A test of situational action theory in Saudi Arabia

Alruwaili, N

Abstract

Situational Action Theory (SAT) is a recent and increasingly popular framework for explaining criminal behaviour, especially among youths. It argues that most people comply with the law and refrain from committing crime because they do not see crime as an action alternative, not because they are worried about the consequences. This study explored the applicability and validity of SAT in the cultural context of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). A self-administered questionnaire that used items designed by the PADS+ project (the Peterborough Adolescent and Young Adult Development Study in the UK) was adapted to the Saudi context and used to collect data from 588 high school students aged 16–18 years, in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Ordinary Least Squares regression (OLS) and logistic regression were used to test SAT’s hypotheses regarding the predictors of crime and their interaction effects.
Overall, the study provides modest support for the key propositions of SAT, including the central role of crime propensity and criminogenic exposure in the causation of crime, the principles of conditional relevance of control, and the perception-choice process. However, the nature of the interaction, especially with regards to perception-choice process, is not consistent with SAT. Therefore, future studies are required to further enhance our understanding of the nature of the interactions proposed in SAT.

Citation

Alruwaili, N. A test of situational action theory in Saudi Arabia. (Thesis). University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Jun 25, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 25, 2019
• Award Date: May 29, 2019