To tip off or not? Predicting gatekeepers’ reporting intentions of a deviant close-other through desirability and feasibility

Gatekeepers’ tipping-off serves as a crucial first line of defense in safeguarding individuals and society from emerging, severe deviant behaviors. The present research provides a theoretically driven, quantitative approach in examining a gatekeeper’s decision to tip-off a deviant close-other to the...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Hou, Minzheng (Author)
Contributors: Jia, Lile ; Tan, Jethro
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2021
In: Psychology, crime & law
Year: 2021, Volume: 27, Issue: 9, Pages: 890-913
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Keywords:
Social cognition
Motivation
desirability and feasibility
Deviant behavior
Tip-off
Description
Summary:Gatekeepers’ tipping-off serves as a crucial first line of defense in safeguarding individuals and society from emerging, severe deviant behaviors. The present research provides a theoretically driven, quantitative approach in examining a gatekeeper’s decision to tip-off a deviant close-other to the authorities. We draw inspiration from motivation science and propose a dual-factor model with desirability and feasibility forming two distinct mediating pathways through which a range of personal and situational factors predict gatekeepers’ reporting intentions. In four studies (N = 1142), we demonstrate the robustness and generalizability of the model across diverse deviant behaviors (racial prejudice, addictive gambling and violent extremism) and populations (Asians vs. Americans). We also provide evidence of the theoretical utility of the model in (1) differentiating complex motives underlying gatekeepers’ reporting, (2) arbitrating competing theoretical accounts of reporting and (3) demonstrating a synergistic interaction between desirability and feasibility. The present research underscores the value of applying a motivation science perspective to enhance understanding of gatekeepers’ decision-making process and offers empirically based suggestions for designing relevant crime-reporting interventions.
ISSN:1477-2744
DOI:10.1080/1068316X.2020.1863404