relationships between demographic variables and their effect on attitudes toward marijuana use and prostitution. I use a bivariate crosstabulation to explore the relationships between the demographic variables and the respondents' views toward marijuana use and prostitution. I focus on the differences in approval for the following demographic indicators: sex, age, marital status, household income, education, social class, religiosity, and region. Consistent with previous research, I found that respondents who are male, younger than 60, never married, highly educated, of the upper class, non-religious, and in the West were the most approving of marijuana use. Results were similar for attitudes toward prostitution with the exception of marital status, in which separated individuals, rather than those who are never married, were the most approving. These results coincide with previous research. Potential causes for these differences are discussed.
Table of Contents
Introduction
General Definitions
1
3
Literature Review
Liberty Limiting Principles
Harm
Paternalism
Moralism
Offense
Criticisms of Criminalization
Prostitution
Drugs
Shifting Views of Victimless Crimes
5
5
5
7
8
10
11
11
14
17
Data and Methods
24
Analysis
General Trends
Sex
Age
Marital Status
Family Income
Education
Class Identification
Religiosity
Region
27
27
32
33
34
35
35
36
37
38
Discussion and Conclusion
39
References
41
About this Honors Thesis
| School | |
|---|---|
| Department | |
| Degree | |
| Submission | |
| Language |
|
| Research Field | |
| Stichwort | |
| Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor | |
| Committee Members |
Primary PDF
| Thumbnail | Title | Date Uploaded | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Victimless Crimes: Shifting Views and Demographic Indicators () | 2018-08-28 10:13:14 -0400 |
|
Supplemental Files
| Thumbnail | Title | Date Uploaded | Actions |
|---|