Violence
1. Violence2. Roots of violence
GST
ANGERCriminal Behavior
Strain
Assignment # 4 According to Agnew, males and females
tend to experience different types of strain.
Males: 1) financial problems; 2) work-related problems, 3) status; 4) conflict and competition with peers;
Females: 1) abortion; 2) STD 3) verbal, sexual, and physical victimization; 4) gender-based discrimination; 5) child care problems; 6) stressors involving family and friends; 7) low prestige at work; 8) fitting in (looks+popularity);
Males and females differ in terms of their emotional reactions to strain.
Males: Anger+Moral outrage Females: Anger+Fear
+Depression+Anxiety+Guilt+Self-blame
Assignment # 4
Assignment # 4 Males and females differ in terms of their
behavioral reactions to strain.
Males: Crime and delinquency Females: Self-destructive behaviors such as
eating disorders, alcohol/drugs, running away from home, self-injuring, self-cutting, prostitution.
Final Exam New Format 50 Multiple Choice Questions Practice questions?
Roots of violence What causes people to
behave violently? Adults and violence Children and violence Several competing
explanations
Sources of Violence
Violence
Substance abuseCultural Values
Ganging
Regional Values
Human Instincts
Ineffective families
Personal Traits
Firearm availability
Personality Traits Abnormal personality structures Depression, impulsivity, aggression,
dishonesty, pathological lying, lack of remorse, psychopathology
Many murderers kill themselves shortly after committing their crime
There cases when people who commit murder wait for the execution (form of “Suicide-murder”)
Ineffective families Absent/deviant parents Inconsistent discipline Lack of supervision Abused children
Patterson’s Social-Interactional Developmental Model (1989) Children and their environment are in
constant interchange The start of antisocial behavior happens
in dysfunctional families (harsh and inconsistent discipline, little positive parental involvement, poor monitoring)
Family members directly “train” the child to perform antisocial behaviors
Patterson’s Social-Interactional Developmental Model (1989)
In dysfunctional families, coercion is a way of life Child might see that only coercion can stop other
family members from employing hitting Antisocial children manifest “conduct problems”
outside the home (rejected by peers) Later they gravitate toward “deviant peer
groups” This association reinforces delinquent behavior Later these children will have dysfunctional
families and promote coercion
Mark Colvin-Differential Coercion Theory
Non-coercive and consistent Non-coercive and erratic Coercive and consistent (depression) Coercive and erratic (chronic criminal) Likelihood of crime varies according to the
amount of coercion experienced Low coercion produces low anger, high self-
esteem, strong social bonds High erratic coercion produces high anger, low
self-esteem, weak social bonds
Mark Colvin-Differential Coercion Theory Individuals with background of coercion
are more likely to get involved in coercive situations and respond to them with violence
They create and maintain the cycle of coercion (coercive to future children+partners)
They become caught up in a coercive cycle
Abused Children
Eric and Lyle Menendez were convicted of first-degree murder for the brutal shotgun slaying of their parents in Beverly Hills. Their defense was based on the “abuse excuse”
The apparent motives ranged from the brothers’ fear of their father’s abuse to their desire to collect $11 million in insurance
Evolutionary factors Human instincts (survival
instinct) Violent behavior is
committed predominantly by males
Sexually aggressive males have been the ones most likely to produce children
Exposure to violence At home, school,
neighborhood Mental health Deviant behavior Victimization Vulnerable to the lure of
gangs and other deviant groups
Cultural/Regional Values Violence-prone
subcultures Violence is used to solve
social conflicts and dilemmas
Ganging Regional values (murder
rate is higher in the South)
Ganging
Rising homicide rates in the 1960s and 1970s have been linked to increased gang activity and drug trafficking in central cities
Patterns of violence in large cities strongly influence national trends
Homicide rates
Cultural Values
“Legitimation of violence” hypothesis (Archer, Gartner, 1984) argues that during wartime pro-violent values are reinforced and these values are carried over to postwar periods
Increase in homicide rates after World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War are consistent with this idea
Firearm availability
Greater social acceptance of violence as method of conflict resolution
Violence is deeply woven into the fabric of American culture (street talk, prime-time television programming, “gangsta rap” music lyrics)
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