Criminological Theories: Social Learning, Social Control, and Deterrence

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering Differential Association Theory, Social Learning Theory, Social Bonds Theory, Self-Control Theory, Control Balance Theory, and Deterrence Theory.

Differential Association Theory

Edwin Sutherland's (1947) theory stating that criminal behavior is learned through social interaction and communication with intimate personal groups, where individuals acquire the techniques, motives, and definitions of crime.

Principle of Differential Association

Sutherland's central proposition stating that an individual becomes delinquent due to an excess of definitions favorable to the violation of law over definitions unfavorable to the violation of law.

Duration (Differential Association)

One of Sutherland's four modalities of association, referring to the length of time that a particular social relationship or association has existed.

Frequency (Differential Association)

One of Sutherland's four modalities of association, measuring how often an individual is exposed to definitions that are favorable or unfavorable to the violation of the law.

Priority (Differential Association)

One of Sutherland's four modalities of association, referring to the primacy or temporal ordering of associations in an individual's life (such as bonds formed in early childhood) and the importance assigned to them.

Intensity (Differential Association)

One of Sutherland's four modalities of association, referring to the degree of intimacy and emotional closeness between an individual and the source communicating definitions.

Differential Association-Reinforcement Theory

Burgess and Akers's (1966) behavioral reformulation of Sutherland's theory, incorporating classical and operant conditioning to specify the psychological mechanisms through which criminal behavior is learned and reinforced in social and nonsocial situations.

Differential Reinforcement

A key element of Akers's Social Learning Theory referring to the actual or anticipated balance of rewards and punishments that follow or are expected from a behavior, varying by amount, frequency, and probability.

Definitions (Social Learning Theory)

Personal attitudes, rationalizations, or meanings that an individual attaches to a given behavior, classifying actions as right or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable.

Imitation (Social Learning Theory)

The engagement in a behavior after observing someone else model it, which plays a critical role in the initial onset or initiation of a behavior rather than its persistence.

Non-Social Reinforcement

Neuropsychological sensations (such as feelings of power, rushes, or physical pleasure) and material consequences produced directly by an act itself, rather than through interpersonal approval or disapproval.

Social Bonds Theory

Travis Hirschi's (1969) control theory arguing that human motivation toward deviance is innate, but individuals are constrained from crime by their social bonds to conventional society.

Anomie (Durkheim)

A societal condition of normlessness and lack of social regulation in which individuals are freed from normative controls, resulting in higher rates of deviant behavior.

Stakes in Conformity

Valued conventional assets, social relationships, and investments that an individual risks losing or jeopardizing by violating the law.

Attachment (Social Bonds)

The emotional bond and sensitivity to the opinions of parents, peers, and teachers; identified by Hirschi as the most critical element because it facilitates the internalization of conventional norms.

Commitment (Social Bonds)

An individual's rational investment of time, energy, and resources in conventional pursuits, such as education, occupational goals, and high grades, which would be jeopardized by criminal behavior.

Involvement (Social Bonds)

The amount of time and physical energy expended in conventional, prosocial activities (e.g., homework, sports, jobs), which restricts the time and opportunity available to commit crime.

Belief (Social Bonds)

The extent to which an individual respects, accepts, and feels a moral obligation to obey the laws, rules, and authority structures of society.

Self-Control Theory

Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) general theory of crime asserting that the breakdown or absence of internal personal control is the primary underlying cause of all crime and analogous behaviors.

Self-Control

Defined by Gottfredson and Hirschi in 1990 as 'the ability to learn to resist temptations and impulses,' and in 2004 as 'the ability to consider the full range of costs of a particular act.'

Characteristics of Low Self-Control

A behavioral trait profile characterized by a 'here-and-now' orientation (impulsivity), self-centeredness, an inclination for immediate gratification, thrill-seeking, and a preference for physical over verbal activities.

Parental Management Thesis

The argument that self-control is instilled in children through parental emotional investment, which requires monitoring behavior, recognizing deviance when it occurs, and consistently administering appropriate punishment.

Stability Thesis

The proposition in Self-Control Theory stating that an individual's level of self-control becomes fixed between ages 8 and 10 and remains relatively stable across the life course.

Age-Crime Curve

An empirical curve demonstrating that delinquency rises sharply during early adolescence, peaks in mid-adolescence (around age 15 to 16), and steadily decreases throughout adulthood across groups of both high and low self-control.

Spuriousness Thesis

The argument by Gottfredson and Hirschi that correlations between criminogenic environments (e.g., delinquent peers, unemployment) and crime are not causal, but rather spurious artifacts of low self-control.

Analogous Behaviors

Non-criminal or imprudent acts that share the same characteristics as crime by offering immediate, easy gratification (e.g., smoking, binge drinking, gambling, reckless driving, academic dishonesty).

Control Balance Theory

Charles Tittle's (1995) theory proposing that the probability and specific form of deviance are determined by an individual's control ratio.

Control Ratio

The amount of control to which an individual is subject, relative to the amount of control he or she is able to exercise over others and the environment.

Control Surplus

A condition in Control Balance Theory where an individual exercises more control than they are subjected to, which promotes deviant behaviors characterized by exploitation.

Control Deficit

A condition in Control Balance Theory where an individual is subjected to more control than they can exercise, predisposing them to deviant acts of predation, defiance, or submission.

Deterrence Theory

A Classical School theory asserting that individuals are rational beings with free will who calculate costs and benefits, meaning crime can be prevented if legal penalties outweigh the expected gains of offending.

Certainty (Deterrence)

The perceived likelihood or probability that an illegal act will be detected, apprehended, and punished.

Severity (Deterrence)

The harshness of a legal penalty, which Bentham argued must be set just enough greater than the anticipated pleasure of the crime to effectively deter offending without being irrationally cruel.

Swiftness (Deterrence)

The celerity or speed with which legal punishment follows the commission of a crime, strengthening the cognitive connection between the offense and its penalty.

Specific Deterrence

The degree to which an individual offender's direct, personal experience of legal punishment reduces their likelihood of committing future crimes.

General Deterrence

The effect that observing the apprehension and punishment of others has on potential offenders and the general public, preventing them from committing crime through fear of consequences.

Informal Deterrence

Grasmick and Bursik's concept referring to extralegal social costs that inhibit crime, such as shame, embarrassment, and negative reactions from family and peers following arrest.

Punishment Avoidance

Stafford and Warr's (1993) concept examining how personal or vicarious experiences of breaking the law without being detected or punished lower an individual's perception of risk and increase offending.

Brutalization Effect

The empirical finding that executions desensitize the public to lethal violence and devalue human life, resulting in an increase rather than a decrease in murders.