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72 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is a theory?
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Defined: “theory is a series of interrelated propositions which attempt to explain, predict, and ultimately control some class of events.
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Mores:
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consist of proscriptions covering potentially serious violations of a group’s values.
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Folkways:
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time-honored customs.
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The classical school preaches:
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Rational thought & free will: People have control over their own lives and make choices about their behavior (ex. Crime is a personal choice)
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mala in se:
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acts that are said to be fundamentally wrong, regardless of the time or place (example: murder).
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mala prohibita:
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acts that are said to be wrong for the simple reason that they are prohibited.
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Cesare Beccaria: 1738-1794
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Formed “academy of fists”
-“dedicated to waging a relentless war against economic disorder, beaurocratic petty tyranny, religious narrow mindedness, and intellectual pedantry.” Beccaria claimed that criminals should be punished based on the degree of injury they cause Crime prevention was more important than revenge: The purpose of punishment should be based on deterrence, not retribution |
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Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
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According to Bentham, to reduce crime, the pain of crime commission must outweigh the pleasure to be derived from criminal activity
Humans are fundamentally rational & criminals will weigh in their minds the pain of punishment against pleasures they think will come from criminal acts “Hedonistic Calculus”– Pain vs. Pleasure Prison design: “Panopticon” (guards in the middle) |
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Utilitarianism
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All things in life must have a function. That function should provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
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Classical School has the following things:
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1. Rationality: Human beings have free will, and the actions they take are the result of choice.
Punishment: Criminal punishment is a deterrent to unlawful behavior, and deterrence is the best justification for punishment 4. Human rights: Society is made possible by individuals cooperating 5. Due Process: Accused are innocent until proven guilty 2. Hedonism: Pleasure & pain, or reward & punishment, are the major determinants of choice |
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Neoclassical Criminology
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By the end of 1800’s Classical Criminology was replaced with “Positivism” which relied on the Scientific Method to study crime
Rejected free will in favor of a scientific approach. |
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By 1970’s – Positivism lost steam because of lack of success in reforming criminals and was replaced with:
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Neoclassical Criminology - back to the free choice
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Differences between classical and neoclassical:
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Classical treated all criminals the same
Classical took no account of individual differences Neoclassical recognized age and mental condition may affect criminal behavior |
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Rational Choice Theory
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Late 1970’s & early 1980’s
Mirrors many of the principles of Classical Criminology Criminals make a conscious, rational, and at least partially informed choice to commit crime Human behavior results from personal choice made after weighing both the costs & the benefits of available alternatives |
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1. Routine Activities Theory
2. Situational Choice Theory (varities of rational choice theory) |
Routine:
3 factors: Motivated offender Suitable target Absence of capable guardians Choice: (1985) Crime is not only a matter of motivation, but also of opportunity Suggests that the probability of criminal activity can be reduced by changing the environment Examples: public surveillance, improved lighting, controlling alcohol sales at sporting events (ex. “basketball brawl”) |
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Deterrence theory
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Used by convincing potential delinquents that they will be punished for committing delinquent acts, punishing severely to prevent future acts, and/or making it difficult to commit crimes that the potential gain is not worth the risk.
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Deterrence theory 2
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The more severe, swift, and certain the punishment, the greater the deterence effect will be.
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Situational Crime Prevention
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Rather than deter or punish, reduce opportunities:
Increase the effort to commit delinquent acts Target hardening (Glass, DWI, Club) Increase the risks of illegal activity More lighting, security sys, CCTV, watch programs Reduce the rewards attached to these acts Detachable face, marking property Increasing the shame Public Humiliation, Newspaper |
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institutional arrangements -
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Social Structure
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Social Disorganization Theory
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They noted how rates of crime rose among people who had been so displaced, & they hypothesized that the cause was the social disorganization which resulted from immigrants’ inability to successfully transplant guiding norms & values from their home cultures into the new one.
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Some of the earliest to study American communities were W.I. Thomas & Florian Znaniecki.
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Wrote The Polish Peasant in Europe & America
They described the problems Polish immigrants faced in the early 1900’s when they left their homeland & moved to American cities. |
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Who headed the Chicago School
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Headed by Robert Park & Ernest Burgess from the University of Chicago.
Received widespread recognition. In 1920’s & 1930’s they developed what became known as social ecology, or the ecological school of criminology. Influenced by the work of biologists on the interaction of organisms with their environments, concealed itself with how the structure of society adapts to the quality of natural resources & to the existence of other human groups. |
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Park & Burgess viewed cities in terms of how many concentric zones?
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5
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Park & Burgees concentric zone 1 is
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Known as “The Loop”
Mostly made up of retail businesses |
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Parl & Burgees Concentric Zone 2 is
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Surrounded the city center
Home to recent immigrant groups & characterized by deteriorated housing, factories, & abandoned buildings |
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Park & Burgees concentric Zone III is?
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Contained mostly working class tenements
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Park & Burgees concentric Zone 4?
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Mostly occupied by middle class citizens with single family homes
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Park & Burgees concentric Zone 5?
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Known as the commuter zone
The suburbs |
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Clifford Shaw & Henry McKay
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Applied concentric zone model to study juvenile delinquency
Shaw & McKay found that rates of offending remained relatively constant over time within the zone of transition as they had predicted. Shaw & McKay saw Social Disorganization as the inability of local communities to solve common problem, & they believed that the degree of disruption in a community was largely predicted upon the extent of residential mobility & racial homogeneity present in the community. |
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Strain Theory
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Depicts delinquency as a form of adaptive, problem-solving behavior, usually committed in response to problems involving frustrating and undesirable social environments.
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Emile Durkheim (France)
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Anomie Developed by Durkheim
In response to suicides taking place in France during Industrialization Anomie defined as “normlessness” In his book, Suicide, anomie was used to explain how a breakdown of predictable social conditions lead to feelings of personal loss or dissolution. |
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Robert Merton (U.S.)
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Anomie came to mean a disjunction between socially approved means to success & legitimate goals
Merton maintained that legitimate goals, involving such things as wealth, status, & personal happiness are generally portrayed as desirable for all. means are not equally available to all members of society. |
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Merton believed people will adapt to strain in 5 ways.
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1. Conformity
2. Innovation 3. Ritualism 4. Retreatism 5. Rebellion |
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Conformity
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Accepts the goals and means of society
Lawyers, Doctors, etc. |
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Innovation
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Accepts the goals but not the means of society
Drug Sellers, Prostitutes, etc. |
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Ritualism
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Does not accept goals of society
Does accept means of society Do not break the law, but do not care about social achievement |
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Retreatism
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Rejects the goals of society
Rejects the means of society Dropouts, drug abusers, homeless, etc. |
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Rebellion
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Replace the goals of society
Replace the means of society Political radicals, revolutionaries, etc. |
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General Strain Theory (GST) was developed by:
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Robert Agnew
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General Strain Theory (GST) suggests:
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GST suggests that delinquent behavior is a coping mechanism that enables adolescents to deal w/ the socio emotional problems generated by negative social relations.
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Culture Conflict Theory is based on:
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Based on the writings of Thomas Sellin and his 1938 book Culture Conflict and Crime
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Culture Conflict Theory suggets:
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Suggests that the root cause of criminality can be found in a clash of values between differentially socialized groups over what is acceptable or proper behavior.
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Sellin describes two types of Culture Conflict.
Primary Conflict Secondary Conflict |
Primary Conflict - Arises when a fundamental clash of cultures occurs.
Secondary Conflict: Arises when smaller cultures within the primary one clashed So it is that middle class values, upon which most criminal laws are based, may find fault w/ inner-city or lower class norms, resulting in the social phenomenon we call crime. |
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Trait Theory
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Focus on biological and psychological
Evolution of trait theory |
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Lombroso ->
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interest in role of physical characteristics
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Cesare Lombroso
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Medical Doctor; studied Anthropometrics
Anthro: Humans Pometrics: Measurements Criminal Atavism: Physical anomalies that make them similar to our primitive ancestors |
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Born Criminal -
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Behavior was inherited.
You were born criminal because you inherited a gene that was primitive to man. This “throwback” gene was labeled “Stigmata” |
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Criminaloid
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Born in a negative environment
Environmentally induced criminal |
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Criminally Insane
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Their insanity caused the crime
Reason for crime was their mental disease |
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Criminals by Passion
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Commit crimes because of noble traits and ideas
e.g., killing spouse |
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Occasional Criminal
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Find self in a situation you can’t avoid
Offered no solutions |
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Biological -
Hereditary Theory |
Dugdale: Criminal Behavior was caused by parents
Ada Juke : Criminal (genetic) |
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Goddard:
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Parents were cause
Studied Martin Kallikak Martin and Prostitute had children Martin and wife had children Offspring of prostitute was fraught with criminal activity Gene Pool was reason Study doesn’t recognize socialization; life circumstances |
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Sheldon:
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somatotyping
Went in prisons like Lombroso and studied physical characteristics of convicts. “your body type will influence your behavior” |
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Endomorph:
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soft & round
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Mesomorph:
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athletic, muscular- most likely to be criminal.
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Ectomorph:
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thin & fragile
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Balanced :
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average built
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Traits related to delinquency
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Learning disabilities
Hyperactivity/impulsivity/attention deficit Poor problem-solving skills Reduced ability to learn from punishment Immature moral reasoning or amoral beliefs Low verbal IQ |
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Biosocial theory
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Focuses on the correlation between biological makeup, environmental conditions, and antisocial behaviors
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Biosocial Theory
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Majority of research in this area focuses on 3 factors: biochemical, neurological dysfunction, and genetic influences
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Assaults are most prevalent during
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evening & early hours of the night.
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Hormonal levels
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Antisocial behavior seems to peak in the teenage years when hormonal activity is at its greatest level
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Minimal brain dysfunction (MBD)
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Neurological deficits such as damage to the hemispheres of the brain
Impairment in brain functioning can occur: During pregnancy Birth complications Inherited abnormalities Brutal beatings |
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Form of brain dysfunction most often linked to delinquency
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ADHD
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% ADHD
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Estimates range from 3 – 12%
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Arousal theory
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“thrill seekers”
Adolescents may engage in illegal activity for the thrill Some require little stimulation (too much = anxiety) Others become “sensation seekers” that find stimulating behavior that may include aggressive behavior |
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Genetic Influences
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Parental Deviance
If criminal tendencies are inherited, then the children of criminal parents should be more likely to become law violators than the offspring of conventional parents |
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Psychodynamic Theory
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The human personality is controlled by unconscious mental processes developed early in childhood
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Nature Theory
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Intelligence is inherited and is a function of genetic makeup
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Nurture Theory
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Intelligence is determined by environmental stimulation and socialization
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Social learning
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(Bandura)
Crime as learned response. How? Observation in family Mass media Environmental experiences |
