PERTIMBANGAN PELAKU JUDI ONLINE DITINJAU DARI TEORI PILIHAN RASIONAL OLEH CORNISH DAN CLARKE (STUDI KASUS PELAKU JUDI ONLINE ZN DAN AI)

This study examines online gambling as a criminal offense from a criminal criminology perspective using Rational Choice Theory proposed by Cornish and Clarke, which views offenders as rational actors who evaluate benefits, risks, opportunities, and situational factors before committing unlawful acts. This research employs an empirical legal method with a case study approach involving two online gambling offenders, ZN and AI. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and literature review. The findings indicate that the offenders’ decisions to engage in online gambling were based on rational calculations, in which perceived benefits, ease of access, and low perceived legal risk outweighed the threat of criminal sanctions, despite their awareness that such acts are prohibited under the Indonesian Criminal Code and the Electronic Information and Transactions Law. Therefore, online gambling in this study is a deliberate unlawful act resulting from rational choice within specific situational contexts.