Why do rich people steal?

Hi Ayesha, this is a really interesting question! According to this 2008 study (below), shoplifting is more common among those with higher education and income. They call this nonsensical shoplifting, because it isn't motivated by a financial need.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

This study presented nationally representative data on the lifetime prevalence, correlates, and comorbidity of shoplifting among adults in the United States.Data were derived from a large national sample of the United States population. Face-to-face surveys ...

It is likely there are both structural and psychological factors as to why this occurs. I've listed a few here, but there are many other theories out there:

- Upper class individuals become socially isolated from the rest of society and therefore develop a separate group identity. This shapes feelings of entitlement and inattention to the consequences of one's actions on others.

-They have the resources needed to deal with the consequences of unethical behavior (arrest, fines, etc.), whereas a lower-class individual would be more negatively impacted if they were caught.

-These individuals may also be more likely to have received economics-oriented training that hones self-interest. These ideas around maximizing profit and self-interest can increase positive beliefs about greed.

www.pnas.org

Seven studies using experimental and naturalistic methods reveal that upper-class individuals behave more unethically than lower-class individuals. In studies 1 and 2, upper-class individuals were more likely to break the law while driving, relative to lower-class individuals. In follow-up laboratory studies, upper-class individuals were more likely to exhibit unethical decision-making tendencies (study 3), take valued goods from others (study 4), lie in a negotiation (study 5), cheat to increase their chances of winning a prize (study 6), and endorse unethical behavior at work (study 7) than were lower-class individuals. Mediator and moderator data demonstrated that upper-class individuals’ unethical tendencies are accounted for, in part, by their more favorable attitudes toward greed.