An empirical comparison of the theory of planned behavior of Icek Ajzen and the General Theory of Crime of Michael R. Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi

In this paper two questions are adressed. First, is the General Theory of C rime (GTOC) by Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990) able to explain driving while intoxicated (DWI). Second, how well is this done compared to a different a pproach. In order to do this quantitative analysis is conducted which expli citly compares the relative amount of variance explained by the GTOC and a competing theory The latter is a version of rational choice theory: the The ory of Planned Behavior (TOPB) of Ajzen (1985,1988,1991). To test and to co mpare both theories a causal modeling approach (LISREL) is used. The result s of the structural equation analysis shows that the TOPB can explain more variance than the GTOC. Following this an integration of both theories is e mpirically rested. The paper ends with some general remarks on intertheoret ical comparisons in the social sciences.