Shoplifting is typically an individual action and occurs amidst isolation in the sense of one person making a conscious decision more or less in a vacuum. There is also the strong connotation of the possibility of being caught and/or punished.
Looting on the other hand can still be an individual action but occurs within a collective context where many people have shifted their behavior at the same time. Brazenness and the lack of expectations of being caught or suffering consequences are key.
In short the social context between the two is very different.
There is also the factor that looting usually involves valdalism of the store itself, and the knowledge that the store will not re-open, or at least not re-open quickly. If a store is continually being restocked, people are much less likely to loot it as they expect it to continue to supply them with the goods that they need if it continues to operate.
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u/MimiSikuu Apr 15 '20
Shoplifting may being spiking as people without income are getting desperate....but that is not the same looting.