TY  - JOUR
PY  - 1987//
TI  - Vigilante behavior and attribution bias
JO  - Criminal justice and behavior
A1  - Neapolitan, Jerry
SP  - 123
EP  - 137
VL  - 14
IS  - 2
N2  - There have been in recent years much debate and controversy over when private citizens are justified in taking the law into their own hands. This research proposes that whether vigilante behavior is seen as justified or not depends not only upon the objective events but upon the social characteristics of the participants, the environmental context, and the results of actions. Using hypotheses derived from attribution, equity, and symbolic interaction theories, it was found that identification with either actor and symbolic meanings in the environment influence vigilante behavior and justification of such behavior. Support was not found for equity theory hypotheses that resultant injuries influence justifications.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0093-8548
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0093854887014002001
ID  - ref1
ER  -