General Overview
The measure of justification of connivance practices was employed in Sicily, Italy (Mirisola, Travaglino, and Giummusso, 2024). Subsequently, it was translated into English.
The measure is composed of eight items. For each item, participants read a brief scenario portraying a situation of connivance with organized crime. The scale provides participants with a range of context-specific practices and situations around three broad facets: refusals to talk about the mafia, turning a blind eye towards other people’s crimes, and complicity with the mafia. Items were generated with the help of four research assistants familiar with the local contexts.
The items never explicitly mention the mafia or organized crime but refer to events commonly occurring in areas characterized by the strong presence of organized crime.
The items can be adapted to other contexts in Sicily by altering the names of the neighborhood/local mafia bosses. The tables below show the items adapted to the contexts of Palermo and Catania.
Although some items refer to actual events, they describe generic practices and situations. After reading the scenarios, participants are asked how much they would justify the person’s behavior using a scale ranging from -3 = completely unjustifiable to +3 = completely justifiable.
Justification of Connivance Practices*
Indicate the extent to which you believe the behaviors of the protagonist in the following scenarios are justifiable:
(-3 = Completely unjustifiable to + 3 = Completely Justifiable)
| In a supermarket in Palermo [Catania], a person, while shopping, bumps into a man who is stealing from a shelf. The thief notices that he has been seen. The person then pretends to see nothing and continues shopping. |
| At the Cala in Palermo [At Borgo Sanzio], a person gives money to an unauthorized car park attendant. |
| A person is walking down the street in Corleone [walking the district “San Cristoforo”] when they are approached by a journalist and agree to be interviewed. The journalist asks what they think of the death of Totò Riina [they think about Nitto Santapaola]. The person refuses to answer. |
| In the Palermo district “Vergine Maria” [Catania district “San Giovanni Li Cuti”], a person observes an unusual behavior of a man near a car (not his own). The person then runs away, hoping that the man did not see him. |
| In the Palermo district “Borgo Vecchio” [Catania district “San Giorgio”], a person witnesses a car accident between two cars, one of which drives away. The person sees the license plate number. The police arrives on the scene and begins to investigate. The person pretends not to have seen the accident. |
| The owner of a small shop in Via Quintino Sella (between the Borgo Vecchio and the centre) [in corso Sicilia (close to the centre)] receives a visit of a person from the area. This person rudely demands the owner to close the shop because they are going to celebrate the neighborhood festival. The person tells the owner that the favor will be returned. The owner closes the business for that day even though it’s not a holiday. |
| The owner of a store in Via Pitrè [Via Nuovalucello] receives a visit from a person asking for a financial contribution for “the families of the prisoners”. The owner pays. |
| A car is stolen from a person living in the Sperone [in the Librino]. They turn to an important family in the area who, in exchange for a small sum of money, get his car returned. |
Esprimi quanto, secondo te, sono giustificabili i comportamenti della persona protagonista delle seguenti storie:
( -3 = Assolutamente ingiustificabile to +3 = Assolutamente giustificabile)
| In un supermercato di Palermo [Catania], una persona mentre fa la spesa si imbatte in un uomo che sta rubando da uno scaffale. Il ladro si accorge di essere visto. La persona allora fa finta di niente continuando a fare la spesa. |
| Alla Cala di Palermo [A Borgo Sanzio] una persona dà dei soldi ad un parcheggiatore abusivo. |
| Una persona sta passeggiando per strada a Corleone [nel quartiere “San Cristoforo”] quando, avvicinata da un giornalista, accetta di essere intervistata. La giornalista domanda cosa pensa della morte di Totò Riina. La persona rifiuta di rispondere. |
| Nel quartiere palermitano “Vergine Maria” [catanese “San Giovanni Li Cuti”], una persona osserva un comportamento insolito di un uomo vicino ad un’auto (non di sua appartenenza). La persona allora scappa sperando che l’uomo non l’abbia vista. |
| Nel quartiere palermitano “Borgo Vecchio”[catanese “San Giorgio”], una persona assiste ad un incidente fra due auto, una delle quali scappa. La persona ha visto il numero di targa. Arriva la polizia sulla scena e fa delle domande. La persona finge di non aver visto l’incidente. |
| Il proprietario di una piccola attività in Via Quintino Sella (fra Borgo Vecchio e il centro) [in corso Sicilia (vicino al centro)] riceve un uomo della zona che chiede, in modo non cortese, di chiudere l’attività perchè dovranno celebrare la festa di quartiere e che il favore verrà restituito. Il proprietario chiude l’attività per quel giorno anche se non festivo. |
| Il proprietario di un negozio in Via Pitrè [Via Nuovalucello] riceve una visita di una persona che chiede un contributo economico per “le famiglie dei carcerati”. Il proprietario paga. |
| Ad un abitante dello Sperone [di Librino] viene rubata la macchina. Egli si rivolge ad una famiglia importante della zona che, in cambio di una piccola somma di denaro, gli fa restituire la macchina. |
* Note: Variations for the adaption to Catania are indicated in square brackets.