IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jcjust/v59y2018icp110-121.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The enforcement of crime and virtue: Predictors of police and Mutaween encounters in a Saudi Arabian sample of youth

Author

Listed:
  • Pietenpol, Annelise M.
  • Morgan, Mark Alden
  • Wright, John Paul
  • Almosaed, Nora F.
  • Moghrabi, Sameera S.
  • Bashatah, Fawzia S.

Abstract

Saudi Arabia has two types of police forces: general police and religious police, also known as the Mutaween. While the general police are tasked with investigating criminal matters and providing national security, the Mutaween specialize in enforcing the strict religious customs of Sharia law. This study explores the factors that predict both Mutaween and general police stops, as well as general police arrests among juveniles. Additionally, we examine whether the factors that influence Mutaween stops differ from those that affect general police stops. We find that respondents reporting higher levels of delinquency are more likely to be stopped by both forces and to be arrested. Comparatively, the factors that influence police decision-making in Saudi Arabia are analogous to those found in the Western world. There appears to be little difference in the proximal effects of police action, even in a nation that affords greater potential influence to authority, prejudice, and extralegal criteria. Moreover, the factors that influence Mutaween stops are not significantly different overall from those that result in general police stops. In a nation where religious laws are legal laws, both enforcement agencies appear to share similar objectives.

Suggested Citation

  • Pietenpol, Annelise M. & Morgan, Mark Alden & Wright, John Paul & Almosaed, Nora F. & Moghrabi, Sameera S. & Bashatah, Fawzia S., 2018. "The enforcement of crime and virtue: Predictors of police and Mutaween encounters in a Saudi Arabian sample of youth," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 110-121.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jcjust:v:59:y:2018:i:c:p:110-121
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.05.007
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047235217301800
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.05.007?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Brown, Robert A. & Novak, Kenneth J. & Frank, James, 2009. "Identifying variation in police officer behavior between juveniles and adults," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 37(2), pages 200-208, March.
    2. Hoeben, Evelien M. & Meldrum, Ryan C. & Walker, D'Andre & Young, Jacob T.N., 2016. "The role of peer delinquency and unstructured socializing in explaining delinquency and substance use: A state-of-the-art review," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 108-122.
    3. Lance Lochner, 2004. "Education, Work, And Crime: A Human Capital Approach," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 45(3), pages 811-843, August.
    4. Petrocelli, Matthew & Piquero, Alex R. & Smith, Michael R., 2003. "Conflict theory and racial profiling: An empirical analysis of police traffic stop data," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 1-11.
    5. Borooah, Vani K., 2001. "Racial bias in police stops and searches: an economic analysis," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 17-37, March.
    6. Jennifer Schulenberg, 2014. "Systematic social observation of police decision-making: the process, logistics, and challenges in a Canadian context," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 48(1), pages 297-315, January.
    7. BurtonJr., Velmer S. & Evans, T. David & Cullen, Francis T. & Olivares, Kathleen M. & Dunaway, R. Gregory, 1999. "Age, self-control, and adults' offending behaviors: A research note assessing A general theory of crime," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 45-54, January.
    8. Lytle, Daniel J., 2014. "The Effects of Suspect Characteristics on Arrest: A Meta-Analysis," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 42(6), pages 589-597.
    9. Nickels, Ernest L., 2007. "A note on the status of discretion in police research," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 35(5), pages 570-578.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hirtenlehner, Helmut & Baier, Dirk, 2019. "Self-control and offending in late adulthood. Investigating self-control's interaction with opportunities and criminal associations in advanced age," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 117-129.
    2. Giulio Fella & Giovanni Gallipoli, 2014. "Education and Crime over the Life Cycle," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 81(4), pages 1484-1517.
    3. Liu, Xiaodong & Patacchini, Eleonora & Zenou, Yves & Lee, Lung-Fei, 2011. "Criminal Networks: Who is the Key Player?," Research Papers in Economics 2011:7, Stockholm University, Department of Economics.
    4. Ou, Suh-Ruu & Reynolds, Arthur J., 2010. "Childhood predictors of young adult male crime," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(8), pages 1097-1107, August.
    5. Luallen, Jeremy, 2006. "School's out... forever: A study of juvenile crime, at-risk youths and teacher strikes," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(1), pages 75-103, January.
    6. Altindag, Duha T., 2012. "Crime and unemployment: Evidence from Europe," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 145-157.
    7. Dinand Webbink & Pierre Koning & Sunčica Vujić & Nicholas G. Martin, 2013. "Why Are Criminals Less Educated than Non-Criminals? Evidence from a Cohort of Young Australian Twins," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 29(1), pages 115-144, February.
    8. Anna Aizer & Joseph J. Doyle, 2015. "Juvenile Incarceration, Human Capital, and Future Crime: Evidence from Randomly Assigned Judges," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 130(2), pages 759-803.
    9. Kässi, Otto, 2012. "Uncertainty and Heterogeneity in Returns to Education: Evidence from Finland," MPRA Paper 43503, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Giovanni Mastrobuoni & Paolo Pinotti, 2011. "Legal status of immigrants and criminal behavior: evidence from a natural experiment," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 813, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    11. Stephen Machin & Olivier Marie & Sunčica Vujić, 2011. "The Crime Reducing Effect of Education," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 121(552), pages 463-484, May.
    12. Franklin, Travis W., 2010. "Community influence on prosecutorial dismissals: A multilevel analysis of case- and county-level factors," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 693-701, July.
    13. Gibson, Chris & Schreck, Christopher J. & Miller, J. Mitchell, 2004. "Binge drinking and negative alcohol-related behaviors: A test of self-control theory," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 32(5), pages 411-420.
    14. Brian Bell & Anna Bindler & Stephen Machin, 2018. "Crime Scars: Recessions and the Making of Career Criminals," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 100(3), pages 392-404, July.
    15. Meghir, Costas & Palme, Mårten & Schnabel, Marieke, 2011. "The Effect of Education Policy on Crime: An Intergenerational Perspective," IZA Discussion Papers 6142, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Steve Brito & Ana Corbacho & Rene Osorio Rivas, 2014. "Remittances and the Impact on Crime in Mexico," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 85093, Inter-American Development Bank.
    17. Dharmapala Dhammika & Ross Stephen L, 2004. "Racial Bias in Motor Vehicle Searches: Additional Theory and Evidence," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 3(1), pages 1-21, September.
    18. Reitzel, John D. & Rice, Stephen K. & Piquero, Alex R., 2004. "Lines and shadows: Perceptions of racial profiling and the Hispanic experience," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 607-616.
    19. Depew, Briggs & Eren, Ozkan, 2016. "Born on the wrong day? School entry age and juvenile crime," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 73-90.
    20. Norman H. Sedgley & Charles E. Scott & Nancy A. Williams & Frederick W. Derrick, 2010. "Prison's Dilemma: Do Education and Jobs Programmes Affect Recidivism?," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 77(307), pages 497-517, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jcjust:v:59:y:2018:i:c:p:110-121. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jcrimjus .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.