Theft Reduction Research Articles

The Impact of Services Quality on Electricity Theft Reduction: An Empirical Analysis of Electricity Distribution Utilities in Pakistan

This study investigates the socioeconomic, administrative, and service quality determinants of electricity theft in Pakistan. The effect of service quality standards on electricity theft is estimated using panel data fr om eight electricity distribution utilities from 2006 to 2018. The results of utilizing the One step system Generalized Method of Moments estimator confirm the statistically significant impact of social, administrative, and service quality variables on the illegal use of electricity. Based on the findings, Pakistan's National Electric Power Regulatory Authority is advised to take measures to improve the quality of services. In contrast, the nation’s Central Power Purchasing Agency is advised to improve admi nistrative structure by separating retail function from distribution by electric distribution.

Policy Levels for Situational Crime Prevention

An organizing framework is useful for scientific progress as well as the application of knowledge in practical situations. This article advocates supplementing the classification of situational crime prevention methods, proposing seven levels of classification for how crime prevention policy is applied. The seven levels are organized by distance from the criminal event, and examples of application are offered in liquor control and auto theft reduction.

Vehicle Theft Reduction in Germany: The Long-Term Effectiveness of Electronic Immobilisation

From 1995 on all new vehicles sold in Germany must be fitted with an electronic immobiliser. This measure was part of a comprehensive police plan which, adopted in 1994, reacted to the unprecedented increase in vehicle theft after German re-unification and the breakdown of the former USSR. Whilst international research has already shown that electronic immobilisation is an effective tool to reduce vehicle thefts, comparable studies for Germany have not existed. Based on the situational crime prevention approach, this study indicates that the substantial vehicle theft reductions recorded over the last 15 years in Germany can be explained in particular by the introduction of electronic immobilisers as a ‘target hardening’ mechanism. It will be shown that immobilisers not only effectively obstruct opportunistic vehicle thieves, but also increase the efforts of professional vehicle trafficking groups. Since an external impact evaluation has never been planned for this measure, the study followed a mixed methods approach in using available police data as well as complementary interviews with key experts.

Camera Surveillance: The Effect of Policy Characteristics on Perceived Fairness and Organizational Commitment

The use of camera surveillance in the workplace is increasing. Many corporations have found that cameras are an appropriate tool for reducing employee theft and monitoring employee performance. However, little research has been done on camera surveillance to determine its effects on perceptions of fairness and organizational commitment. Prior research in both electronic performance monitoring and drug testing has shown that measures of fairness and commitment are affected by the purpose of the policy, degree of control allowed to workers, and the severity of outcomes resulting from such policies. The current study examined the effects of purpose (theft reduction versus cheating), type of surveillance (overt versus covert), and consequences of detection (probation versus dismissal) on perceptions of fairness and organizational commitment. Results indicated that participants rated camera surveillance policies intended to reduce theft as more fair than those intended to reduce cheating. Overt policies were perceived as more fair than covert policies. No significant effect of consequence was obtained. Results of a two-stage regression analysis indicated that perceived fairness mediated the relationship between purpose and type of surveillance and organizational commitment. Implications for the development and implementation of camera surveillance policies are discussed.

Theft Reduction in a Grocery Store Through Product Identification

Identification of high risk items has previously been shown to reduce retail thefts for a small number of target items and for shorter time periods. This study assesses the effect of public identification on thefts of nine personal hygiene items over a 15 week period. Posting signs and publicly identifying target items was associated with near total elimination of thefts for these items. Sales of target items increased slightly during the intervention period and no negative customer or employee reactions were noted. The findings provide further support for public identification as a cost-effective theft reduction technique.

Theft reduction through personnel selection: A control group design in the supermarket industry

A quasi-experimental design was used to compare the effectiveness of preemployment integrity tests at six supermarket chains. Two of the supermarket chains had used some type of overt integrity test and four had not. Responses to an anonymous survey of 234 employees at these six chains were analyzed. Respondents from the chains that did not use preemployment integrity tests perceived significantly higher dollar amounts of employee theft than did respondents for the test-using companies. Implications for the usefulness of preemployment integrity tests are discussed.