PrepTest 134, Section 4, Question 6
Determining the most effective way to deter deliberate(447 more words not shown)
The passage suggests that the(13 more words not shown)
- AThe rate at(20 more words not shown)
- BThe rate at(17 more words not shown)
- CThe rate of(14 more words not shown)
- DThe rate of(15 more words not shown)
- EThe rate of(13 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
This is an EXCEPT question: four policies or predictions should fit the author's account, and one should not. Keep both sides of the comparison in view. A person weighs the expected utility of crime against the expected utility of lawful activity.
Working the answers
- A
Stronger penalties make another offense more costly if detected. That lowers crime's expected utility and fits the prediction of less repeat offending.
- B
Rehabilitation is one of the endorsed deterrence measures. Removing it can undo its contribution to making lawful activity the more attractive choice, so this prediction fits the account.
- CCorrect
This goes in the wrong direction. If lawful activity becomes less rewarding, crime becomes relatively more attractive, all else equal. The model therefore gives us a reason to expect more deliberate crime, not less. Lawful activity isn't outside the calculation; it is the alternative against which crime is compared.
- D
Less economic access can reduce the attractiveness of lawful opportunities. That fits an increased incentive to turn to crime.
- E
Inversely means moving in opposite directions. Stronger enforcement increases the risk of detection, reducing crime's appeal; weaker enforcement does the reverse. That is the relationship the author describes.
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