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The belief that law-breakers are caught and punished has been argued to play a role in crime prevention and in the determination of respect for the law and the police. This study lends support to these arguments by showing that such belief is negatively related to both official and self-reported delinquency and positively related to respect for the law and the police. Moreover, David Matza's claims regarding the role of the “apprehensiveness component” in deterring drifters from infraction are also supported in that this belief is negatively related to delinquency among those with few ties to conventional society. Finally, variation in the belief by age supports the notion that it is a misunderstanding fostered by nonbelievers.
Gary F. Jensen (Wed,) studied this question.