Legal Factors, Extra-Legal Factors, or Changes in the Law? Using Criminal Justice Research to Understand the Resolution of Sexual Harassment Complaints

Welsh, Sandy; Dawson, Myrna; Nierobisz, Annette

doi:10.1525/sp.2002.49.4.605

Cited by 15 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…70), and the average number of control mechanisms was 1.8. These measures arguably reflect procedures for detecting fraud, as opposed to traditional forms of social control (e.g., warnings or internal disciplinary actions), and therefore serve as a crude proxy for organizations' internalization of law [35,36,119] and access to resources [138]. 11 11 In a study predicting another outcome (e.g., offending) examining the independent effects of each unique control mechanism might be preferred.…”

Section: Independent Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rather, influences on decision-making may depend on the nature and structure of the organization itself. Welsh et al [138] demonstrate the value of attention to organizational context, particularly the way in which bureaucratic structure influences whether decisions are made according to formal legal rules or concerns regarding organizational maintenance [32,131,134]. Organizations' status as "repeat players" suggests that decisions to mobilize formal social control might also equate to political participation given that their actions can establish favorable legal precedent [44,49,143].…”

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confidence: 99%

“…As Black ([15], p. 37) describes, morphology reflects horizontal relationships, and encompasses "the distribution of people in relation to one another, including their division of labor, networks of interaction, intimacy and integration." In the organizational context, one's hierarchical rank reflects the degree of embeddedness, and also implies a level of trust expressed by the organization [108,138]. Previous tests of Black's theory have operationalized morphology according to the victim/offender relationship [4,25].…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Compared to individuals, whose use of law may indeed be rare, organizations are "repeat players" routinely involved in the legal system, and are more capable of successful legal mobilization than individuals [73]. Occasions where governmental social control may be mobilized are common in organizations, but whether or not legal options are pursued depends on a number of circumstances [15,32,33,138]. The very nature of the organization/employee as a victim/offender dyad puts organizational victims at a distinct legal advantage over individual offenders [15,44].…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Black [15] argues centralized victims (e.g., government agencies) are more organized, as are larger organizations, suggesting fraud committed against these entities will increase the probability of legal mobilization. Welsh et al [138] elaborate on the nature of this hypothesized relationship by arguing that organizational size is a proxy for access to human resource departments, providing evidence of legal internalization. In highly bureaucratized settings, legal decisions are made according to formal rules, suggesting increased legal mobilization by government agencies [32,138].…”

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confidence: 99%

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The effects of legal and extra-legal characteristics on organizational victim decision-making

Holtfreter

2008

Crime Law Soc Change

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A variety of factors influence decisions to mobilize formal social control. With few exceptions, studies considering the effects of legal (e.g., case specific) and extra legal (e.g., offender and victim characteristics) variables have concentrated on sentencing under criminal law, an outcome subject to sample selection bias given that the majority of cases never reach this stage. Analyses of earlier decision points (e.g., victim calls for service, police use of force, and arrest), have focused on street crime and single jurisdictions. A neglected research context is the organizational victim's response to employee fraud. Using a sample of 663 fraud cases, this study applies Black's (The behavior of law, San Diego, Academic, 1976) theory of law to victim organizations' decisions to mobilize formal social control. Results demonstrate that extralegal characteristics weigh heavily on decisions to initiate both criminal and civil outcomes. Specifically, offenders' education and age decreased the odds of criminal legal mobilization. Mobilization of criminal law was also more likely by government agencies. Implications for Black's theory and directions for further research are discussed.

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Section: Independent Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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The effects of legal and extra-legal characteristics on organizational victim decision-making

Holtfreter

2008

Crime Law Soc Change

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And justice for all? Investigators’ perceptions of punishment for fraud perpetrators

Holtfreter

Piquero

2008

Crime Law Soc Change

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Despite extensive financial losses and other indicators of harm, the American public and legal professionals have historically been ambivalent toward white-collar crime. Recent research demonstrates that public perceptions of whitecollar crime and attitudes toward the punishment of white-collar offenders have become more punitive. Along these lines, a neglected area of research concerns those individuals who routinely face white-collar crimes: fraud investigators. Using data collected during the height of recent corporate scandals (2001-02), this study examines the perceptions of 663 fraud investigators and extends prior research by considering the influence of investigator characteristics, organizational context (i.e., size, setting, internal controls, and resource capacity), case characteristics (i.e., offense type, financial loss, and sanction), and offender characteristics on legal professionals' general and specific punishment perceptions. Results indicate that organizational resources increase the likelihood of both outcomes. Additionally, the correlates of general and specific punishment perceptions are found to differ: government agency context influences general but not specific perceptions. Comparatively, the perception that fraud is increasing and a sanction that includes incarceration each have a significant, positive influence on specific punishment perceptions. Implications of these findings for future research and policy are discussed.

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Reporting Sexual Harassment: The Importance of Organizational Culture and Trust

Vijayasiri

2008

Gend. Issues

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Few victims of sexual harassment at work file complaints. The current study looks at ways in which the organizational climate, including trust in the system and fear of reprisal, impacts victim decisions to file complaints. A military sample offers the advantage of a work context with formalized reporting processes and a highly segregated and gendered work environment. The findings indicate that fear of coworker backlash keeps victims from seeking organizational relief. Such non-formal consequences of reporting should be addressed in future workplace sexual harassment policies. The findings also suggest that widespread mishandling of complaints erodes trust in the grievance process, which may in turn influence future responses to sexual harassment. The discussion highlights the limitations of current cross-sectional research designs for identifying the causal order of this trust-filing relationship and suggests ways in which future quantitative studies may be designed to gain a broader understanding of the dynamic relationship between organizational context and victim response.

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Legal Factors, Extra-Legal Factors, or Changes in the Law? Using Criminal Justice Research to Understand the Resolution of Sexual Harassment Complaints

Cited by 15 publications

References 27 publications

The effects of legal and extra-legal characteristics on organizational victim decision-making

The effects of legal and extra-legal characteristics on organizational victim decision-making

And justice for all? Investigators’ perceptions of punishment for fraud perpetrators

Reporting Sexual Harassment: The Importance of Organizational Culture and Trust

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