Why Do People Shoplift?
“Why did you shoplift?” is the most frequent question asked of people when caught. The most frequent answer is “I don’t Know”.
Well, what is the answer? Is it need or is it greed … or is it something entirely different that tempts an estimated 25 – 30 million people to steal form retail stores each year. Except for the career criminals and drug addicts who steal to resell the merchandise for profit, most shoplifters are otherwise decent people who are law abiding citizens. The vast majority of adult offenders have no idea about how and why they became a thief, or why they continue to shoplift … even after getting caught.
Every day, retailers, police, prosecutors and judges see thousands of apprehended shoplifters who don’t fit the profile of a typical criminal. For example, they don’t use shoplifting paraphernalia, they don’t use drugs, they carry proper identification, they have no prior criminal record (except perhaps for shoplifting), they don’t associate with known criminals, they don’t steal for resale, they usually have the money (credit card) to pay for the item(s) they stole, they frequently have a job and a family, they steal things they don’t really need and often don’t use, they know what they did was wrong and frequently feel ashamed and remorseful. Their overall lifestyle is not that of a typical criminal.
Unfortunately, retailers, law enforcement and the courts process these people through the criminal justice system, as they should, but with little understanding
about why they committed the offense and what kind of action is most effective to help prevent them for repeating their crime. The reason WHY? is the key to helping individuals, families and the communities to reduce this national problem.
Reason Why? …
So, why do people steal (shoplift) from stores? In simple and concise terms:
… “TO GET SOMETHING FOR NOTHING”. This is the common denominator for ALL PEOPLE WHO SHOPLIFT. But, to uncover the secret of why people who know right from wrong are willing to cross over the line and commit a crime, you must look beyond this simple idea.
We hear many reasons in the tabloids and surveys which only superficially explain the reasons people shoplift, such as: wanting nice things; peer pressure; being poor; a cry for help; a thrill; a dare; angry at parent(s); feeling ugly, unwanted or unappreciated; feeling bored; feeling powerful; wanting revenge; being out of work; feeling unable to meet expectations; being depressed about a loss of health, love, control, etc. The list goes on and on, and although these reasons are a small part of the truth, this list does not explain the underlying real reason why people shoplift.
[Now, stay with me here. Don’t become impatient to rush to the bottom line. Full understanding (of why) requires a process of reflection. It is not a simple statement.]
While we all like to get things for free (birthday presents, winning the lottery, getting a lower price on something) and the stores are constantly promoting and placing things on “SALE” to generate excitement about getting a bargain, most people never cross over the line and steal the item, whereas other people do. WHY?
The answer is … To most shoplifters, “getting something for nothing” is like giving themselves a “gift” or a “reward”, which, in turn, gives them a “lift”. Many people feel they need a “lift” just to get through the week … or even a day. A study by MasterCard International found that ‘shopping’ was second only to dining out as the primary way people reward themselves. Take it one step further and you can see how ‘shoplifting’ the merchandise could increase the reward.
What we all need to understand is that “getting something for nothing” always represents more to the shoplifter than the value of the merchandise itself. The person who shoplifts always (unknowingly) places his/her own special meaning to “getting something for nothing” which is something other people don’t do. For different people, it can represent any of these following things:
For some, getting something for nothing represents a “substitute for loss” because they were unfairly deprived in some way (i.e. a divorce situation, a serious illness, the death of a loved one, loss of a job, loss of income or investments, an increase in expense which often causes people to feel fearful and needy, and so on). For these people, getting something back in some way acts as a partial substitute for their loss. Senior citizens, for example, who clearly know right from wrong, are often vulnerable because of the losses they have experienced. Many are alone because they have lost their life-long mate, their kids don’t call them very often, they cannot work at a real job because of their age or health, they are on fixed incomes and they feel the pinch as prices keep rising. Stealing a bottle of Tylenol, for example, can temporarily help to relieve their anxiety about their financial situation and can give them the feeling that they are more in control. It is a real tragedy, however, that seniors who have lived their lives taking care of their families, working hard, keeping out of trouble, helping others, attending church and contributing to their communities are now faced with going out of this world as a Thief.
For others, shoplifting is a “relief mechanism” for anxiety, frustration, boredom and depression. It is a fact that depression is the single most common psychological factor found within people who shoplift and depression exists in about 1/3 of the people caught. This is more understandable when you realize that the definition of depression relates to one’s internal anger. Shoplifting, like other deviant behaviors, can temporarily relieve depression because there is a “rush” or a “high” feeling immediately after they get away with it.
For others, shoplifting can represent “justified payback” for all they give to others and how little they get back in return. These people feel the world is “unfair”. Things are owed to them and they commonly experience a feeling of entitlement.
Any way you look at it, people who shoplift unknowingly consider shoplifting as a form of self-nourishment, as a way to relieve fear or emotional pain in their life. Of course, shoplifting is not self-nourishing but rather self-destructive, but shoplifters (or people experiencing emotional stress) usually can’t see the paradox.
All the feelings described above like anxiety and depression can and do apply to all of us at different times in our life. However, different people handle stressful times differently. Some people are able to work through the problem intelligently and/or with the support of family and friends while others self-medicate by turning to drinking, some take pills to feel better, others satisfy their emotions by overeating, others become bulimic or anorexic, others gamble or exercise excessively to gain relief from anxiety. Some fall into “getting something for nothing”.
Except for career criminals who are “professional shoplifters”, stealing from stores is almost always a reflection of a person’s ability (or inability) to cope with whatever is going on in his/her life at that time. It is their response to dealing with their own personal life situation. It is rarely anything else. This is why there is no profile of a shoplifter.
No Profile
Anyone can be a shoplifter. People who shoplift are young or old, educated or illiterate, white collar or blue collar workers, rich or poor, handsome or unattractive, intelligent or challenged. This is because anyone and everyone have to face life’s problems from time to time and the way they cope can vary widely by individual.
People caught shoplifting have included movie stars, policeman, lawyers, doctors, teachers, tennis champions, Miss America, assistant secretary of the army and people from every profession.
Shoplifting Can Become An Addiction
A person’s addiction to shoplifting can develop quickly when the excitement generated from “getting away with it” produces a chemical reaction (i.e. adrenalin) resulting in what shoplifters describe as the incredible “rush” or “high” we mentioned
earlier. Many shoplifters will tell you that this “high” feeling is the true reward rather than the merchandise itself. That is why it is said that shoplifting for most individuals is not about the item but rather about the act.
Realizing how easy it can be to get that “high” feeling, they are pulled toward doing it again … “just one more time” … and their addiction begins to develop. Even though many shoplifters feel guilty, ashamed and remorseful about what they did, and are fearful of getting caught, the pull is too strong for many to resist.
Some Say … “Nonsense”!
Of course, some people don’t see shoplifting as a functional or psychological problem. They say, “what do you mean that a person can’t stop shoplifting? Of course they can, they’re just greedy”. The idea that shoplifting can become a habit or addiction (except perhaps for a few Kleptomaniacs) is ridiculous, they say. People who shoplift should go to jail and not be coddled or told they have an addiction.
This is like telling them it is OK to steal because they really can’t help it.
The paradox is that most shoplifters who have developed a habit or addiction believe they should be punished when caught. What habitual offenders often resent, however, is when they are simply thrown into jail with hardened career criminals and are never offered or given any help or support to help prevent them from repeating the offense. This is because they fear they will probably be back in jail again. This helps to explain why so many shoplifters go back to shoplifting the day after they get out of jail.
Reducing Recidivism
Of course, since unhappy life situations can only be changed by the individual involved, when a shoplifter is caught, in addition to the usual court penalties, the best advice is to offer apprehended individuals a chance to learn how to change negative life situations into positive ones for them … through EDUCATION and SUPPORT. This is more important than most people realize because approximately 57% of shoplifters caught for the first time have already developed a shoplifting habit … or even an addiction. What this means is that some people will have to find more or less support if they want to resolve their personal issues which lead them to shoplift and, equally importantly, regain their self-respect. It is clearly the responsibility of the individual to learn better ways to cope and then change their behavior, but it is the duty of others (i.e. family, friends, retailers, police, courts, etc.) whenever possible, to point shoplifters in the right direction toward rehabilitation, rather than just condemn or punish, so they know how and where to receive the help they need.
[Go online to www.shopliftingPrevention.org ]
Rehabilitation Programs
The rehabilitation programs that are most effective are those that focus on the individual, not as a criminal, but as a decent person doing something that is completely out of character for them. A process which discovers the reasons behind their shoplifting behavior is essential to success as well as helping them to shift their false perceptions and feelings to more truthful and realistic thinking, with an action plan to deal with ever-present life problems.
Will A Rehabilitation Program Help You?
I honestly have to say “YES!”… and I also have to tell you that it is the rare person who does not stop shoplifting after receiving quality support in the form of an education program, a coaching session, or some form of “offense-specific” psychotherapy. This rate of success is largely because people don’t want to make their life harder than it is already by shoplifting. And, even though the shoplifting may have started years ago, it can take as little as a few days for some people to stop shoplifting.
While it is true that many people have developed a habit or addiction … and cannot quickly change the disturbing situations in their life … or cannot undue their childhood experiences … or cannot resolve a tragedy in their life, the rehabilitation process can still eliminate the desire to shoplift forever.