Final Exam Soc 324 Purdue University

Police functions

Enforce laws, prevent crime, maintain order, provide safety and services

Deterrence

Preventing crime by increasing perceived risk of punishment

Capable guardianship

Presence of authority (e.g., police) that reduces opportunity for crime

Routine Activities Theory

Crime occurs when a motivated offender + suitable target + lack of guardian converge

Why police reduce crime

They increase guardianship and perceived risk

Hot spots policing

Targeting police resources at high-crime locations

Effectiveness of hot spots policing

Reduces crime in targeted areas without displacement (short-term)

Broken windows policing

Enforcing minor offenses to prevent more serious crime

Criticism of broken windows

Weak evidence and can harm community relations

Community policing

Building relationships and trust between police and community

Effect of community policing

Improves legitimacy more than it reduces crime

Police and social contract

Fair policing is necessary to maintain public trust and legitimacy

Plea bargaining

Defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge for reduced punishment

Trial penalty

Harsher punishment for defendants who go to trial and lose

Inhabited institutions

Courts are shaped by the people within them, not just formal rules

Focal concerns

Blameworthiness, dangerousness, and practical constraints

Blameworthiness

Seriousness of the offense

Dangerousness

Risk of future offending

Practical constraints

Organizational limits (time, resources, jail space)

Mass incarceration

Large increase in prison population since the 1970s

Causes of mass incarceration

Mandatory minimums, three-strikes laws, tough-on-crime policies

Prison paradox

Incarceration can increase crime by damaging social ties and reinforcing criminal identity

General deterrence

Punishment discourages the public from committing crime

Specific deterrence

Punishment discourages the individual offender

Incapacitation

Preventing crime by removing offenders from society

Rehabilitation

Reforming offenders to prevent future crime

Retribution

Punishment because offenders deserve it

Restorative justice

Focus on repairing harm through mediation and reconciliation

Interactionist perspective

Crime is socially constructed and defined

Labeling theory

Crime results from societal reactions and labels

Primary deviance

Initial, situational rule-breaking

Secondary deviance

Crime resulting from internalized labels

Stigma

A mark of disgrace associated with a label

Self-fulfilling prophecy

Acting in ways that confirm a label

How labeling causes crime

Changes identity, blocks opportunities, creates deviant networks

Policy implication of labeling theory

Use non-stigmatizing punishments

Conflict theory

Crime results from inequality and competition for power

View of law (conflict theory)

Laws serve the interests of the powerful

Focus of critical criminology

Inequality, corporate crime, state crime

Instrumental theory

Laws are tools used by elites to control others

Structural theory

Crime results from economic and social structure

Left realism

Focuses on real harm while acknowledging inequality

Victimology

Study of victims and victimization

Victim-offender overlap

People who commit crimes are often victims

Primary harms of victimization

Physical, emotional, financial damage

NCVS

National Crime Victimization Survey (measures unreported crime)

Strength of NCVS

Captures crimes not reported to police

Limitation of NCVS

Lacks offender perspective

Routine activities (victimization)

Risk depends on exposure and lack of guardianship

Lifestyle theory

Daily activities influence victimization risk

Deviant place theory

Living in high-crime areas increases risk

Nature

Crime caused by biology/genetics

Nurture

Crime caused by environment and social interaction

Biosocial theories

Combine biological and environmental factors

Social learning theory

Behavior learned through interactions with others

Differential association

Crime learned from close peers

Strain theory

Stress and frustration can lead to crime

General strain theory

Negative experiences create pressure for crime

Mental health link to crime

Can influence behavior but does not determine crime

Rehabilitation approach

Treat underlying issues to reduce offending

Hate crime

Crime motivated by bias against a group

Hate Crime Statistics Act (1990)

Requires collection of hate crime data

Limitation of hate crime data

Inconsistent definitions and reporting

Minority threat theory

Majority reacts to perceived threat from minority groups

Terrorism

Violence used to achieve political or social goals

Key feature of terrorism

Intended to create fear beyond immediate victims

Theories of terrorism

Socialization, ideology, strain, labeling

Labeling and terrorism

"Terrorist" is socially constructed and varies by context

Cybercrime

Crime committed using computers or the internet

Trend in cybercrime

Increasing over time

Challenges measuring cybercrime

Underreporting, jurisdiction issues

Rational choice (cybercrime)

Offenders weigh risks vs rewards online

Social learning (cybercrime)

Learned through online communities

Routine activities (cybercrime)

Lack of guardianship online increases risk

Social control (cybercrime)

Anonymity weakens social bonds

Police officer reduces crime in an area

Capable guardianship (Routine Activities Theory)

Offender commits crime after joining deviant peers

Social learning theory

Person commits more crime after being labeled "criminal"

Labeling theory

Harsh sentence to scare others

General deterrence

Harsh sentence to prevent same offender

Specific deterrence

Locking someone up to prevent crime

Incapacitation

Punishment because they "deserve it"

Retribution

Crime due to inequality

Conflict theory

Crime due to stress and frustration

Strain theory

Victimization due to unsafe environment

Deviant place theory

Victimization due to lifestyle

Lifestyle theory

Online fraud due to low risk

Rational choice theory

Edwin Lemert

Developed labeling theory concepts of primary deviance and secondary deviance

Primary deviance (Lemert)

Initial, situational rule-breaking not tied to identity

Secondary deviance (Lemert)

Crime resulting from internalized labels and identity

George Herbert Mead

Symbolic interactionist who argued that the self is shaped through social interaction

Charles Horton Cooley

Developed the 'looking-glass self,' where identity is shaped by others' perceptions

Looking-glass self

The idea that people form their identity based on how they believe others see them

Karl Marx

Founder of conflict theory, argued crime results from inequality and power differences

Conflict theory (Marx)

Laws and crime reflect the interests of powerful groups

Cesare Beccaria

Classical theorist who argued crime is a rational choice based on free will

Rational choice theory (Beccaria)

People commit crime when benefits outweigh costs

Cesare Lombroso

Early biological theorist who believed criminals are born with traits predisposing them to crime

Travis Hirschi

Developed social control theory focusing on social bonds

Social control theory (Hirschi)

Strong social bonds prevent individuals from committing crime