Control theories

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Control theories

• Nyes theory
• Matza theory
• Hirschis theory
• Self-control theory

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Question for extra credit

• Do you believe it is latent trait that makes a
  person crime prone, or is crime is a function of
  environment and socialization?

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Control Theories

• Control theories take the opposite approach from
  other theories
• Instead of asking what drives people to commit
  crime, they ask why do most people not commit
  crime
• All human beings suffer from innate human
  weaknesses which make them unable to resist
  temptation

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Control Theories Main points

• Focus on restraining or "controlling" factors
  that are broken or missing inside the
  personalities of criminals
• Control theory investigate the ways in which our
  behavior is regulated, including the influences
  of family, school, morals, values, beliefs, etc.
• It is this regulation that is seen as leading to
  conformity and compliance with the rules of
  society

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Forerunners of Control Theory

• Emile Durkheim (late 19th century)
• Industrial revolution
• Collapse of social solidarity, the destruction of
  fundamental bonds uniting individuals
• Different social order-each person is forced to
  go alone

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Forerunners of Control Theory

• collective force of society was weakened
• relaxation of social bonds is leading to
  extreme individualism
• Result - Anomie and suicide

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The nature of man (Durkheim)

• Homo Duplex concept
• Social self product of socialization, a
  civilized member of society
• Egoistic self- is comprised of animal urges not
  controlled by societys rules
• Proper socialization, the egoistic self could
  become integrated into social self
• Without this integration, deviance results

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Influence of Classical school

• Free will (view individuals as active rather than
  passive agents)
• Criminal behavior, like any type of behavior, is
  a result of rational choice
• Internal controls (well-developed conscience)
• External Controls (parental discipline, parental
  monitoring, laws)

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Nyes (1958) three main categories of social
control that prevent delinquncy

• Direct control, by which punishment is imposed
  for misconduct and compliance is rewarded
• Indirect control, by which a youth refrains from
  delinquency because a particular act might cause
  pain/disappointment for parents or significant
  others
• Internal control, by which a youths conscience
  or sense of quilt prevents him/her from engaging
  in delinquent acts

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Nyes theory

• Family is the most important agent of
  socialization
• The more adolescent's needs for affection,
  security, and recognition are met within the
  family, they less they will deviate (direct and
  indirect controls will be strong)

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Sykes and Matza (1957)

• Theory that explained delinquent behavior as the
  result of adolescents using techniques of
  neutralization
• These techniques are justifications and excuses
  for committing delinquent acts
• Delinquents believe in conventional values of
  society

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Techniques of neutralization

• Denial of responsibility (not my fault)
• Denial of injury (they have a lot, they will
  never miss it)
• Denial of victim (I steal only from outsiders,
  rednecks)
• Condemnation of condemners (they are worse than
  we are, they cannot blame me)
• Appeal to higher loyalties (we have to do it to
  protect our turf size)

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Matza (1964) - Drift Theory

• Proposes that techniques of neutralization are
  ways in which adolescents can get episodic
  release from norm restraints
• Neutralization is a weakening of inner
  containment (breaking of the bonds to society)
• Adolescents drift form conventional to delinquent
  behavior without strong attachment to any of the
  two

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Self-control theory

• Theory states that individuals with high
  self-control will be less likely at all periods
  of life to engage in criminal acts, while
  individuals with low self-control are likely to
  commit crimes

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Self-control

• Self-control develops during early socialization
• Once formed in childhood, the amount of
  self-control remain relatively stable throughout
  life
• The source of low self-control is ineffective
  socialization (childrearing)
• Parents who are attached to children, supervise,
  monitor and punish deviant acts (family is the
  most important agent)
• Peer groups are relatively unimportant in the
  development of self-control

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Age-graded Theory
8-9 years
15-24 years
45-55 years
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Testability of self-control theory

• analogous behavior (smoking, drinking, drug
  use, illicit sex) is manifestation of low
  self-control
• Hirschi and Gottfredson do not define
  self-control separately from propensity to
  toward criminal/analogous behavior
• Problem of tautology low self-control causes low
  self-control, or deviance causes deviance
• A separate measure for low self-control must be
  developed

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Self-control theory

• Makes individualistic causal arguments
• Each and every act of criminal behavior is the
  result of unique individual factors such as
  traits, which are semi-permanent enduring
  personality characteristics

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Individuals possess three sets of traits

• (1) traits composing low self-control
• (2) traits predicting involvement in crime
  (include low intelligence, high activity level,
  physical strength, and adventuresomeness)
• (3) other traits that are the result of
  socialization (impulsivity, insensitivity, and
  inability to delay gratification)