Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Compliance
- The Cambridge Handbook of Compliance
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- 1 Introduction: Compliance as the Interaction between Rules and Behavior
- Part I Compliance Concepts and Approaches
- Part II Deterrence and Incapacitation
- Part III Incentives
- Part IV Legitimacy and Social Norms
- 27 Procedural Justice and Legal Compliance
- 28 Social Norms and Persuasion
- 29 Social Contagion and Goal Framing: The Sustainability of Rule Compliance
- 30 Shaming and Compliance
- 31 Neutralization
- Part V Capacity and Opportunity
- Part VI Compliance and Cognition
- Part VII Management and Organizational Processes
- Part VIII Measuring and Evaluating Compliance
- Part IX Analysis of Particular Fields
- References
31 - Neutralization
from Part IV - Legitimacy and Social Norms
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 May 2021
Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Compliance
- The Cambridge Handbook of Compliance
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- 1 Introduction: Compliance as the Interaction between Rules and Behavior
- Part I Compliance Concepts and Approaches
- Part II Deterrence and Incapacitation
- Part III Incentives
- Part IV Legitimacy and Social Norms
- 27 Procedural Justice and Legal Compliance
- 28 Social Norms and Persuasion
- 29 Social Contagion and Goal Framing: The Sustainability of Rule Compliance
- 30 Shaming and Compliance
- 31 Neutralization
- Part V Capacity and Opportunity
- Part VI Compliance and Cognition
- Part VII Management and Organizational Processes
- Part VIII Measuring and Evaluating Compliance
- Part IX Analysis of Particular Fields
- References
Summary
Abstract: Neutralization theory helps explain how people overcome the negative emotions associated with engaging in crime. Developed by Gresham Sykes and David Matza (1957), neutralization theory proposes that people use linguistic devices (i.e., techniques of neutralizations) when presented with opportunities to engage in crime. Techniques of neutralization allow individuals to temporarily overcome the deterrent effects of negative emotions (e.g., shame and guilt), preserve their self-image, and reinterpret crime as acceptable. Research testing the theory shows that neutralizations play an important role in the decision to engage in crime and deviance. Evidence also shows that neutralization use can be nullified through a variety of crime prevention and intervention methods. However, there are theoretical issues surrounding the theory, especially in regards to understanding what factors may make people more or less likely to use neutralizations, whether neutralizations come before deviant behavior, whether neutralization use is stable over the life-course, and how neutralization use explains persistence and desistance in criminal behavior over the life-course.
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- The Cambridge Handbook of Compliance , pp. 451 - 464Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
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