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The first wave of the 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of
Youth (NLSY97) interviewed a nationally representative sample
of 9,000 teenagers who were between the ages of 12-16 at year-end
1996. The first round questions asked for a complete retrospective
(Have you ever?) of their delinquent or deviant behaviors
and 26% of the youth indicated that they had already shoplifted
(taken something worth up to $50 from a store without paying
for it) at some point before the ages of 12-16.
The Josephson Institute of Ethic's 2006 Report Card: The
Ethics of American Youth is a study based on a national survey
of over 35,000 high school students. The report indicated
that 28% (more than 1 in 4) had stolen from a store within
the past 12 months; 14% had done so more than once. Additionally,
in the 2004 Report, 40% admitted they “sometimes lie
to save money.” Ironically, in both year's reports,
the students surveyed reported high self-appraisals of their
character, 92% saying these were satisfied with their ethics
and character!
Both of these studies illustrate the prevalence and the relevance
of shoplifting for today’s youth. The alarming number
of youth who shoplift (and apparently think it’s OK)
clearly reveals the need for new and more aggressive primary
prevention programs to reach out to juveniles before they
shoplift the first time. There are programs to address shoplifting
after the offense has occurred, however, a primary prevention
model that can be used on a national scale does not currently
exist. The proposed programs will give youth information about
shoplifting to which they would otherwise never have access
such as the economics of retail theft losses as well as the
science of retail loss prevention.
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