Criminological Theory Final Exam

criminology

the body of knowledge regarding delinquency and crime as a social phenomenon. Includes processes of making laws, breaking law, and reacting toward breaking of law

Four main questions of criminology

1. why do crime rates vary?

2. why do individuals differ as to criminology?

3. why is there variation in reactions to crime?

4. what are the possible means in controlling criminality?

Theoretical criminology

explanations for criminal behavior

inductive reasoning

bottom up, observing specific instances leads to an abstract theory

deductive reasoning

top down, an abstract theory leads to examining specific examples

spiritual explanations for crime

laws created by monarchies who were thought to be appointed by god, to break a law was to question the authority of god, led to harsh penalties focused on retribution (executions, torture to get confessions)

temptation model

satan tempted you into sin (weak willed)

possession model

satan took over your body and committed sin (cant be totally pure if you get possessed)

trial by battle

if accused of a crime you have to fight someone from the state (knight), idea that god would save an innocent person

trial by ordeal

if you’re affected by ordeal (painful experience to determine judgement by god) you’re guilty because god didnt protect you (ex. walking on hot coals)

estate forfeiture and corruption of blood

idea that badness is in the blood, state take their house and things so it doesnt go to children

satanic panic

spiritual explanations became less dominant over time until a wave of panics about satanism in the 80s/90s developed

satanic panic spreads

rumors of satanism spread by TV talk shows, expert witnesses in trials were often bribed or not actually experts, paid lecturers, children intensely questioned

satanic panic examples

• “michelle remembers” book - psychotherapy helped her remember satanic childhood abuse, many plot holes, sparked paranoia

• dungeons and dragons (teen killed himself and mom blamed the game)

• heavy metal music (brainwash by satan)

• daycare cases - mother accuses daycare teacher of assaulting her son which led to kids being intensely questioned and prompted

satanic murder

one committed by two or more individuals who rationally plan the crime and whose primary motivation is to fulfill a prescribed satanic ritual calling for the murder, not even one documented case in the U.S.

classical criminology

enlightenment, influential concepts of natural law and rights and social contract, connection between humans and god changes, beccaria, pain and suffering is a natural part of human condition, human kind is a rational species, human will controls behavior

enlightenment and views of crime/punishment

principle means of controlling behavior is fear, specifically fear of pain or punishment, humans can be directed to make correct choices through threats of punishment, the state has the right to punish behavior so it should do so in an organized manner (centralized administration of law enforcement, courts, corrections)

Beccaria

law and punishment should be legislative not judiciary (preestablished to avoid excessive punishment), punishment should be just enough of a deterrent to stop people from committing that crime, no death penalty (may encourage additional crimes), punishment must be certain and swift

role of judiciary system

to establish guilt, not punishment

general deterrence

indirect experience with punishment (dont take part in crime bc they know the consequences)

specific deterrence

direct experience with punishment (experienced punishment so they dont reoffend)

punishment avoidance

can be experienced directly (commit crime and dont get punished) or indirectly (know of someone who committed crime and wasnt caught), no criminal act is without consequences (always learning)

3 categories of punishment avoidance

1. law abiding

2. committed crimes and were punished

3. committed crimes and avoided punishment

specific deterrence

researchers study offenders and look at frequency of post punishment offending but they ignore previous avoiding punishment experience and indirect experience from knowing other criminals

deterrence

most individuals have a mix of experiences with punishment, offenders may commit multiple types of crime, may face punishment some of the time and avoid it some of the time

reconceptualization of deterrence

omission or curtailment of a criminal act out of fear of legal punishment

reconceptualization of general deterrence

deterrent effect of indirect experience with punishment and punishment avoidance

reconceptualization of specific deterrence

deterrence effect of direct effect of experience with punishment and punishment avoidance

advantages of reconceptualization of deterrence

recognizes that both general and specific deterrence can operate for the same person or population, introduces punishment avoidance, compatible with social learning theory

rational choice theory

do the pros outweigh cons, assumes humans are rational, individuals take part in crime to maximize benefits and minimize cost, crime specific

4 models of rational choice theory

1. initial involvement model

2. event model

3. continuing model

4. desistance model

Initial involvement model

1. background factors (psychological, upbringing, social and demographic characteristics)

2. previous experience and learning (direct and vicarious experiences with crime, contact with law enforcement, conscience and moral attitude, self perception)

3. generalized needs (money, sex, friendship, status, do they have access to these?)

4. solutions evaluated (degree of efforts, amount and immediacy of reward, likelihood/severity of punishment, moral costs)

5. perceived solutions (legitimate work, gambling, marriage)

6. reaction to chance event (easy opportunity, urgent need for cash, persuasion by friends)

7. readiness

8. decision

event model

• selected middle class area (accessible, low security, etc)

• rejected middle class area (unfamiliar, distant, no transportation)

• burgled home (detached, no one there)

• nonburgled home

continuing involvement

increased professionalism, changes in lifestyle and values (dependent on crime financially), changes in peer group (friendly with other criminals)

desistance model

problematic crimes, external events (marriage, arrested, injury, legit job, prison), legitimate alternative, leads to reevaluation of readiness

biological and physical crime factors

genetic influences, abnormality, biological harms (brain), environmental impacts on traits (toxins)

Franz Joseph Gall’s 4 themes

1. brain is the organ of the mind

2. aspects of personality are associated with specific locations of the brain

3. some parts of the brain are overdeveloped or underdeveloped

4. shape of a persons skull corresponds to the shape of the underlying brain and is indicative of personality

criminal anthropology

scientific study of the relationship between human physical characteristics and criminality

phrenology (crainiology)

the shape of the human skull was indicative of the personality and could be sued to predict criminality

cesare lombroso

father of criminology, atavism, autopsies on criminals, claimed to have found a number of bodily features predictive of criminal behavior, had a list of traits for different types of offenders

atavism

criminality was the result of primitive urges that in a modern day human throwbacks survived evolutionary processes, 70-90% of criminals had atavistic traits

uncivilized personality characteristics (lombroso)

vain, impulsive, vindictive, cruel, lack of moral sense and remorse

criminaloids

occasional criminals, people who had some traits of atavism and were pulled into breaking the law by environmental influences

the insane

mental and moral degenerates, alcoholics, drug users

Konrad Lorenz

links aggression in animal kingdom with crime, all human behavior is adaptive instinctive behavior, fighting is a huge part of nature and is used to preserve the species from predators, human aggression serves many of the same functions, crime as a result of overcrowded living conditions and lack of effective expression of aggression, modern aggression is symbolic, white collar crime is about fighting over resources

genetics and crime

studies estimate that antisocial behavior and aggressive behavior is about 40-60% inherited, environment still plays a factor

brain damage can lead to

antisocial behavior, reduced empathy, difficulty regulating anger, difficulty inhibiting violent impulses, failure to learn from punishment

executive function

controls goal-oriented behavior (mental flexibility, strategy formation, selective attention, suppression of habitual responses), antisocial populations and traumatized individuals are more likely to have reduced executive function

hormones and neurotransmitters

low cortisol levels linked to antisocial and psychopathy (less responsive to stressors, less fearful of negative consequences), high levels of testosterone linked to social dominance which can be expressed through violence, reduced serotonin linked to aggression and antisocial behavior

early health risks

early health risks are linked to antisocial behavior, delinquency, violence, and crime later in life (prenatal exposure to drugs, birth complications, early malnutrition)

crime wave debate

crime begun to climb steadily in 1920s, increased in 60s and 70s and decreased in 80s, rates attributed to great depression, poverty, prohibition and overcrowding, demographic changes, roe v wade, crack epidemic, economy, increased policing

crime and lead

lead is highly toxic and leads to juvenile delinquency, learning disabilities, hyperactivity, and aggressive behavior, people exposed to lead as an infant will be effected their entire lives (more likely to be aggressive), crime rates followed use of lead with a 20 yr gap, explains crime in inner city (more polluted)

The Jukes

richard dugdale found 6 individuals related in a county jail, traced family back 20 yrs, genes passed down, history of crime, such individuals should be put in social institutions and not allowed to reproduce, highly criticized study

The Kallikaks

Goddard found a large group of degenerates traced back to revolutionary war soldier and a feebleminded barmaid, 480 descendants were deviant, 496 normal descendants from a quaker woman

crime and intelligence

assumption that criminals are not smart enough to understand the risk of crime

binet-simon scale of intelligence

list of tasks of varying difficulty, each task has an age level, level of hardest task was ones mental age, mental age divided by chronological age and multiplied by 100 to get IQ, binet did not see intelligence as fixed or innate

IQ tests in the US

tested inmates in prison, no scores above mental age of 13, most criminals feebleminded, viewed as fixed intelligence

Goddards studies

military tests IQ of WWI draftees, score similar to criminals, Goddard reverses opinion (dont institutionalize those with a low IQ)

The Bell Curve

IQ is largely inherited and linked to race, low IQs are linked to crime and delinquency, IQ is fixed, cannot change in school, people are getting dumber, very controversial

APA vs Bell Curve

APA appoints a task force to look into bell curve claims, average IQs have increased since 1930s, gap between average African American IQs and European American IQs has shrunk, shows that IQ is not fixed, not evolutionary, and not genetic, associated with access to education

consensus on IQ and crime

low IQ is a stronger predictor to self reported delinquency than race or social class, serious offenders have lower IQs than minor offenders, children with low IQs are more likely to become offenders as adults

Explanation 1 for IQ and crime link

IQ tests measure an innate form of abstract reasoning or problem solving that is inherited, having a low IQ may lead to ineffective child rearing which may lead to delinquency, those with low IQs will do poorly in school leading to delinquency, low IQs are impulsive and seek immediate gratification

Explanation 2 for IQ and crime link

IQ does not measure innate ability, it measures qualities that are related to the dominant culture

Explanations IQ and crime link - Mercer

tested subjects on a series of everyday tasks involving intelligence, test was biased towards lower income minority groups, biased institutions are reflected in IQ tests, tests reflect the dominant culture

criticisms of previous personality research

only examined those arrested as criminals and compared them to general pop (only studied those unsuccessful in carrying out crimes undetected), essentially just studying biases of CJS, judges more likely to incarcerate those with certain personality traits even if they dont determine criminality, incarceration may change ones personality, self reports

supertraits

constraint, negative emotionality, positive emotionality

constraint

• traditionalism (conservative social environment, high moral standards)

• harm avoidance (avoids excitement and danger, prefers safety)

• control (reflective, cautious, careful, rational)

negative emotionality

• aggression (hurts others for own advantage, will scare and cause discomfort)

• alienation (feel mistreated, victimized, betrayed)

• stress reflection (nervous, vulnerable, sensitive)

positive emotionality

• achievement (work hard)

• social potency (forceful, decisive, leadership)

• well being (happy, feel good)

• social closeness (likes people)

personality study results

• constraint - negative correlation with criminal activity

• negative emotionality - positive correlation with criminal activity

• positive emotionality - not correlated with criminal activity

functionalism

society is a stable, orderly system composed of a number of interrelated parts, each of which performs a function that contributes to the overall stability of society

Emile Durkheim

founder of functionalism, ideas strongly influenced by French Revolution and industrial revolution

Durkheim’s ideas

enlightenment pushes science over religion, people began to overthrow gov and create new ones, major changes in society, collective conscience vs anomie

collective conscience/consciousness

idea that everyone is on the same page in terms of norms, values, and ideas; assumes in a stable society you will have a collective conscience

anomie

everyone has their own thoughts/values/ideas, not on the same page, Durkheim says too much change can lead to this

The Normal and the Pathological

a certain amount of crime is normal and all societies have crime, deviance and crime are relative to the values of a society, what is criminalized is based on norms of society, crime is functional and leads to social change, crime and punishment increase solidarity, collective conscience holds society together

civil disobedience

crime to make a political point about the law

ways crime can be functional

provides jobs, safety valve, clarifies the rules, accentuates conformity, warning sign to society, underground economy

social disorganization research

Chicago’s population doubling every 10 yrs (immigration) so crime increased, society was disorganized, different backgrounds and beliefs (anomie)

Burgess’s Concentric Zone Model

1. central business district (industrial)

2. transitional zone (recent immigrant groups, pollution, overcrowding)

3. working class zone

4. residential zone

5. commuter zone (suburbs)

Shaw and McKay

studies showed that delinquency rates of inner city remained consistent even while population changed, area remains criminal regardless of who lives there, anomie, lack of connection

social disorganization theory

strong networks of social relationships prevent crime and delinquency, when adults have strong relationships they’re more likely to have a positive influence on the children in the neighborhood

social disorganization theory - urban settings

most of reseach focuses on urban settings

social disorganization theory - rural settings

residential instability, ethnic diversity, family disruption, economic status (lower economic status may have more residential instability), population density (crowding creates anomie), proximity to urban areas (adjacent to urban areas may have more crime)

anomie (strain theory)

lack of moral guidance, normlessness, no accountability, problematic

cultural goals

every culture has its own set of goals, varies from culture to culture, most prominent in US is wealth

Institutional means

based on values in the culture, how you go about cultural goals, rule out other means of pursuing goals that may be more efficient, not available to certain segments of society

conformity

accept cultural goals, accept institutional means, strive to obtain wealth through approved methods

innovation

accept cultural goals, reject institutional means, mertons main explanation for crime

ritualism

reject cultural goals, accept institutional means, typically lower middle class who play it safe

retreatism

reject cultural goals, reject institutional means

rebellion

seeks to replace previous cultural goals and institutional means with new ones, revolution or social movement

social control theory assumptions

individuals have free will, they have deviant desires and drives, they take part in rationalistic hedonism, social control is functional for society

Hirschi - social bonding theory

assumes everyone is willing and capable of committing crime, individuals are not always deviant because of social control/bonds, crime occurs when social bonds between individual and society are disrupted

attachment

emotional component of the bond

involvement

time and place of the bond, may be busy with mainstream activities

commitment

rational component of the bond, committed to benefits of mainstream lifestyle

belief

moral component of the bond, believe in values of mainstream society

consensus theory

assumes most people agree on values and norms

conflict theory

various groups within society are in struggle over scarce resources. dominant groups control the resources and restructure society in their favor, often to disadvantage of nondominant groups