Current IssuesTopic #11: Social Interactions

Analyzes the causes of Criminal behavior and its impact

What Causes Crime?

It is difficult to control or reduce crime without knowing what causes it.

Criminology: The scientific study of the nature, extent, cause and control of criminal behavior.

There are various theories about what causes crime:

• Choice Theory• Biological Theories• Psychological Theories• Sociological Theories• Conflict Theories• Integrated Theories• Victimization Theories

Choice Theory

• Belief that people commit crime when they perceive benefits of law violation outweigh the threat and pain of punishment.

• Belief that criminals use Rational Choice in deciding to commit crime.

Biological Theories

Belief that crime is caused not so much by human choice but by inherited and uncontrollable biological and psychological traits.• Intelligence• Diet• Personality• Body Build

Psychological Theories

1. Psychoanalytic Theory2. Behavioral Theory3. Cognitive Theory

Psychoanalytic Theory

• Belief that the development of personality in early life influences behavior for the rest of a person’s life.

• Belief that criminals have weak egos and damaged personalities.

Behavioral Theory

• Belief that people commit crimes when they model behavior after others they see being rewarded for the same acts.

• Belief that behavior is enforced by rewards and extinguished by punishments.

Cognitive Theory

• Belief that individual reasoning processes influence behavior.• Reasoning is influenced by the way people perceive their

environment, and by their moral and intellectual development.

Biological & Psychological Theories Practical Implications

• If criminals are inherently “flawed”, Incarcerate them to protect the public

• Similarity to the Crime Control PerspectiveDifferent From Rehabilitation Perspective• Help people not responsible for their actions

Sociological Theories

• Sociological explanations of crime are the most common because:• Crime patterns have a definite social orientation

• Why are sociological theories of crime so important?

They make the connection between social factors and crime:• Poverty• Unemployment

Social Structure Theory•Contends social strata are created by the unequal distribution of wealth, power and prestige•Obvious social class distinctions in America-Upper, Middle and Lower Class•Conflicts and problems of urban social life and communities control the crime rate

How do fix this: If poverty and strain cause crime, efforts to improve economic opportunity should be able to help reduce crime.

Strain Theory

• Contends that members of the lower class experience animosity when their means to achieve culturally defined goals, like wealth and financial success, are insufficient.

• Inability of lower class to achieve culturally defined goals results in alternative solutions(Crime) to meet their need for success.

Social Process Theories

• Theories that people learn to commit crime by exposure to Antisocial Behaviors

• Belief criminal behavior depends on experience with rewards and punishments

• Rewards for deviance leads to crime

Labeling Theory

• Belief that society produces criminals by stigmatizing some persons as deviants.

• Labeled persons come to accept that as their identity.

Social Control Theory

• Belief that most people do not violate the law due to social bonds to family, peers, school and other institutions.

• Also believe that if the bonds weaken or are absent, crime may result.

Political Theories

• Conflict Theory• View that crime results from the rich and powerful imposing their

moral standards and economic interests on the rest of society.

Integrated Theories

1. Latent Trait Theory2. Developmental Theory

Latent Trait Theory

• Belief that some people have a personal characteristic that controls their likelihood to commit crime.

• Low Intelligence• Impulsive Personality• Genetic Defect

Developmental Theory

• Belief that the reasons people commit crime and its frequency change during the course of their lives.

• As people mature, the factors that influence behavior change:

Building social capital (positive relationships that foster self worth and inhibit crime) and social bonds reduces long term criminalityLife events help terminate or sustain criminal careers

Causes Of Crime: Theories Of Victimization• Some theories of crime examine the role victims play in provoking or

encouraging crime.1. Lifestyle Theory2. Routine Activities Theory

Lifestyle Theory

• Theory that some people become victims because their lifestyle increases exposure to criminal offenders

• Partying and drug use increases likelihood of violent crime involvement

Routine Activities Theory

Theory that crime is a product of three factors• Motivated Offenders • Suitable Targets• Lack of Capable Guardians(security devices, police)