Situational Action Theory Research Articles

Community Legitimisation of Irish Republican Paramilitarism in Belfast: A Criminological Understanding

The present article assesses the extent to which a community context can play the role in legitimising engagement in paramilitary Irish republicanism. The research analyses this specifically in relation to Belfast. Using thematic analysis of 53 primary source interviews with former paramilitaries and community leaders the research identifies three core themes. These are: republican movement integral to community, distrust of criminal justice system and community legitimisation of paramilitary style attacks. The analysis focuses on the utility of criminological theories and approaches to explain the findings. Specifically, the research assesses the applicability of situational action theory. The research found that a multi-theoretical approach is best applied in the explanation of this process.

The Self-Control Ability Scale: Measuring a Key Construct of Situational Action Theory

The Self-Control Ability Scale: Measuring a Key Construct of Situational Action Theory

The Self-Control Ability Scale: Measuring a Key Construct of Situational Action Theory

Situational Action Theory (SAT) has emerged as a prominent theory of crime and delinquency. It includes a new conceptualization of self-control, which emphasizes its role in enabling individuals to adhere to their morality when deliberating about deviant and non-deviant action alternatives. However, existing self-control scales do not directly capture this role of self-control as a guardian of personal morality when externally challenged. To close this gap, we developed and validated the Self-Control Ability Scale (SCAS) to measure an individual’s self-perceived ability to withstand temptation, provocation, or social pressure when they conflict with their personal morality. We present the results of four studies that provide evidence for the three-dimensional structure of the SCAS, the reliability of its measures, its validity, and its measurement invariance across age, gender, and language. The SCAS promises more informative tests of SAT and new insights into individuals’ ability to adhere to their morality when challenged.

Cheating in Iran: An Examination of Academic Dishonesty Through the Lens of Situational Action Theory

Cheating in Iran: An Examination of Academic Dishonesty Through the Lens of Situational Action Theory

Location, location, location! An application of situational action theory to phone use while driving in different environments

Situational action theory (SAT) is a comprehensive theory that explains offending behaviour from the context of the interaction between interpersonal factors, such as morals, self-control, and habits, with situational factors, such as environmental risk and social conditions. Illegal hand-held mobile phone use while driving (MPUWD), a prevalent and risky road behaviour, has yet to be examined under the SAT framework. Therefore, by utilising SAT, this exploratory study sought to investigate the interpersonal and situational factors preceding hand-held MPUWD in three distinct road environments (highways, built-up areas and stopped-at-traffic lights). To achieve this, Queensland drivers aged over 18 who owned a mobile phone (N = 821, Mage = 41.7 years, SD = 20.9 years) were invited to complete an online survey. Repeated measures ANOVAs demonstrated significant mean differences for participants’ perceived risks associated with MPUWD and subsequent likelihood of offending across the three environments, with traffic lights being more conducive to MPUWD behaviours. Three hierarchical multiple linear regressions also revealed that age, attitude, risk of judgement, and self-control were significant predictors of MPUWD across all environments, while the results for gender, risk of injury and risk of being apprehended varied across the different driving contexts. Together, these factors explained 38.5–39.6 % of the variance in the perceived likelihood of illegally engaging in MPUWD. Overall, the findings indicated that the application of SAT has predictive utility in determining MPUWD engagement and can provide a more comprehensive framework for approaching and intervening in MPUWD behaviour.

Comparing Rural and Urban Juvenile Delinquency in Slovenia: Testing for Situational Action Theory

Comparing Rural and Urban Juvenile Delinquency in Slovenia: Testing for Situational Action Theory

Comparing Rural and Urban Juvenile Delinquency in Slovenia: Testing for Situational Action Theory

ABSTRACT The paper employs Situational Action Theory (SAT) to examine juvenile delinquency in rural and urban Slovenia, an area previously unexplored to analyze rural/urban differences. Utilizing data from the Slovenian International Self-Report Delinquency (ISRD4) study, responses from 988 urban and 913 rural Slovenian youths aged 15–17 are examined. OLS regressions reveal differences in delinquency patterns between rural and urban areas, with SAT concepts like morality, self-control, criminal propensity, and criminogenic exposure being significant predictors, validating the theory as a useful theoretical framework in Slovenia. The effects appear stronger in rural contexts. The paper concludes with a discussion on limitations, future research directions, and policy recommendations.

Behaviour settings, situated action and complexity theory.

In spite of the fact that Roger Barker's groundbreaking research was acclaimed sixty years ago by his contemporaries, it has all been but forgotten among recent generations of psychologists. However, in the wake of developments in dynamical systems and complexity theory, its value for understanding psychological processes in everyday life should be recognized anew. Barker's naturalistic studies of children's daily behaviours in their community revealed that their actions which initially seemed only marginally predictable at the level of individual interaction were, in fact, reliably context-dependent. These results led to the discovery that there are nested structures operating in human habitats as there are throughout the natural world. Barker's discovery of emergent eco-psychological structures, behaviour settings, that are generated from interdependent actions among individuals in the course of everyday life has yet to be fully appreciated because of the continuing dominance of linear, mechanistic models. His recognition of nested systems operating in human habitats is finally coming into its own with the current metatheoretical shift in psychology embracing dynamical models. Additionally, new understanding arises from the consideration of convergent individual developmental histories of situated action and their role in maintaining the historical dimensions of behaviour settings. This article is part of the theme issue 'People, places, things and communities: expanding behaviour settings theory in the twenty-first century'.

Cyberbullying perpetration on social media: A situational action perspective

The advent of social media platforms has made cyberbullying a growing concern. Current studies primarily investigate singular individual-level or environmental-level factors, yet cyberbullying is a multifaceted phenomenon that cannot be fully understood through single-dimensional perspectives. In this research, we draw on situational action theory (SAT) to explore how cyberbullying develops on social media by examining the synergistic effect of individual propensity and criminogenic exposure. Our empirical results reveal that individuals’ cyberbullying behavior is predominantly influenced by previous habits and exposure to the cyberbullying behavior of important others. Furthermore, individuals tend to employ neutralization techniques to rationalize their cyberbullying behaviors.

Situational Action Theory to Understand Risky Driving Behaviours in Beach Environments

This study used Situational Action Theory (SAT) to investigate personal and situational factors affecting risky driving behaviours (i.e., speeding, drink driving, drug driving) on the beach. A survey was conducted with 42 drivers, aged 17-60 years, on Teewah/Noosa Northshore Beaches. Following the SAT framework, factors including participants’ morals, attitudes, behaviours, self-control, and situational influences were analysed. Results revealed that participants generally viewed offending driving behaviour on the beach as less risky, compared to on the road. Whilst participants reported a higher likelihood of drug driving on the beach, speeding was reported as more likely on the road. Correlational analyses indicated that participants’ beliefs about driving behaviours were generally aligned between beach and road environments, potentially confirming that the ‘person’ factor within SAT, also plays a key role in beach offending. Finally, cross-tabulations suggested that the dominant motivator for beach-based risky driving was a perceived lower level of social judgment for the risky behaviours on the beach (a perception others were not concerned about risky behaviours). Preliminary findings of this study suggest that SAT could be a useful theory for understanding risky driving in distinct environments, such as beaches. SAT emphasises the interaction of personal characteristics (e.g., morals and self-control), with situational pressures (e.g., peers) and deterrents (e.g., risks). Nevertheless, factors associated with high risk driving behaviours displayed variation between beach and road contexts. Incorporating qualitative research methods might offer a more in-depth understanding of the decision-making processes underlying these risky behaviours.

Intimate Partner Abuse and Homicide During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Situational Action Theory Analysis

During the COVID-19 pandemic, stay-at-home restrictions significantly changed people’s daily lives around the world. Opportunity and strain theories predict this would lead to an increase in intimate partner abuse (IPA), including intimate partner homicide (IPH). This paper applies an alternative theoretical framework—situational action theory (SAT)—to explain mixed findings regarding changes in IPA and unexpected findings regarding (a lack of) changes in IPH. It is argued that SAT may contribute to explaining the impact of stay-at-home restrictions on IPA and IPH in three important ways: 1. by addressing the fact that motivation is necessary but not sufficient for explaining action and better specifying how motivation translates into IPA and IPH; 2. by addressing the fact that people perceive different alternatives for action and better specifying why some people come to see IPA and IPH as acceptable action alternatives; 3. by addressing the fact that exposure affects people differently and better specifying how stay-at-home restrictions shaped people’s activity fields and, in turn, their perceptions and action choices.

사이버폭력에 대한 자기통제력과 다차원적 도덕성 요인의 상호작용효과

This study aimed to validate the essential mental processes, namely the perception-choice process and the moral filter, in the PEA model within the Situational Action Theory(SAT). To achieve this, the study examined the effects of low self-control and various dimensions of morality on cyberbullying among a total of 5,151 adolescents. The analysis revealed that low self-control and all moral factors significantly influenced cyberbullying. Concerning interaction effects, only moral rule interacted with self-control, impacting cyberbullying. Additionally, the effect of self-control varied depending on the level of moral rule, supporting the role of the moral filter and perception-choice process. Despite limitations in the secondary data and methodology, this study empirically explored the seldom-studied Situational Action Theory(SAT) in the domestic context, contributing to experiential research and providing policy implications by emphasizing the importance of moral rule.

Beyond the risk factors of sports-related match-fixing: Testing the applicability of situational action theory

Despite the increasing academic interest in match-fixing, little is known about the behavioral determinants of this phenomenon. This study applies key theoretical concepts of situational action theory (SAT) to sportspersons’ decision-making process when confronted with sports-related match-fixing (SRMF) propositions. Using a factorial survey, amateur football players ( n = 661), and tennis players ( n = 609) in Flanders (Belgium) were asked to evaluate hypothetical realistic situations containing match-fixing propositions. Our results show that sportspersons’ crime propensity, mostly determined by their moral judgment of SRMF and self-control, and their levels of temptation, together with a number of SAT interactions, were the best predictors of SRMF as a form of sports-related rule breaking. We conclude that SAT provides a valuable theoretical framework to study fraud in sports phenomena such as SRMF, and that factorial surveys have great potential to allow researchers to reach beyond the risk factor stage of research, to efficiently inform prevention initiatives.

상황적 행동이론에서 도덕성의 역할

This study attempted to empirically investigate the moral filtering hypothesis as a major role of morality in situational action theory. More specifically, we examined whether people with high morality even in a criminogenic situation do not consider crime as an alternative using a specific hypothetical situation. The current study utilized the data from 「A study of juvenile felony crime」 conducted by the Korean Institute of Criminology(KIC) in 2013. This study estimated logistic regression. The results indicated that people with high morality were less likely to perceive crime as an action alternative in the first place, even in criminogenic settings that cause theft, robbery, and arson. The findings provide support for the moral filtering hypothesis in situational action theory and fill the gap in the existing literature. Lastly, the limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Application of Situational Action Theory in Japan Using Vignette Survey

This study applied Wikström’s Situational Action Theory (SAT) of crime causation to Japanese people in their 30 s–40 s (N = 320). Participants in an internet survey were presented with three criminogenic scenarios—traffic crime, individualistic white-collar crime, and corporate white-collar crime—and were asked to rate the likelihood of them committing a crime in these scenarios. They were also asked to evaluate their morality, moral context, and degree of temptation in each scenario, as well as their tendency for self-control, interdependent view of self, and independent view of self. The results supported SAT in that the moral context positively and morality negatively predicted the likelihood of committing a crime. However, the results were inconsistent with SAT’s assertion that other variables influenced those with low morality more than those with high morality. Further, the tendency to have an interdependent view of self affected the likelihood of committing a crime in some scenarios. This result indicates that in some situations, some people are more influenced by expectations of their behavior from their surroundings, in addition to their morality. Future empirical studies of SAT are needed to examine the influence of self-control on criminal phenomena using the ability to exercise self-control in certain situations that conform to the concept of self-control advocated by SAT. Morality is also a crucial concept in the SAT. Therefore, future research should examine how the morality of trying to fulfill social role expectations and previously assessed morality influence the likelihood of committing a crime.

Prioritise Propensity: A multimethod analysis of peer influence and school-based aggression

ABSTRACT This study examines the situational role of aggressive peers in the explanation of school-based aggression. Using data from the multimethod Peer Relations and Social Behavior (PEERS) study, it tests hypotheses derived from Situational Action Theory (SAT) to investigate whether the effect of aggressive peers is greater for high propensity adolescents. The PEERS study used a cross-sectional survey followed by adapted Space-Time Budget (STB) interviews with a randomly selected subsample of participants. This paper presents situational analyses of STB data alongside additive analyses of survey data to demonstrate both situational convergence and statistical dependence. Results showed that the effect of aggressive peers was greatest amongst adolescents with high aggression-relevant propensity (i.e. weak morality and a poor ability to exercise self-control). Whilst high propensity adolescents were situationally vulnerable to the influence of aggressive peers, low propensity adolescents were situationally resistant to criminogenic peer effects. These findings suggest that targeting aggression-relevant propensity may be more fundamental than reducing exposure to aggressive peers for preventing aggressive behavior in schools. The theoretical, methodological, and empirical contributions in this study can be applied to advance future research on peer influence, aggression, and SAT.

Socioeconomic Effect of the Scourge of Banditry in Niger State, Nigeria

This study examined the socioeconomic effect of banditry in Niger State, Nigeria. The study adopted a survey research design. The data for the study were collected from primary and secondary sources. The content-analysis technique was adopted to analyze and categorize the data collected into key themes of the study. The study is anchored on situational action theory that explicated the reasons behind the rising banditry in Niger State. Findings revealed that the drivers of banditry in Niger State were attributed to poverty, unemployment, large swathes of ungoverned forest reserves, thriving illegal mining activities, the porosity of borders, proliferation of arms and a weak security system. It also revealed that banditry activities have led to the displacement of residents, payment of huge ransoms, abandonment of means of livelihood, and shortage of food and have triggered an adverse socioeconomic crisis for the people. Based on the findings, the study recommended that the ungoverned forests where the bandits operate need to be combed by the military personnel through an air raid and community policing should be established and equipped with security tools to enable them to secure the various communities against banditry, Nigerian porous borders should be blocked to prevent the influx of foreign criminal elements and bandits into the country, the security agencies manning the borders should be strengthened and technologies such as closed circuit cameras, drones, and other technologies should be deployed at the borders to enhance maximum security and more security personnel should be deployed to rural communities that are mostly affected by the activity of bandits.

The Role of Morality, Self-Control, and Deterrence in Tax Evasion: A Test of the Situational Action Theory

ABSTRACT Situational action theory holds that crime occurs when it is perceived as a viable course of action and when there is a conflict between personal morality and the moral norms of the setting, being self-control and deterrence decisive. In this paper, the propositions of situational action theory are tested in the decision to evade taxes. Based on a survey completed by 1638 adults and containing two tax evasion scenarios, the present study investigates whether a person’s moral rules, degree of self-control, and deterrence influence the propensity to tax evasion. Multivariate statistical analyses were performed. The results show that the propensity to tax evasion is higher among men, the elderly, and the employed. Regarding the predictions of situational action theory, the results suggest that morality, self-control, and deterrence influence the propensity to evade taxes. However, contrary to expectations, morality does not moderate the commission of tax evasion and does not interact with self-control. Overall, the results only partially support the propositions of situational action theory.

Aggressive spectators in sporting milieus: A test of Situational Action Theory

ABSTRACT Violence among spectators in sports is a global phenomenon posing hazards for players, match officials, and other participants. Despite its widespread prevalence, scant criminological research has investigated the matter. To fill this void, this study examines the predictive efficacy of key theoretical constructs derived from Situational Action Theory on aggressive behaviour among a sample of 384 soccer spectators in Iran. Results reveal that crime propensity, criminogenic exposure, action alternatives, and choice have direct effects on spectator engagement in violent behaviour. Furthermore, results demonstrate that crime propensity and criminogenic exposure (propensity*exposure) and action alternatives and choice (action alternatives*choice) interact to increase violence among sport spectators in a manner consistent with the theory. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.

Modelling Radicalisation: Applying Situational Action Theory to the Christchurch Attacks

The March 2019 Christchurch terror attacks were something of a turning point for both law enforcement agencies in New Zealand and for terrorism studies scholars. The growth of religious terrorism, the rise of right-wing extremism, and the imaginative use of the internet by violent extremists pose new security challenges today. This article examines the merits of a criminological radicalisation model for lone actors of terrorism specific to the New Zealand setting. The article examines the concept of radicalisation in the terrorism literature and argues for a clear distinction between the cognitive and behavioural stages of radicalisation. It analyses some of the unique domestic factors which affect radicalisation in New Zealand and provides a brief threat evaluation of extremism. The article proceeds to identify some of the reasons behind ‘why out of millions of people facing similar conditions, only the few become terrorists’ by applying the Situational Action Theory of Crime to the Christchurch terror attacks. Finally, the article recommends some specific interventions for law enforcement agencies to try and thwart future terrorists.