Structural and Organizational Forces in the Etiology of Corporate Crime

• NCJ Number: 85638
• Author(s): B Thompson
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 243 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. Western Michigan University - doctoral dissertation

Annotation

This study develops a theoretical framework for examining corporate crime that includes structural features, such as capitalistic organization of society, the importance of political economy and market structure, and the importance of corporate influence over the legal environment. It theorizes that organizational factors influence corporate crime.

Abstract

Data come from the Ford Pinto criminal case. The data show that structural factors such as the profit motive, the ability of corporations to influence the political and legal environments in which they operate, and market structure were influential in the ability of Ford to manufacture and sell a defective automobile. In addition, organizational factors, such as the hierarchy of goals, the normative environment of the organization, and the basis for decisionmaking within the Ford organization, were examined for their explanatory power in understanding corporate crime. The study discovered a number of directions for further research and examination. Data tables, footnotes, and over 300 references are supplied. (Author abstract modified)