Self Control Theory Research Paper

Imagine you are walking down the street and you witness someone drop a hundred-dollar bill. What will you do? Will you pick it up and place it in your pocket or will you approach the individual and return the money? Per Gottfredson and Hirschi, people who decide to do the right thing and return the money have a high sense of self-control. Yet, the theories believe that the individuals who keep the money have lower self-control. These people tend to take greater risk, want instant gratification and will display impulsive behaviors. I believe that Self-Control Theory is a general theory of crime because it establishes the fact that individuals growing up need to learn socially acceptable behaviors from their parents. Within my paper I will be discussing the history, assumptions and the scope of the self-control theory. I will proceed with defining the important terms within the theory. I will then introduce research that illustrates how pro-socialization is vital within the

He believed that people needed outside controls to limit their criminality. In addition, Durkheim acknowledged that crime essentially serve a purpose within a society. He assumed that crime helped set acceptable standards based on what was morally right and wrong. He believed that anomie resulted from the unclear paths between what is acceptable in society and what the individual believes is the correct path. When roles become, unclear conflict becomes apparent as people began questioning authority. Prior to 1950 people lived in a society that believed males had sole authority over their families. Women were required to educate the children and tend to the home, while their husbands worked outside the homes. Yet, at the start of the 1950s and through the 1960s individuals were no longer conforming to the traditional male authority roles. These actions gave rise to one of the Control Theories sub-categories; Self-Control