White-Collar Crimes
White-collar crimes are characterized by breaching trust through deceits and concealments and do not rely on physical threats or applications of force. This category of crime includes fraud, bribery, and money laundering and is committed by individuals who are occupationally positioned to exploit technological, social, or economic powers for individual gains. According to McGurrin (2013), white-collar crimes often have more severe and devastating effects than all other street crimes combined. The authors assert that the crimes are committed routinely and cause injuries, loss of lives, and economic losses but are underrepresented mainly by the law enforcement agencies and criminology researchers, who all tend to focus more on conventional crimes. Issues regarding corporate crimes are largely not reported due to the limited availability of resources and access to related information. For instance, corporate crimes in government sectors largely go unreported, and this leads to the underrepresentation of white-collar crimes in research because of the inadequate data. Notably, white-collar jobs are more challenging to detect partly because the losses do not become immediately apparent to victims (McGurrin, 2013). In addition, white-collar crimes involve individuals of higher status who are manipulative and influential. White-collar crimes have more far-reaching societal effects than conventional crimes and lead to serious social problems such as poverty which enhances conventional crimes like robbery.
Property Crimes
Property crimes involve theft or destruction of private or government property without using force on the victim. Property crimes involve theft, arson, vandalism, and burglary. The crimes are not directed at specific individuals but are aimed at the property. According to Joo (2003), property crimes rise with increased industrialization and infrastructural development. Besides, the rapid population growth rates in urban centers exacerbate the strain and stress in urban life, contributing to the rapid increase in property crimes aimed at infrastructural developments in urban centers (Joo, 2003). The most common type of property crime is burglary which involves forcefully breaking into commercial establishments focusing on stealing. Extortion is another common type of property crime that involves creating a situation that requires money to solve. This kind of crime does not have to involve the actual exchange of money. The act is considered a crime if the available evidence can illustrate an adequate threat to the property. It is the threat to the property that is considered the cause of crime. Property crimes are notably different from white-collar crimes because they involve the use of violence against the property. However, there is an overlap between the two crimes because they both exhibit organized crime elements.
Violent Crimes
Unlike property crimes and white-collar crimes, violent crimes involve physically harming or threatening the victims with violence. Common types of violent crimes include sexual assaults, murder, and robbery. Violent crimes are recorded provided there is proof of intent to physically harm the victim irrespective of whether or not the attempt results in injuries to the victim. Notably, the public usually perceives violent crimes as the most serious crime with severe consequences and sentencing. However, according to Michel (2016), the traditional public sentiment that white-collar crimes have less severe consequences than violent crimes is flawed. The researcher demonstrated that white-collar crimes have more severe social effects than conventional violent crimes. Notably, violent crimes are classified according to special categories that face threats or harm. Such classifications are made to protect vulnerable groups such as children and women against physical violence. The statutes have criminalized sexual and emotional abuse against vulnerable victims. However, Michel (2016) argues that the biased literature and public attitude against violent crimes create the wrong impression that white-collar crimes have less severe effects. The researcher points out that violent street crimes committed by individuals of low social class elicit more negative responses and attitudes than physically harmful white-collar offenses.
References
Michel, C. (2016). Violent street crime versus harmful white-collar crime: A comparison of perceived seriousness and punitiveness. Critical Criminology, 24(1), 127-143.
McGurrin, D., Jarrell, M., Jahn, A., & Cochrane, B. (2013). White-collar crime representation in the criminological literature revisited, 2001-2010. W. Criminology Rev., 14, 3.
Joo, H. J. (2003). Crime and crime control. In The quality of life in Korea (pp. 239-263). Springer, Dordrecht.
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