The 1905 silent film is a social commentary about two women, from different social classes, who both commit shoplifting crimes and are caught, arrested and taken to court. The film highlights the different ways in which the two women, one rich and one poor, are dealt with by the criminal justice system. Fast forward to 2011and faces grand theft felony charges over a $2,500 .
Social commentary aside, is there a difference between ordinary shoplifting and kleptomania as a mental illness? According to psychiatrists, the answer is "yes." Kleptomania is recognized by the American Psychiatric Association as an Impulse Control Disorder (others include Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Pathological Gambling, Pyromania and Trichotillomania). Kleptomania was first described in 1838 by French psychiatrist Jean-Etienne Esquirol. People with kleptomania differ from ordinary shoplifters because they do not steal for personal gain but rather to relieve psychological symptoms. ("I have kleptomania, but when it gets bad, I take something for it.")
To be diagnosed with kleptomania, a person needs to meet the following criteria:
- Recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal objects that are not needed for personal use or for their monetary value
- Increasing sense of tension immediately before committing the theft
- Pleasure, gratification or release at the time of committing the theft
- The stealing is not committed to express anger or vengeance and is not in response to a delusion or hallucination
- The stealing is not better explained by another mental disorder such as Conduct Disorder, a Manic Episode or Antisocial Personality Disorder
What are the odds that someone who shoplifts is a bona fide kleptomaniac? One survey of 791 college students showed that, although nearly 29% admitted to having stolen something in his/her lifetime, only 0.38% met the diagnostic criteria (above) for kleptomania. Based on this data, more than 99.5% of shoplifters are not kleptomaniacs.
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