A good theory has uniqueness in that you should be looking at something unique in its own standards. It should explain better than other theories making it unique (Brieger, 2006). Uniqueness is what will separate a good theory from other theories. Uniqueness does not allow a newer theory to replace an older theory that pertains to the same subject unless it is superior in the evaluation of their virtues (Wacker, 2008). An example of uniqueness might be a theory that is attempting to a new answer to a phenomenon that would pertain to criminal justice and gives new information that has not been looked at before. A good theory must satisfy parsimony or simplicity to be considered valid. There are some different outlooks on how simple a theory must be and is usually looked at by the complexity of …show more content…
A good theory should be generalizable to well defined areas and populations beyond the boundaries of a particular research in which it was tested (Breiger, 2006). If the research goal is to prove those things that are generalizable across populations then the hypotheses testing will be useful (Gay & Weaver, 2011). Generalizability is a part of a good theory can be applied and which assists in answering many phenomenon and is not focused on one individual purpose (Wacker, 2008). An example of generalizability in a theory might be gang activities common in adults but also can be found in juveniles as well. A good theory should have fecundity. Fecundity is the characteristic that is applied when a theory promotes growth and expansion into new ideas and thoughts including the hypotheses (Wacker, 2008). Basically, fecundity in theory is new ideas that are opened from the initial idea to be researched (Wacker, 2008). An example of fecundity might be a theory that was first began to research a certain problem or situation and then an additional hypothesis is formed from the original research or
In science, a theory will refer to an explanation of an important feature of the world supported by testing and facts that have been gathered over time. It’s there scientific theories that allow scientists to make predictions about untested and unobserved concurrences in the world. The American Association for the Advancement of Science has this explanation of what a theory means to those in the science field, and it is as follows, “A scientific theory is a well substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts......Such fact supported theories are not guesses but reliable accounts of the real
Theories are used as explanations of an experiment or study. A theory can be tested and then is used a predictor of something. People in criminal justice use criminological theories to explain why individuals commit crimes and based off of these theories, they can also see try to predict whether people will commit crimes and based off this try to prevent individuals from offending. In the criminal justice work field another set of theories are used called Management Theories. Similar to criminological theories, management theories can also help predict and explain people’s behavior. Management theories help explain behavior in the workplace. They are executed to aid in the expansion of employee output.
There are many definitions to theory. According to Akers (2009) “theories are tentative answers to the commonly asked questions about events and behavior” (Akers, (2009, p. 1). Theory is a set of interconnect statements that explain how two or more things are related in two casual fashions, based upon a confirmed hypotheses and established multiple times by disconnected groups of researchers.
The social world has provided us with multiple perspectives when it comes to various topics. A theory is a system of ideas intended to explain something based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained. All three views of crime were created by theorists as an attempt to explain the causes of human behaviors. Each theory offers a variety of explanations for the multiple perspectives the world has.
”Theories tell how and why things work; how and why one variable is related to another. Research findings that are theory based can be place in a framework that advances science further than findings that are unconnected to formal theory.” (O'Connell, 2009, p. 33).
Next, I will proceed to describe what the HOT Theories are, which conditions or requirements contain, as well as mentioning some constraints they may show and that in turn can motivates them.
The strengths that general strain theory has are the variety of different strains it provides (Agnew, 2013, p. 203). Another one of its strengths is the fact that it provides individual characteristics. Individual characteristics were important to present in this theory because it is primarily composed of micro-level components. By presenting a more detailed explanation of individuals, this led to the conclusion of what type of “individual’s are more disposed than others to respond to strains with crime” (Agnew, 2013, p. 210). Some people see crime as their only way out and others choose to commit crime and choose to associate with a criminal crowd. As for weaknesses in general strain theory, the only weakness I could think of is the fact that it is not macro-level based. If Agnew’s theory were to contain both micro-level and macro-level components, I believe it would be a harder theory for people to
In addition to logical consistency, testability is an important piece when evaluating a theory. According to Akers & Sellers (2013), “a theory must be testable by objective, repeatable evidence” (p.5); thus, if the theory is not testable then it has no scientific value. There are several reasons why a theory might not be testable; such as its concepts may not be observable or reportable events and tautology. Tautology refers to a statement or hypothesis that is tr...
... a theory should be able to explain a wide variety of things, not just only what it was intended to explain.
Any hypothesis, Gould says, begins with the collection of facts. In this early stage of a theory development bad science leads nowhere, since it contains either little or contradicting evidence. On the other hand, Gould suggests, testable proposals are accepted temporarily, furthermore, new collected facts confirm a hypothesis. That is how good science works. It is self-correcting and self-developing with the flow of time: new information improves a good theory and makes it more precise. Finally, good hypotheses create logical relations to other subjects and contribute to their expansion.
In Subculture Theory many theorists were interested in explaining delinquent gangs, which were believed to be the most common form of delinquency. The Subculture Theory was made up of several different theories that were all related to each other. Subculture theories provided explanations of how groups of individuals develop similar values and rationales for behavior (Williams & McKay, 2014). One theory within Subculture Theory was called the delinquent subculture theory by Albert Cohen. Another theory in the Subculture Theory was the differential opportunity formed by Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin. The third theory by Walter Miller used direct observation of social groups in their natural setting. All four theories were interest in of the Subculture Theory could develop (Williams & Mckay, 2014). The last major theory was very different theories and was created by Wolfgang and Ferracuti. All these theories in the Subculture Theory were very different but were all related in some way.
Hilary Putnam. The thesis states that different physical properties may implement the same mental property. This argument has evolved since Putnam’s original goal of rejecting type-identity theory and many philosophers have redefined the implications of multiple realizability. There are two philosophers in philosophy of mind that are famous for their work in exploring multiple realizability and the implications this thesis has on science, or more specifically psychology. Jaegwon Kim and Jerry Fodor both take a stab at multiple realizability, but neither will come to the same conclusion.
...ually throughout the processes of the theory, certain words and definitions need to be decided on and kept. Confusion prevails when the terms and ways to understand the theory are continually changing.
... people commit crimes and are not limited to one aspect like the original theory. For example, Merton strain theory just looked one aspect of blocked opportunities to unable achieve economic success. Differential Opportunity theory helped explain the different illegitimate means that causes people to commit crimes for example poverty and high concentrations of youth living in slums (Murphy & Robinson, 2009). Agnew General Strain theory takes a micro approach into looking at the different types of strain that causes people to commit crimes (Lilly et al.2010). Even though these theories explain certain aspects of what causes crime, it does not explain the sole cause of why criminal behavior occurs or why one commits different crimes. However integrated theories are helpful to understand certain aspects of why people commit crimes and engage in deviant behavior.
A theory is a set of statements that describes, explains and predicts human behavior. Development of behavior starts during the prenatal stage up to late adulthood. Three theories that help describe behavior are the perspective of Freud, Erikson and Paget’s. All three theories have several similarities as well as differences. By comparing I hope to gain a better understanding of all three theories.