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"Uncertainty in the Theory of Deterrence: Experimental Evidence"

By Douglas A. Berman

The title of this post is the title of this interesting paper by two economists that I came across on SSRN. Here is the abstract: We conduct laboratory experiments to investigate the effects of deterrence mechanisms under controlled conditions.  The effect of the expected cost of punishment of an individual's decision to engage in a proscribed activity and the effect of uncertainty on an individual's decision to commit a violation are very difficult to observe in field data. We use a roadway speeding framing and find that (a) individuals respond considerably to increases in the expected cost of speeding, (b) uncertainty about the enforcement regime yields a large reduction in violations committed, and (c) people are much more likely to speed when the punishment regime for which they voted is implemented...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on May 05, 2009 (boomark / email).