Myopic decision making: An examination of crime decisions and their outcomes in sexual crimes

Abstract

Purpose According to the rational choice approach, offenders consider costs and benefits when making decisions. This study applies this framework to sexual offenses and examines how various decisions made by perpetrators of sexual crimes influenced the desired and undesired crime outcomes that resulted. Methods The study examines 2296 crimes of a sexual nature committed by a sample of 898 offenders evaluated at the Massachusetts Treatment Center. Using Generalized Estimating Equations, 23 predictor variables measuring sexually coercive decisions made in each crime about four aspects (who?, when?, where?, and how?) are used to predict ten desired (positive) and seven undesired (negative) crime outcomes for offenders. Results Results indicated that decisions made by offenders in the context of their sexual crimes were mostly oriented towards the production of immediate positive outcomes and the prevention of immediate negative outcomes, but demonstrated little consideration for non-immediate negative outcomes. Conclusions Sexual offenders engage in myopic or hyperbolic discounting when making criminal decisions.