Abstract
This study employed the theory of planned behavior to explore the relationship between criminal intention and criminal behavior and the factors influencing them. The present study focused on injury, theft, and drug use, the three most prominent types of criminal behavior in Taiwan. An anonymous online questionnaire survey of male adults was conducted with 864 valid responses returned. The responses revealed that attitudes toward crime, subjective norms, and perceived behavior control effectively predict the intention to injure, steal, or use drugs. Criminal intention effectively predicts the occurrence and the frequency of injury to others, theft, and drug use. Planning and anticipated regret do not moderate the relationship between criminal intention and criminal behavior. The implications of the findings and their practical application are discussed.
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This study was funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology (grant number: MOST 106–2410-H-364 -002-SSS).
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This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan (REC number: 10605ES031). All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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This study used anonymous self-reporting online questionnaire to collect data. All the participants are Taiwanese. The contents of the questionnaire were not connected to personal information. Under informed consent, the participants decided whether they would participate in the survey.
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Huang, JY., Chen, CA. Relationship Between Criminal Intention and Criminal Behavior. J Police Crim Psych 38, 555–566 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-023-09576-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-023-09576-4