Korte beschrijving

This dissertation is in line with criminological theorizing and research on offending decision-making. The focus is on the moral emotions of empathy, shame, guilt, and personal moral norms. Their distinct roles are studied in the explanation of intentions to steal. Using insights from several disciplines, four empirical studies were designed to answer several research questions. Survey data were collected from two large convenience samples of young people. Two visual scenarios, depicting the opportunities to steal a small amount of money, were used in the studies. Compared to their written counterparts, visual scenarios have superior advantages such as a higher degree of realism. Overall, the research findings indicate that (1) anticipated shame- guilt, and personal moral norms have strong and independent negative effects on participants’ intentions to steal, (2) empathic concern and empathic perspective-taking are differently related to anticipated shame, guilt, and moral norms, and (3) moral emotions and moral norms mediate the relationship between empathy and intentions to steal. Limitations of the studies and suggestions for future research are discussed.