Rational Choice Theory: A Response

With the exception of those who happen to be mentally ill, most people exhibit a rational mode of thinking. That means that before choosing a course of action, most individuals take into consideration all the relevant variables and only act if it is reasonable to do so.

According to the rational choice theory, most of those who break the law are rational thinking persons who are more likely than not to make calculated choices prior to committing a crime. As Siegel (2010, p. 85), points out, "before choosing to commit a crime, reasoning criminals carefully select targets, and their behavior is systematic and selective." An individual is hence less likely to commit a crime if chances of detection and/or apprehension are particularly high. This effectively means that any sane law breaker carefully considers the costs and benefits of each alternative before settling on that course...
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