Definition of White-collar Crime
(noun) A nonviolent crime of opportunity, often involving money.
Example of White-collar Crime
- embezzlement: The theft of funds or property entrusted to you but owned by another.
White-collar Crime Pronunciation
Syllabification: white col·lar crime
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /wIEt-kAHl-uhr krIEm/
- British English – /wiet-kOl-uh krIEm/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /waɪt-ˈkɑlər kraɪm/
- British English – /ˈwaɪtˈkɒlə kraɪm/
Usage Notes
- Plural: white-collar crimes
- Term originates from the white dress shirts worn by professionals such as bankers and lawyers, as opposed to the denim or blue uniform shirts worn by wage laborers or blue-collar workers.
- A type of crime.
- Also called corporate crime.
Related Video
Additional Information
- Crime and Law Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Politics and Policy Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “white-collar” and “crime” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Coleman, James William. 1994. The Criminal Elite: The Sociology of White-collar Crime. 3rd ed. New York: St. Martin’s Press.
- Friedrichs, David O. 1996. Trusted Criminals: White Collar Crime in Contemporary Society. Belmont: Wadsworth.
- Sutherland, Edwin Hardin. 1949. White Collar Crime. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Related Terms
Works Consulted
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Cite the Definition of White-collar Crime
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “white-collar crime.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved June 5, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/white-collar-crime/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
white-collar crime. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/white-collar-crime/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “white-collar crime.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed June 5, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/white-collar-crime/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“white-collar crime.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 5 Jun. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/white-collar-crime/>.