Consequences of Expected and Observed Victim Resistance for Offender Violence during Robbery Events

• DOI: 10.1177/0022427814547639
• Author: Marie Rosenkrantz Lindegaard,Scott Jacques,Wim Bernasco
• Date: 01 February 2015
• Published date: 01 February 2015
• Subject Matter: Article

Article

Consequences

of Expected and

Observed Victim

Resistance for

Offender Violence

during Robbery

Events

Marie Rosenkrantz Lindegaard

1

,

Wim Bernasco

1,2

, and Scott Jacques

3

Abstract

Objectives: Drawing on the rational choice perspective, this study aims at

explaining why some robberies take place with physical force while others

occur only with threat. The focus is how expected and observed victim

resistance impact physical force by robbers. Methods: We draw on quan-

titative and qualitative data obtained from 104 robbers who described

143 robbery events. Based on the coding of behavioral sequences between

offenders and victims, we distinguish between the use of physical force

at the onset from the use of physical force during the progression of the

1

Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement, Amsterdam, The

Netherlands

2

Department of Spatial Economics, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

3

Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, Georgia State University Atlanta, GA, USA

Corresponding Author:

Marie Rosenkrantz Lindegaard, Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law

Enforcement, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Email: mlindegaard@nscr.nl

Journal of Research in Crime and

Delinquency

2015, Vol. 52(1) 32-61

ªThe Author(s) 2014

Reprints and permission:

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DOI: 10.1177/0022427814547639

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event. Results: At the onset of robberies, physical force of offenders is

influenced by whether they judge the victim to be street credible. During

the progression of robberies, offenders are more likely to use physical force

against a resistant than against a compliant victim. Conclusions: At the onset

of the robbery, offender violence is related to expected victim resistance;

during the progression, it is related to observed victim resistance. Future

research should focus on behavioral sequences within robbery events

including the meaning of victim characteristics and victim behavior in differ-

ent phases of the event.

Keywords

rational choice theory, violence, victim resistance, street credibility

Introduction

To a considerable extent, the public concern about crime is about violent

offenses in public places (Cook 2009). Foremost among these crimes is

robbery. The direct property losses from robbery are usually small, but the

trauma suffered by victims is substantial (Gale and Coupe 2005). While vio-

lent threats may produce a psychological gash (Lurigio 1987), the worse

scenario is to be on the receiving end of physical force—a strike, slash,

or shooting. Such occurrences result in everything from minor bruises to

permanent disabilities or death (see, e.g., Luckenbill 1980, 1981; Wright

and Decker 1997).

Physical force may arise at various stages of the robbery event. For the

purposes of the present research, the most useful distinction is between its

onset, when the offender makes the victims aware they are being robbed,

and its progression, the subsequent flow of events until the offender leaves

the scene. Why do robbers use physical force from the very start or subse-

quently when the robbery is underway? Prior research suggests victim resis-

tance is an important factor (Luckenbill 1980, 1981; Tark and Kleck 2004;

Wright and Decker 1997). In this article, we emphasize that victim resis-

tance comes in two forms. The first is expected victim resistance: a robber’s

prediction that a target will not comply. The second is observed victim

resistance: tangible noncompliance as the robbery unfolds. As detailed sub-

sequently, the literature paints the former type as affecting violence at rob-

bery onset, and the latter as affecting violence as the robbery progresses.

This article sheds further light on why robbers use physical force, espe-

cially the role of expected and observed victim resistance in that decision,

Lindegaard et al. 33