SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL THEORIES OF CRIME

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• SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL THEORIES OF CRIME

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while socialisation theories assume original
sin, and focus on the development or restraints
or inhibitions against deviance, social
psychological and sociological theories assume
that humans are essentially conforming, and
deviate only when pressured into doing so by
societal influences. Thisexplains why sociology
has produced several theories of crime and
delinquency, while psychological accounts of
crime are usually derivatives of more general
theories of development and learning (p. 88)
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Sociological Theories Differential Association

• Main thesis different socal organisation implies
  different subcultural traditions this
  potentially brings conflicting norms.
• Emphasize the process ratio of exposure- by
  which criminogenic traditions are transmitted
  takes the form of 9 propositions
• Critics untestable, only accounts for the
  acquisition of criminal tendencies, not for
  performance

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Sociological TheoriesStrain and subcultural
theories

• Main thesis of strain theory people hates wide
  disparity between aspirations and expectations,
  and may turn to illegitimate behavior
• Main thesis of subcultural theory there is
  normative conflict between class cultures or
  subcultures.
• Critics both overpredicts crime among the
  working class and young people

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Sociological TheoriesControl Theory

• Main thesis restraining factors are needed to
  ensure conformity
• The role of self control
• Violations of social restraints involve personal
  costs
• Critics not credible explanation toward the low
  self control people

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Sociological TheoriesLabelling theory

• Main thesis social reactions to norms violation
  may alter the course of deviance
• 3 assumptions Crime is a label reactions are
  governed by characteristics of offenders a
  deviant self-image fosters a delinquent career
• Primary deviance and secondary deviance
• Critics too much focusing the underdog

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(Psychologists)claimed that the acquisition and
maintenance of Criminal and noncriminal behavior
are governed by the same principles And that no
special theory of crime is therefore
necessary. However, (psychologists) must
explain how people come to enact behaviors which
they know to be socially prohitibited or morally
condemned (p. 94)
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Learning TheoriesThree distinctive schools

• Applied behavioural analysis
• Neo-behaviourism
• Social learning theory
• Increasingly concern with cognition as the
  structuring of experience social cognitive
  theory
• Knowledge exerts control over behavior

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Two dominant themes in learning perspectives on
crime

• Views crime and delinquency as a failure of
  socialisation
• Views crime as a learned phenomenon

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Early learning models of criminal behaviour drew
on two-process theory. Behaviour is stimulated by
the development of conditioning and avoidance
learning
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• TWO VIEWS ON
• SOCIALISATION PROCESS
• Internalisation of cues associated with
  punishment
• The emphasis of SLT on cognitive learning and
  mediation (p. 97)
• Key theme criminal acts are operants
  acquired and maintained by their reinforcing
  consequences

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Learning theory and sociological theories of crime

• Burgess Akers Intimate personal groups
  theory
• Andrews The contingent effects of exposure to
  criminal and anticriminal pattern interpersonal
  conditions on criminal attitudes and behavior in
  the context on interventions within prison
  probation services
• Hirschi control theory toward delinquents

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In contrast to positivist models,,,, the
classical utilitarianismsaw criminal behavior as
the outcome of rational calculation of the costs
and benefits of alternative courses of action
(p. 103)
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Environmental Criminology

• Main thesis criminality prevails according to
  environmental opportunities and situational
  constraint
• Environmental determinism - key concepts
  defensible space, routine activities, situational
  crime prevention, target hardening

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The deterrence hypothesis

• Deterrence any process by which an act is
  prevented or hindered, and is entailed in any
  consideration of compliant behavior
• Bentham when the calculated costs of punishment
  outweight the subjective benefits, a criminal
  behavior is deterred
• Deterrence is in fact a variable

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Limited Rationality

• Three assumptions by Clarke Cornish (p. 108)
• Limited rationality as against normative
  rationality the exercise of limited factors
  prior committing crime