ABSTRACT

Gatekeepers’ tipping-off serves as a crucial first line of defense in safeguarding individuals and society from emerging, severe deviant behaviors. The present research provides a theoretically driven, quantitative approach in examining a gatekeeper’s decision to tip-off a deviant close-other to the authorities. We draw inspiration from motivation science and propose a dual-factor model with desirability and feasibility forming two distinct mediating pathways through which a range of personal and situational factors predict gatekeepers’ reporting intentions. In four studies (N = 1142), we demonstrate the robustness and generalizability of the model across diverse deviant behaviors (racial prejudice, addictive gambling and violent extremism) and populations (Asians vs. Americans). We also provide evidence of the theoretical utility of the model in (1) differentiating complex motives underlying gatekeepers’ reporting, (2) arbitrating competing theoretical accounts of reporting and (3) demonstrating a synergistic interaction between desirability and feasibility. The present research underscores the value of applying a motivation science perspective to enhance understanding of gatekeepers’ decision-making process and offers empirically based suggestions for designing relevant crime-reporting interventions.

摘要

守门人的告密是保护个人和社会免受新出现的严重越轨行为的重要第一道防线。本研究提供了一种理论驱动的定量方法，用于检查看门人向当局举报异常亲密的人的决定。我们从动机科学中汲取灵感，提出了一个具有可取性和可行性的双因素模型，形成了两种不同的中介途径，通过这些途径，一系列个人和情境因素可以预测看门人的报告意图。在四项研究中（N = 1142），我们证明了模型在各种异常行为（种族偏见、成瘾性赌博和暴力极端主义）和人群（亚洲人与美国人）中的稳健性和普遍性。我们还提供了该模型在 (1) 区分看门人报告背后的复杂动机、(2) 仲裁竞争性报告理论解释和 (3) 证明合意性和可行性之间的协同相互作用方面的理论效用的证据。本研究强调了应用动机科学的观点来增强对看门人决策过程的理解的价值，并为设计相关的犯罪报告干预措施提供基于经验的建议。