Sociodemographic Correlates of Knowledge About Elite Deviance

Am J Crim Just DOI 10.1007/s12103-014-9276-0 Sociodemographic Correlates of Knowledge About Elite Deviance Cedric Michel & Kathleen M. Heide & John K. Cochran Received: 1 July 2014 / Accepted: 13 September 2014 # Southern Criminal Justice Association 2014 Abstract Elite deviance is a complex social phenomenon whose understanding re- quires a modicum of knowledge about various disciplines (e.g., financial economics, accounting, politics, environmental law, etc.). Consequently, public awareness of this type of offense is expected to correlate positively with one’s general level of education. It is uncertain what other sociodemographic characteristics may be associated with knowledge about crimes of the powerful. In the present study, 408 participants com- pleted an online questionnaire that measured (1) their sociodemographic characteristics and (2) their knowledge about elite deviance. Significant variation was found among participants in their level of knowledge about elite deviance, acceptance of “truths” and adherence to “myths” with respect to gender, race/ethnicity, education, political ideol- ogy, religious affiliation, and source of information. More knowledgeable subjects were found to be those who identified as Whites, with higher education levels, without any religious affiliation, and who used the Internet as their main source of information. In comparison, less knowledgeable participants and “myth” adherers turned out to be predominantly male, politically more conservative, Republican, conservative Protes- tant, and who relied on traditional media sources rather than the Internet. These findings and their implications are discussed. Keywords Sociodemographic correlates . Knowledge . Elite deviance . White-collar crime C. Michel (*) Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Tampa, 401, W. Kennedy Blvd, Tampa, FL 33606-1490, USA e-mail: [email protected] K. M. Heide : J. K. Cochran Department of Criminology, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Ave, SOC 107, Tampa, FL 33620-8100, USA K. M. Heide e-mail: [email protected] J. K. Cochran e-mail: [email protected]  Am J Crim Just To date, empirical research on societal response to elite deviance1 has maintained its focus on public opinions (e.g., Huff, Desilets, & Kane, 2010; Holtfreter, Van Slyke, Bratton, & Gertz, 2008; Kane & Wall, 2006; Rebovich & Kane, 2002; Rebovich, Layne, Jiandani, & Hage, 2000; Schoepfer, Carmichael & Piquero, 2007; etc.). Al- though these studies have served to debunk the myth that Americans are apathetic about white-collar crime, they did not include a valid measure of lay knowledge about it. Consequently, little is known about the extent to which the public is familiar with the scope and magnitude of this social issue. The authors (under review) proposed to remedy this limitation by providing the first measure of public knowledge about elite deviance. Their findings provided convincing evidence that Americans might not be sufficiently informed about white-collar crime. On average, study participants failed a 10-item multiple choice and true or false questionnaire that tapped various dimensions of elite deviance (e.g., financial cost, physical harmfulness, relative legal immunity for white-collar offenders, etc.). Further, participants tended not to recognize the greater physical harmfulness of elite deviance compared to street crime, and that crimes that are common in underdeveloped nations (e.g., human trafficking) can also be committed in the United States by elite offenders with relative legal immunity. These findings suggest that the general public may harbor “myths” about elite deviance akin to those observed in the literature on public knowl- edge about street crime (e.g., crime being rampant, overly violent, etc., Doob & Roberts, 1983; Kappeler, Blumberg, & Potter, 1996; Maguire & Pastore, 1995; Roberts & Stalans, 1997; Wilbanks, 1987). It is not clear, however, which sociodemographic characteristics affect knowledge about elite deviance and how much variation exists among the general public. Sociodemographic Variation in Attitudes about White-Collar Crime Research suggests significant variation in perceived seriousness of, and punitiveness against, white-collar crime among the public. More specifically, some studies have suggested that older people and people of lower socioeconomic status tend to view elite deviance as somewhat more serious than conventional violent crime and narcotic offenses (Grabosky, Braithwaite, & Wilson, 1987; Hauber, Toonvliet, & Willemse, 1988). Further, Blacks have been found to rate white-collar crimes directed at con- sumers (e.g., fraud, health threats and deception regarding the production and sale of goods and services, etc.) as somewhat more serious than do Whites, who seem more sensitive to white-collar crimes directed at businesses (e.g., forgery, embezzlement, etc., Miethe, 1984). Attitudes also seem to vary by occupation. For example, those subjects whose profession brings experience about white-collar crime (e.g., judge, prosecutor, etc.) do not seem to consider harsh penal sanctions an effective way to deal with white- collar crime (Cole, 1983; Frank, Cullen, Travis, & Borntrager, 1989; Hartung, 1953; McCleary, O’Neil, Epperlein, Jones, & Gray, 1981). 1 Simon (1999) coined the term “elite deviance” in reference to illegal and/or immoral acts committed by the three power elites (i.e., government, corporations, and the military) identified by Mills (1956). We are using this term interchangeably with “white-collar crime” to describe criminal or deviant behaviors performed by a small dominant group of individuals in control of a disproportionate amount of power. Am J Crim Just Findings are nonetheless more ambiguous in regard to gender. More specifically, in some studies men were more likely to support harsh punishment against white-collar offenders (Cullen, Clark, & Wozniak, 1985; Dodge, Bosick, & Van Antwerp, 2013; Keil & Vito, 1991), whereas in others women were found to be more punitive (Cohn, Barkan, & Halteman, 1991; Miller, Rossi, & Simpson, 1986; Rossi, Waite, Bose, & Berk, 1974). To further obfuscate the problem, other studies found no gender effect (Costello, Chiricos, Burianek, Gertz, & Maier-Katkin, 2002; Rebovich & Jiandani, 2000; Rebovich & Kane, 2002). Similarly, research on the effect of religiosity on attitudes about white-collar crime yielded equivocal results. Corcoran, Pettinicchio, and Robbins (2012) found religious beliefs to be negatively related to the tolerance of crimes of the powerful. However, in their study, religious social relationships and belonging to religious organizations were unrelated to the acceptability of white- collar crime. In any case, it is not known whether such attitudes were dictated by extensive knowledge of the problem. Although they did not directly measure their respondents’ knowledge about white- collar crime, Holtfreter and colleagues (2008) identified misconceptions about elite deviance that appeared to vary by certain sociodemographic characteristics. In their study, females and those who described themselves as moderate or conservative politi- cally were more likely to perceive white-collar criminals as having an equal or greater chance of being caught and more harshly punished than street offenders. Extant research suggests that such belief is erroneous (Calavita, Tillman, & Pontell, 1997; Maddan, Hartley, Walker, & Miller, 2012; Tillman & Pontell, 1992). Conversely, those with incomes over $50,000 and college-educated respondents rightfully believed that the criminal justice system evinces greater leniency toward elite offenders. These results therefore suggest that public awareness of white-collar crime may vary demographically. Hypotheses and Rationale for the Present Study Given the high financial and physical costs of elite deviance on society, and the seemingly low levels of knowledge about the problem, it is incumbent upon criminol- ogists to better inform the public. Nevertheless, such a task requires knowing one’s target audience. Only by identifying those population groups with the greatest knowl- edge deficits can we find the most appropriate conduits to disseminate relevant information about white-collar crime. Elite deviance is a complex social phenomenon whose understanding requires some knowledge about several disciplines (e.g., financial economics, accounting, politics, environmental law, etc.). As suggested by Holtfreter and colleagues’ study (2008), public awareness of these crimes should therefore correlate positively with one’s general level of education. That is, individuals with higher degrees may have been exposed to relevant information about white-collar crime and possess better knowledge of it. Still, it is uncertain what other characteristics may be associated with knowledge about elite deviance, either positively or negatively. Does knowledge about white-collar crime vary by age, race, gender, profession, socioeco- nomic status, or other variables? The purpose of the present study is therefore to determine the sociodemographic correlates of knowledge about elite deviance. It is an extension of the authors’ aforementioned study (under review), the methodology of which is summarized in the following section.  Am J Crim Just Method Sample Selection The participants in this study were recruited on Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, a crowdsourcing Internet marketplace that coordinates the supply and demand of human intelligence tasks (HIT). More precisely, requesters advertise HITs that can be completed on a computer (e.g., a survey), and workers volunteer to complete them based on monetary compensation and time allotted for completion. This source of data collection has recently become popular in the field of psychol- ogy (e.g., Buhrmester, Kwang, & Gosling, 2011; Horton, Rand, & Zeckhauser, 2011; Paolacci, Chandler, & Ipeirotis, 2010), but also in criminology (Bastian, Denson, & Haslam, 2013; Filone, Strohmaier, Murphy, & DeMatteo, 2014; Garg, Camp, & Kanich, 2013; Graves, Acquisti, & Anderson, 2014; Martire, Kemp, Watkins, Sayle, & Newell, 2013; Mathieu, Hare, Jones, Babiak, & Neumann, 2013; Nadler & McDonnell, 2011) due to its convenience (workers can complete HITs from their own home whenever they want) and low cost ($2.00 per completed survey in the present study). Further, research suggests that this new methodology yields reliable results. Paolacci and colleagues (2010) compared the results of social science experiments among subjects recruited on Mechanical Turk, online discussion boards, and at a large university and found those to be qualitatively identical. In addition, in their study, subjects recruited on Mechanical Turk were more likely to complete the survey than participants in online discussion forums (91.6 % vs. 66.7 %, respectively), χ2 (1,268)= 20.915, p<.001, which suggests that Mechanical Turk reduces the risk of non-response error in online research. Lastly, Mechanical Turk workers have been found to be as representative of the U.S. population as traditional subject pools (Buhrmester et al., 2011; Paolacci et al., 2010). Procedure Data collection took place on April 1st, 2013. Workers were asked to complete an online questionnaire that measured their level of knowledge about elite deviance. They were informed that their answers would remain confidential.2 The sample size goal of 500 adult American participants 3 was reached within only 3 h. After eliminating incomplete and/or dubious surveys (i.e., surveys completed in less than 10 min4), the final sample consisted of 408 respondents. Sociodemographic Characteristics of Sample A sociodemographic questionnaire was used to determine which variables might account for variation in public knowledge about elite deviance. These potential 2 The questionnaire was approved by the Human Subjects’ Review Board of the lead author’s university. 3 Prior research suggests that recruiting 500 subjects on Mechanical Turk for a social science experiment is a realistic objective (see, e.g., Buhrmester et al., 2011). 4 Pilot testing suggested a minimum completion time of 10 min. Am J Crim Just correlates included gender, age, race/ethnicity, the region where the respondents grew up, 5 participants’ current residence, their household income, completed education, employment status, 6 political ideology 7 and affiliation, religion, and source of infor- mation.8 Table 1 presents descriptive statistics for these variables. As depicted in Table 1, male and female participants each comprised about half of the sample subjects. Their average age was close to 34 years old. Nearly 80 % identified themselves as White; approximately 7 % identified themselves as Hispanic. Slightly more than one third indicated that they grew up in the Northeast and nearly two thirds said that they lived in urban areas. The median annual household income was between $40,000 and $49,000, and college graduates (Bachelor’s degree or higher) accounted for almost half of the total sample. Nearly three quarters were employed full- time. Forty-three point six percent reported belonging to no religion. On average, respondents were politically more liberal, and Democrats predominated among sample participants, comprising 46 % of the sample. Lastly, over 80 % of respondents reported that they got news from the Internet. Knowledge About Elite Deviance Questionnaire Knowledge about elite deviance was measured via a 10-item questionnaire that includ- ed multiple-choice and true or false questions largely derived from the bank of test items developed for Rosoff, Pontell and Tillman’s text Profit Without Honor: White- Collar Crime and the Looting of America (2010).9 Table 2 presents these ten items and the different dimensions they tap, and provides a brief justification for their inclusion in the survey. Each correct answer to those ten items was entered into an overall knowledge scale. The following grading policy was used: nine or ten correct answers (90.00–100.00 = “Very informed”, eight correct answers (80.00–89.99) = “Informed”, seven correct answers (70.00–79.99) = “Somewhat informed”, and six or fewer correct answers 5 ANOVAs yielded statistically significant differences in knowledge for subjects from the North and from the East, which might be due to the industrial and financial history of Northeastern states. Consequently, the region variable was dummy coded (1 = Northeast, 0 = Other). 6 ANOVAs and correlational analyses between profession, other predictors, and knowledge about elite deviance yielded no significant pattern. The lack of significance could be the result of the crude way in which the occupation variable was measured. Answers were for the most part ambiguous and difficult to code. For example, it was impossible to determine to what “manager” referred without any reference to the subjects’ line of work. Consequently, the occupation variable was dropped from the analyses. 7 Elements of neoliberal economics such as market deregulation have been shown to facilitate the commission of certain white-collar crimes (see, e.g., Lynch & Michalowski, 2006). Consequently, opponents of capitalism (i.e., those leaning toward the left end of the political spectrum) might have had greater exposure to information about elite deviance and its etiology. 8 Americans have been shown to rely primarily on the news media as their main source of information (Dowler, 2003; Roberts & Doob, 1990; Surette, 1998). However, white-collar crime is not as widely reported in the news media as street crime (Barak, 1994; Barlow & Barlow, 2010; Ericson, Baranck, & Chan, 1991; Lynch & Michalowski, 2006). Consequently, some variation in knowledge about elite deviance might be expected between those who rely on traditional media outlets and those who seek information from other sources (e.g., websites). 9 We are aware that using a test bank designed for an already informed college audience might not work well with the general public. Consequently, only those items that tapped basic dimensions of elite deviance were selected. Conversely, questions that asked for very precise information (e.g., figures) were dropped.  Am J Crim Just Table 1 Descriptive statistics for sociodemographic characteristics (N=408) Variables Coding/Range Percent Mean SD Gender Dummy variable .5 .5 - 0 = Female 50.2 - 1 = Male Age Years 33.58 11.09 Race Dummy variables - White 79.2 .79 .41 - Black 7.8 .08 .27 - Other race 6.1 .06 .24 Ethnicity Dummy variable - 0 = Non-Hispanic - 1 = Hispanic 6.9 .07 .25 Region growing up Dummy variable - 0 = Other - 1 = Northeast 36.0 .36 .48 Current residence Dummy variable - 0 = Rural - 1 = Urban 64.2 .64 .48 Household income 10-point ordinal scale 5.07 2.21 (1 = Under $10,000; 10 = $150,000 +) Education 8-point ordinal scale 5.37 1.35 (1 = Grade school; 8 = Advanced degree) Employment Dummy variable - 0 = Not employed full time - 1 = Employed full time 74.3 .74 .44 Political ideology 6-point ordinal scale 2.98 1.25 (1 = Very liberal; 6 = Very conservative) Political affiliation Dummy variable - No party 12.5 .12 .33 - Republican 16.9 .17 .37 - Democrat 46.3 .46 .49 - Other party 24.3 .24 .43 Religious identity Dummy variable - No religion 43.6 44 49 - Catholic 14.5 .14 .35 - Conservative Protestant 13.2 .13 .34 - Moderate Protestant 15.7 .16 .36 - Liberal Protestant 4.90 .05 .22 -Other religion 8.10 .08 .27 Source of information Dummy variable - 0 = Traditional media - 1 = Internet 81.10 .811 .39 Am J Crim Just Table 2 Knowledge questionnaire Dimension Question Asked (correct answer in italics) Justification for Inclusion 1) Meaning of the The term “white-collar crime” is based on: It is not at all certain that the public even term “White- 1. The occupation of the victims knows and understands Sutherland’s Collar Crime” (1949) implicit reference to upper class 2. The occupations of the perpetrators professionals. 3. The offenders’ association with religion 2) Financial cost How much does street crime cost the Research indicates that street crime costs American public compared to white- approximately $18 billion to the public collar crime? (UCR, 2011). Conversely, the financial 1. Significantly less impact of white-collar crime on society due to fraud and various medical costs 2. Somewhat less resulting from workplace injuries and 3. The costs are about the same illnesses, and environmental pollution 4. Somewhat more exceeds a trillion dollars every year (Knowlton, Rotkin-Ellman, Geballe, 5. Significantly more Max, & Solomon, 2011; Landrigan, Schechter, Lipton, Fahs, & Schwartz, 2002; Leigh, 2011; Leigh et al., 2000; Lynch & Michalowski, 2006; Rebovich & Jiandani, 2000; Reiman & Leighton, 2010). 3) Harmfulness Statistically, street crimes like assaults, Official statistics indicate that about 14,000 murders, and muggings are ______ to people die every year from criminal injure or kill people than/as white-collar homicide (UCR, 2011). Comparatively, crime. white-collar crime may harm or injure 1. Significantly less likely over 8,986,000 people every year and lead to the untimely death of another 2. Somewhat less likely 283,600 people (Herbert & Landrigan, 3. As likely 2000; Kramer, 1984; Lynch & 4. Somewhat more likely Michalowski, 2006; Reiman, 1998; Reiman & Leighton, 2010; Starfield, 5. Significantly more likely 2000). 4) Legal immunity Someone who commits a street crime like As previously mentioned, research suggests burglary and steals $1000 is _____ to be that white-collar offenders are more convicted and to receive a similar likely to avoid criminal convictions and sentence than/as someone who commits to receive more lenient sentences com- a white-collar crime like fraud and steals pared to those imposed upon street $1000. criminals (Calavita et al., 1997; Maddan 1. Significantly less likely et al., 2012; Tillman & Pontell, 1992). 2. Somewhat less likely 3. As likely 4. Somewhat more likely 5. Significantly more likely 5) Reckless Although Ford knew their Pinto model’s The 1972 Ford Pinto scandal (Legget, disregard gas tank represented a safety defect, they 1999) drew significant media attention chose not to invest in an inexpensive and and remains a classic case of corporate safer design, reasoning that it would be violence. cheaper to pay out expected wrongful death lawsuits. As a result, several people died in fiery crashes. 1. True 2. False  Am J Crim Just Table 2 (continued) Dimension Question Asked (correct answer in italics) Justification for Inclusion 6) Medical crime Compared to criminal homicides, Recall that approximately 14,000 people _______________ people in the US die die from homicide annually (UCR, from medical malpractice. 2011). Conversely, the empirical 1. More literature estimates that 225,000 victims die each year from medical crime 2. An equal number of (Starfield, 2000). 3. Fewer 7) Human Human trafficking is more common in Extant research supports the existence of trafficking underdeveloped countries than in domestic slavery among foreign workers developed nations. on American soil (Bales, 2004; Bales & 1. True Soodalter, 2009; Gilmore, 2004). Though the prevalence of human 2. False trafficking is no greater in developed countries, it is actually quite high as well. 8) State-corporate Private American military companies have This statement appears on the Amnesty crime been accused of engaging in a number of International website in regard to human rights violations including the allegations of involvement in human abuse and torture of detainees, shootings rights violations such as torture at the and killings of innocent civilians, American prison camp of Abu Ghraib, destruction of property, and sexual Iraq and the 2007 shootings of Iraqi harassment and rape. civilians in Nisoor Square by private 1. True U.S. security contractor Academi (formerly Blackwater). 2. False 9) Toxic dumping Landfills and toxic waste disposal sites are Research indicates that those sites tend to more likely to be located near African be found close to African American American communities than white neighborhoods with very limited legal communities. recourse (Barnett, 1999; Colborn, 1. True Dumanoski, & Myers, 1997; Denno, 1990; Dietrich, Succop, Berger, & 2. False Bornschein, 2001; Lynch, 2004; Lynch & Stretesky, 2001, 2003; Needleman et al., 1996; Pihl & Ervin, 1990; Pueschel, Linakis, & Anderson, 1996; Roderick, 1992; Wargo, 1998). 10) Toxic Toxic emissions could be reduced much Extant research supports this argument emissions more if industries agreed to employ (Benton, 1998; Frank & Lynch, 1992; appropriate technologies. Groombridge, 1998; Lane, 1998; Lynch, 1. True 1990; Lynch & Stretesky, 2003; South & Beirne, 2006). 2. False (69.99>) = “Not informed”. Answer confidence was also measured to create “truth” acceptance and “myth” adherence scales. More specifically, white-collar “truth” vari- ables were created every time subjects picked the correct answer to a knowledge item while feeling “confident” or “very confident” about it. Similarly, white-collar “myth” variables were created whenever subjects felt either “confident” or “very confident” about their answer to a knowledge item even though they answered that item incorrectly. Am J Crim Just Results As depicted in Table 3, which presents descriptive statistics for knowledge about elite deviance, “truth” acceptance, and “myth” adherence, the ten knowledge questions employed different types of scale. The first question had three modal categories. Questions 2, 3, and 4 employed a Likert scale with five possible responses. Question 6 also used a Likert scale but with three answer options. Lastly, items 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 were true or false questions. Overall, respondents did not evince high levels of confi- dence about their answers, even when they were correct. Still, participants were more inclined to hold as truths those items that tapped the meaning of the term “white-collar crime” (M=.67), human rights violation abroad (M=.60), toxic dumping (M=.31), and the reluctance of some companies to invest in green energy (M=.74). Conversely, a number of participants seemed to adhere to specific myths, including street crime being more physically harmful than white-collar crime (M=.63), the equal treatment of white-collar and street offenders by the criminal justice system (M=.25), and human trafficking not being much of a problem in developed nations (M=32). Again, the purpose of this study is to identify these people. Table 4 presents the results of one-way between subjects ANOVAs in the effect of sociodemographic predictors of knowledge about white-collar crime, “truth” accep- tance, and “myth” adherence. F-tests and effect sizes (eta squared) are reported. Analysis of variance showed significant differences in knowledge about elite deviance in regard to the region where subjects grew up [F (4, 403)=2.44, p<.05, η2 =.024], their level of education [F (6, 401)=4.48, p<.000, η2 =.06], their political ideology [F (5, 402)=2.87, p<.05, η2 =.03], and their religious affiliation [F (7, 400)=2.57, p<.05, η2 =.03]. However, the eta squared statistics indicated small to moderate effect sizes. Post hoc comparisons using Tukey’s test failed to find any statistically significant mean group differences for the region where subjects grew up. Subjects who held an advanced degree (M=6.27, SD=1.46) were found to be more knowledgeable about white-collar crime than those who only completed high school (M=4.96, SD=1.37), one or more years of technical, vocational, or trade school (M=4.67, SD=1.61), and some college (M=5.44, SD=1.52). Further, participants who identified as “very liberal” (M=6.02, SD=1.57) were statistically more knowledgeable about elite deviance than were “somewhat conservative” subjects (M=5.12, SD=1.47). In addition, Protestant respondents (M=5.17, SD=1.56) were less knowledgeable about white-collar crime compared to subjects who reported belonging to no religion (M=5.73, SD=1.54). With respect to “truth” acceptance, significant differences were found as far as subjects’ level of education [F (6, 401)=3.47, p<.01, η2 =.05], political views [F (5, 402)=4.16, p<.001, η2 =.05], as well as political affiliation [F (5, 402)=2.91, p<.05, η2 =.03]. However, it should be noted that eta squared statistics once again indicated only small to medium effect sizes. Tukey post hoc comparisons showed that subjects with an advanced degree (e.g., master’s, Ph.D., M.D., J.D., etc.) were more likely to accept “truths” about elite deviance (M=3.81, SD=1.99) than were those who only completed high school (M=2.64, SD=1.77) and one or more years of technical, vocational, or trade school (M = 3.58, SD = 1.68). Moreover, participants who identified as “very liberal” were more likely to be “truth” accepters (M=4.33, SD= 1.85) than were all other subjects. Further, Republicans were less likely to accept “truths” (M=2.75, SD=1.67) compared with Independents (M=3.75, SD=1.92).  Am J Crim Just Table 3 Descriptive Statistics for Knowledge about Elite Deviance (N=408), “Truth” Acceptance (N=134), and “Myth” Adherence (N=67) Variables Coding/Range Mean SD Knowledge 10-item multiple-choice and true or false questionnaire - Meaning of the term “white-collar crime” N/A N/A N/A - Financial cost (1–5) 2.4 1.16 - Harmfulness (1–5) 4.38 1.02 - Legal immunity (1–5) 3.72 1.25 - Reckless disregard (1–2) 1.25 .43 - Medical crime (1–3) 2.02 .89 - Human trafficking (1–2) 1.31 .46 - State-corporate crime (1–2) 1.09 .28 - Toxic dumping (1–2) 1.33 .47 - Toxic emissions (1–2) 1.03 .17 “Truths” Correct answer+“confident” or “very confident” 1. Not at all confident 2. Somewhat confident 3. Confident 4. Very confident - Meaning of the term “white-collar crime” .67 .47 - Financial cost .14 .34 - Harmfulness .03 .16 - Legal immunity .27 .44 - Reckless disregard .27 .45 - Medical crime .13 .34 - Human trafficking .11 .31 - State-corporate crime .60 .49 - Toxic dumping .31 .47 - Toxic emissions .74 .44 “Myths” Incorrect answer+“confident” or “very confident” 1. Not at all confident 2. Somewhat confident 3. Confident 4. Very confident - Meaning of the term “white-collar crime” .05 .22 - Financial cost .14 .35 - Harmfulness .63 .48 - Legal immunity .25 .44 - Reckless disregard .03 .16 - Medical crime .12 .33 - Human trafficking .32 .47 - State-corporate crime .01 .10 - Toxic dumping .08 .27 - Toxic emissions .01 .10 Am J Crim Just Table 4 One-Way Between Subjects ANOVAs in the Effect of Sociodemographic Predictors of Knowledge about White-Collar Crime (N=408), “Truth” Acceptance (N=134), and “Myth” Adherence (N=67) Knowledge “Truth” acceptance “Myth” adherence F (df) η2 F (df) η2 F (df) η2 Age .96 (49, 358) − 1.16 (49, 358) − .89 (49, 358) − Race 1.50 (6, 401) − 1.07 (6, 401) − 3.24* (6, 401) .05 Region 2.44* (4, 403) .02 .90 (4, 403) − 2.93* (4, 403) .03 Residence .85 (9, 398) − .67 (9, 398) − 1.37 (9, 398) − Education 4.48* (6, 401) .06 3.47* (6, 401) .05 .311 (6, 401) − Employed 1.24 (4, 403) − 1.77 (4, 403) − 1.89 (4, 403) − Income 1.41 (9, 308) − .89 (9, 398) − 2.41* (9, 398) .05 Pol. Ideology 2.87* (5, 402) .03 4.16* (5, 402) .05 1.79 (5, 402) − Pol. Affiliation 1.59 (5, 402) − 2.91* (5, 402) .03 2.06 (5, 402) − Religion 2.57* (7, 400) .04 1.91 (7, 400) − 1.35 (7, 400) − Information 1.13 (6, 401) − .54 (6, 401) − 2.63* (6, 401) .04 η2 =effect size *p<.05 In regard to “myth” adherence, significant group differences were found for race [F (6, 401)=3.24, p<.01, η2 =.05], but post hoc comparisons could not be performed due to one category (“Native Hawaiian or pacific Islander”) having less than two cases. An independent sample t test using the dichotomized variable “White” showed a significant difference, t (406)=−2.65, p<.01, with white subjects (M=1.56, SD=.1.28) being less likely than their non-white counterparts (M=2.00, SD=.165) to adhere to “myths” about elite deviance. However, Cohen’s effect size (d=.30) suggested modest practical sig- nificance. Similar differences emerged in regard to the region where subjects grew up [F (4, 403)=2.93, p<.05, η2 =.03]. More specifically, “myth” adherence was higher among subjects who grew up in northern states (M=2.06, SD=1.43) than among those who grew up in the Midwest (M=1.25, SD=.98). Although small but significant differences emerged for income [F (9, 398)=2.41, p<.05, η2 =.05], post hoc comparisons using Tukey’s test failed to find any mean group differences. Significant differences emerged in regard to the type of information source that subjects used [F (6, 401)=2.63, p<.05, η2 =.04]. Once again, post hoc comparisons could not be completed due to several groups having less than two cases. An independent samples t test using the dichotomized variable “Internet” yielded a significant difference, t (406)=−3.15, p<.01, with web users (M=1.55, SD=1.29) being less likely to adhere to “myths” about elite deviance than are those who relied on traditional media (M=2.09, SD=1.63). Cohen’s effect size (d=.37) suggested moderate practical significance. Taken together, these results suggest small yet statistically significant differences in knowledge about white-collar crime as well as in the acceptance of “truths” and adherence to “myths” about elite deviance. As such, they warrant further investigation. Table 5 presents zero-order correlations between sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge about elite deviance, “truth” acceptance and “myth” adherence. Correlation  Am J Crim Just Table 5 Zero-Order Correlations between Sociodemographic Characteristics, Knowledge about Elite Devi- ance (N=408), “Truth” Acceptance (N=134), and “Myth” Adherence (N=67) Knowledge “Truth” Acceptance “Myth” Adherence Male .910 .127* .160** Age .031 −.025 −.048 White .154** .078 −.131** Black −.074 .051 .114* Other Race −.087 −.072 −.002 Hispanic −.086 −.110* .090 Northeast −.081 −.083 .065 Urban −.014 .035 .037 Income −.036 .076 .091 Education .219** .175** .008 Employed −.026 .074 .090 Pol. Ideology −.158** −.142** .078 Republican −.113* −.129** .120 Democrat .017 .021 .026 Other Party .070 .079 −.120* No Party −.013 −.061 −.071 Catholic −.075 −.070 . 029 Cons. Protestant −.142** −.142** .084 Mod. Protestant −.044 −.003 .002 Lib. Protestant −.027 −.016 .008 Other Religion .099 .068 .004 No Religion .140** .118* −.085 Internet .075 .005 −.155** Correlation coefficients reported in all tables are Pearson’s r when using dichotomous predictors and Spearman’s rho when using multinomial nominal and/or ordinal predictors *p<.05, ** p<.01 coefficients reported are Pearson’s r when using dichotomous predictors and Spearman’s rho when using multinomial nominal and/or ordinal predictors. Importantly, it should be noted that the majority of the correlations failed to attain statistical significance. Further, significant associations tended to be weak (i.e., less than +/− 0.20). Although no difference was found for gender in terms of overall knowledge about white-collar crime, statistically significant differences emerged for “truth” acceptance and “myth” adherence. More specifically, men were not only more likely to accept “truths” (r=.127) but also to adhere to “myths” (r=.160). Recall that “truths” and “myths” were operationalized as subjects’ confidence in correct or incorrect answers, respectively. It therefore appears that males were more confident in their response choices than were their female counterparts who showed more reservation. These findings are concordant with previous research suggesting that women tend to express less confidence in their self-assessments (Clark & Zehr, 1993; Smith, Morrison, & Wolf, 1994), whereas men evince greater belief in their scholarly abilities (Sax & Harper, 2007). Am J Crim Just As for race, Whites were more knowledgeable (r=.154) and less likely to adhere to “myths” (r=−.131) while Blacks (r=.114) were more likely to adhere to them. Further, Hispanics were less likely to accept “truths” than non-Hispanics (r=-.110). As expect- ed, education was positively correlated with knowledge (r=.219) and “truth” accep- tance (r=.175). Statistically significant relationships were also found for political ideology. Political views and affiliation were included as potential correlates of knowledge about white- collar crime due to the fact that right-wing politics tend to support elements of neoliberal economics such as market deregulation, which has been shown to facilitate the com- mission of certain white-collar crimes (see, e.g., Lynch & Michalowski, 2006). In turn, such attitudes could lead conservatives to discard information that equates corporations with street criminals. As expected, more politically conservative subjects and Repub- licans were less knowledgeable about white-collar crime (r=-.158 and -.113, respec- tively) and less likely to accept “truths” (r=-.142 and -.129, respectively). On the other hand, being politically unaffiliated was associated with lower “myth” adherence (r=-120). Results for religious views mirror those findings. More specifically, con- servative Protestants were less knowledgeable (r=-.142) and less likely to admit “truths” about elite deviance (r=-.142). Conversely, subjects who reported not having any religion were more knowledgeable (r=.140) and more likely to accept “truths” (r=.118). In summation, despite very weak correlation coefficients no greater than +/− 0.20 and most failing to attain statistical significance, it appears that respondents’ gender, race/ethnicity, income, education, political ideology, religious affiliation, and source of information were associated with their level of general knowledge about white-collar crime, as well as their “truth” acceptance and “myth” adherence. A series of multivar- iate regression models were run to determine whether differences found at the bivariate level would persist after a more stringent analysis. In the following regression models, reference groups include White for race, Republican for political affiliation, and conservative Protestant for religious identity. That is, these three suppressed categories are coded 0 on their respective dummy variables, which allows for comparing their impact on knowledge about white-collar crime relative to other races, political parties and religions, with all other variables controlled. In each analysis, standardized regres- sion coefficients (betas) and their corresponding significance levels are presented. Importantly, with no variance inflator factor greater than 4, excessive multicollinearity could not be detected.10 Table 6 presents the regression analysis summary for sociodemographic predictors of knowledge about elite deviance, “truth” acceptance, and “myth” adherence. These models predicted the outcome with limited success, with adjusted R2 ranging between .094 and .132. Further, as was the case with correlation coefficients, statistically significant betas were both scarce and weak. Compared to Whites, non-Black subjects who reported belonging to “other racial” groups were less likely to be knowledgeable about elite deviance (b=−.153), as were Hispanics relative to non-Latinos (b=−.122). Conversely, education and belonging to “other” religions or no religion at all (compared with conservative Protestants) significantly increased the likelihood of 10 We also checked for possible heteroscedasticity in each model, but the residual plots were approximately the same width for all values of the predicted dependent value.  Am J Crim Just Table 6 Regression Analysis Summary for Sociodemographic Predictors of Knowledge about Elite Deviance (N=408), “Truth” Acceptance (N=134), and “Myth” Adherence (N=67); Betas Knowledge “Truth” acceptance “Myth” adherence Male .038 .081 .185*** Age .072 .023 −.081 Black −.059 .058 .115* Other Race −.153** −.117* .044 Hispanic −.122** −.129** .108* Northeast −.071 −.065 .067 Urban −.015 −.006 −.004 Income −.095 .039 .088 Education .269*** .159** −.035 Employed −.038 .067 .091 Pol. Ideology −.156 −.159* .044 Democrat −.039 −.017 −.060 Other Party .074 .136 −.143 No Party −.005 −.020 −.093 Catholic .077 .071 −.078 Mod. Protestant .062 .106 −.064 Lib. Protestant .015 .017 −.040 Other Religion .166** .143* −.035 No Religion .178* .162 −.118 Internet .071 −.013 −.207*** Intercept 4.052 1.828 2.204 2 Adj. R .132*** .100*** .094*** Reference categories include White for race, Republican for political affiliation, and conservative Protestant for religious identity *p<.05, **p<.01., ***p<.001 having knowledge about white-collar crime (b=.269, .166, and .178, respectively). Similar results emerged as far as “truth” acceptance. More specifically, compared to Whites, members of other races were less likely to accept relevant information about white-collar crime (b=−.117), as were Hispanics (b=−.129), and more politically conservative subjects (b=−.159). Once again, however, more educated participants, as well as those belonging to other religious groups, were more likely to agree with empirically validated facts about elite deviance (b=.159 and .143, respectively). Lastly, those more likely to adhere to “myths” about white-collar crime were males (b=.185), Blacks (b=.115) and Hispanics (b=.108), whereas those less likely to espouse such unfounded beliefs included subjects who used the Internet as their main source of information (b=−.207). In summation, while several associations were no longer statistically significant, a number of sociodemographic divergences persisted after running the regressions. Once again, Whites and better-educated individuals were found to be more knowledgeable about elite deviance, a disparity that may find its root in racial and ethnic gaps in Am J Crim Just educational attainment (U.S. Census, 2012). Further, those who relied on online sources of information were less likely to adhere to “myths” regarding white-collar crime. Conversely, politically conservative subjects and conservative Protestants proved to be less knowledgeable than their liberal counterparts. It therefore appears that political and religious affiliations supportive of capitalism might be significant predictors of lack of knowledge about elite deviance. Discussion The present study sought to determine the sociodemographic correlates of knowledge about elite deviance. Significant variation was found among participants in their level of knowledge about elite deviance, acceptance of “truths” and adherence to “myths” with respect to gender, race/ethnicity, income, education, political ideology, religious affiliation, and source of information. Despite admittedly small effect sizes, more knowledgeable subjects were found to be those who identified as Whites, with higher education levels, without any religious affiliation, and who used the Internet as their main source of information. In comparison, less knowledgeable participants and “myth” adherers turned out to be predominantly male, politically more conservative, Republican, conservative Protestant, and who relied on traditional media sources rather than the Internet. To the extent that the participants in this study are representative of their respective groups, these findings have two important implications. First, they suggest a positive relationship between using the Internet as one’s main source of information and increased awareness about elite deviance. As previously mentioned, in view of the high costs of white-collar crime and low levels of knowledge about it, and the apparent apathy in the criminal justice system at doing much of anything significant to reduce this problem, it is incumbent upon criminologists to better inform the public. The first way we can do so is obviously through our courses. However, less than half of the 38 criminology doctoral programs in the United States offer a white-collar crime course (McGurrin, Jarrell, Jahn, & Cochrane, 2013). Further, even if more focus were to be placed on elite deviance in academic curricula in the future, a majority of citizens would still be left out. Another strategy would then be to make better use of the media. As this study supports, we can educate the public via the Internet and blogging. From social networks to non-profit organizations disclosing classified information online (e.g., WikiLeaks, Edward Snowden’s disclosure of top-secret NSA documents regarding global surveil- lance, etc.), whistleblowing websites may provide their users with a wider variety of sensitive topics than do official news media whose corporate donors might vehemently disapprove of the propagation of incriminating material (e.g. corporate violence). As an independent and alternative news source, the web may therefore represent a formidable educational platform as far as elite deviance is concerned. Nevertheless, one caveat to the democratization of the information is source cred- ibility. The past decade has witnessed the emergence of a new, independent, and Internet-based form of reporting. This “citizen journalism”, however, has been criti- cized by mainstream newscasters for its amateurish and irregular quality of coverage, and its failure to provide objective and verified information (Maher, 2005). While  Am J Crim Just unaffiliated sources should always be judged with circumspection, perhaps they may at least help guide web users to more credible scientific information. As Ayers (2013) suggested, social media can be a gateway to discussion and informational sites that foster scholarly communication. In fact, now that social networks (e.g., Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc.) have enabled us to share information instantaneously with an ever-larger audience, they might even constitute a springboard towards reliable primary sources (e.g., digital scholarship). Several subjects in the present study contacted the lead author to stress how fascinating they found the topic and to notify him of their intention to seek out further information about it. We can therefore surmise that there is an interest among the public in finding out more about crimes of the powerful. Criminologists would be well advised to satisfy such intellectual curiosity and find a way to facilitate the large-scale diffusion of empirically validated information that traditional media outlets are not reporting on (e.g., the physical harmfulness of white- collar crime). The second important finding of this study is the apparent correlation between variables usually indicative of support for capitalism (e.g., conservative political views, Protestantism, etc.) and lower knowledge about elite deviance. Again, this result might be explained by the fact that neoliberal economics (e.g., reduced state intervention in businesses practices) can facilitate the commission of white-collar crime. Perhaps such an inconvenient truth is difficult to accept for staunch supporters of capitalism, which might lead them to deny it and instead adhere to more consonant “myths”. Nyhan and colleagues’ research suggests that religious and political views can hinder the accep- tance of scientific evidence about topics as diverse as the current healthcare reform (Nyhan, Reifler, & Ubel, 2013), vaccine promotion (Nyhan, Reifler, Richey, & Freed, 2014), and the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq (Nyhan & Reifler, 2010). Importantly, when such information is perceived as a threat against personal ideol- ogies, it can even reinforce erroneous beliefs. One way to understand this “backfire” effect is as a cognitive dissonance resolution strategy, as recently demonstrated in the studies by Nyhan and his colleagues. Cognitive dissonance theory (Aronson, 1969; Brehm & Cohen, 1962; Festinger, 1957; Festinger & Carlsmith, 1959; Kiesler & Pallak, 1976; Wickland & Brehm, 1976) suggests that messages both relevant and contradictory with our personal opinions instigate mental discomfort (psychological dissonance). Consonance can be regained by realigning incongruent messages to make them consistent with our original cognitions. Festinger (1957) proposes three cognitive dissonance resolution strategies. The first is to alter the dissonant cognition by either accepting the dissonant element and changing one’s cognitions or denying its validity and rejecting it. For example, pro- capitalism individuals might dismiss empirical evidence about the greater threat of elite deviance compared with street crime and the relative legal immunity enjoyed by white- collar offenders by invoking methodological flaws, unfounded socialist rhetoric, or inflexible trust in this country’s criminal justice system. The second strategy consists in restoring equilibrium by outnumbering the dissonant element with more consonant examples so it no longer creates any dissonance. For instance, the same individuals may retort that in the Ford Pinto case the company’s main priority was to maximize profit and not to harm its customers, thereby trivializing white-collar offenders’ personal responsibility. Finally, the third strategy is to accept the dissonant argument Am J Crim Just but downplay its importance. This subtler alternative may imply admitting evidence about elite deviance such as ecological damage while at the same time claiming that environmentally harmful behavior is a necessary evil in an otherwise prosperous economic system. If these hypotheses were true, disseminating relevant information about white-collar crime might prove ineffective among those already immune to such arguments. As suggested by “myth” adherence, such information might fall on deaf ears among supporters of capitalism. It is therefore important to better understand the resilience of white-collar crime “myths” after exposure to relevant information about elite deviance and determine whether support for capitalism would indeed buffer awareness programs. Limitations and Avenues for Future Research This study has several limitations. The first one is some of our measures of knowledge about elite deviance were open to debate. Anonymous reviewers took issue with the relative obsolescence of the Ford Pinto case (more recent scandals such as the GM ignition issue could have been included), and our use of specific items (e.g., legal immunity, human trafficking, etc.) whose definition as “elite” crimes may be debatable. Clearly, some items could be refined in future research. Further, as noted by one reviewer, our modeling may be too simple to tease out the non-linear nuances of political ideology and religiosity, particularly in regard to adherence to the principles of each. This issue is another one that could be profitably addressed in future extensions of this study. Another limitation is the non-random sample used to collect data about the Amer- ican public’s knowledge of white-collar crime, which was not truly representative of the overall U.S. population. More specifically, it comprised a disproportionate number of relatively well-educated white citizens. Moreover, those subjects were predominantly Democrats and less likely to identify with any religious affiliation. Also, the age group was relatively young, which may explain respondents’ predilection for Internet-related activities. Further, because of the crude manner in which participants’ profession was asked (i.e., via an open-ended question), it was impossible to create a measure of occupation. Such limitation is regrettable since occupations that either provide experi- ence about white-collar crime (i.e., attorney, judge, prosecutor, scholar, journalist, etc.) or facilitate its commission (e.g., business executive, medical doctor, etc.) are expected to correlate positively with knowledge about elite deviance. In fact, controlling for occupational prestige would have been extremely useful in exploring the purported relationship between support for capitalism and knowledge about white-collar crime. Marx ([1867] 1967) defined the structural model of capital- ism in terms of one’s relationship to the means and modes of production, with those being owned by an elite - the bourgeoisie - who maximize their rate of surplus value (i.e., profit) by exploiting and impoverishing the proletariat or working class. Even though Table 4 suggests that “myth” adherence may vary by income level, it could not be determined whether class and power differentials influenced such variation in knowledge about elite deviance since participants’ social position with respect to the means and modes of production remained unclear. Further, now that we have a better idea of what Americans know about elite deviance, what remains to be seen is if and how such knowledge influences the way  Am J Crim Just they feel about it. In other words, does it affect their attitudes and opinions about white- collar offenses and their perpetrators? These attitudes include how serious they perceive elite deviance to be relative to street crime as well as what they believe is the appropriate societal response against it (i.e., how society should punish these of- fenders). Moreover, do the same sociodemographic variables predict both knowledge and sentiments about white-collar crime? Last but not least, are there any associations between the public’s “truth” acceptance and “myth” adherence and their perceived seriousness of elite deviance and punitiveness towards these offenders? Research has found knowledge about the death penalty to be negatively associated with support for it (e.g., Bohm, 1989, 1990; Bohm, Clark, & Aveni, 1990, Bohm, Clark, & Aveni, 1991, Bohm, Vogel, & Maisto, 1993; Bohm & Vogel, 1991, 1994, 2002; Cochran & Chamlin, 2005). That is, uninformed or misinformed subjects tended to support capital punishment. 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Cedric Michel, Ph.D., is Instructor of Criminology at the University of Tampa. His research interests include the etiology of societal response to crime, and the relationship between public knowledge about crime (particularly white-collar and elite offenses) and support for punitive criminal justice policies. Kathleen M. Heide, Ph.D., is Professor of Criminology at the University of South Florida, Tampa. Professor Heide is an internationally recognized consultant and lecturer on homicide, particularly as it pertains to juvenile defendants and individuals who kill parents (parricide). She is the author or co-author of four books and approximately 100 other scholarly publications. Dr. Heide, a licensed mental health professional and a court-appointed expert, has evaluated adolescents and adults charged with murder in 12 states and Canada. John Cochran, Ph.D., is Professor of Criminology at the University of South Florida. Professor Cochran earned his Ph. D. in Sociology at the University of Florida (1987). His current research interests involve test of micro-social theories of criminal behavior and cross-national tests of macro-social theories of crime and crime control. He is also continuing his work on issues associated with the death penalty. As a lifelong fan of the Florida Gators, Dr. Cochran has recently become the living embodiment of Agnew’s General Strain Theory.