Introduction
This paper will attempt to analyse the relationship between young people and the reasons for their involvement with car theft and high speed pursuits with police. These chases are usually preceded by the theft of a motor vehicle and their motivations for involvement vary significantly from offender to offender. The possible structural causations for such crime will be explored first focusing primarily on the cultural and regional aspects of environments with increased susceptibility, followed by an exploration of the crime from an Edgework perspective whereby it will be argued that car theft and joyriding is rewarding in a physical and mental sense to the perpetrator. Interesting but not surprising is the male dominated nature of this crime which will be subsequently explored. Interviews and quotations from perpetrators themselves taken from multiple sources have been included as to offer a more direct and personal insight into their internal thought processes regarding the persistent nature of this criminological phenomenon.
Structural Explanations
Firstly it is important to note that although criminological theories regarding the environments of perpetrators have been around for centuries, car theft is a much more modern breed of crime. The accelerated enlarging of cities and communities over this period into what we see today has largely affected the cultural dynamic within them. This breakdown of the notion of an intimate sense of community has invariably led to a lack of intimate ties between families.
Modern crime has often been thought to arise from these ashes in areas where there is social disorganisation ultimately leading to individual disorganisation. [10] In this context, crime is a structured choice to...
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Conclusion
Naturally, the sociological and individual contexts whereby car theft and high speed pursuits arise will vary significantly depending on the individual. However the overlying themes present in the various offender’s justifications analysed in this paper predominately support the concept of Edgework and to a lesser extent, Strain Theory, as explanation for this crime. Grand theft auto is committed for a number of reasons ranging from monetary gain, for necessity as influenced by structural and environmental factors, to displays of nonconformity and individuality, to hedonistic, primitive displays of masculinity. The latter motives are generally mutually exclusive to the aforementioned and are cause for more concern in society as they are not easily remedied, except through a paradigm shift of the causative conventional values our society promotes.
Through the first chapter of this book the focus was primarily on the notion of controlling crime. The best way to describe crime policy used in this chapter is comparing it to a game of ‘heads I win, tails you lose’. This chapter also addresses the causes for decline in America’s
Young, J. (1981). Thinking seriously about crime: Some models of criminology. In M. Fitzgerald, G. McLennan, & J. Pawson (Eds.), Crime and society: Readings in history and society (pp. 248-309). London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
The social disorganization theory directly links social deviance (criminal activity) to neighborhood ecological characteristics. Thus, an individual's residential location can shape whether he or she grows up in engaging and participating in illegal activities. In The Polish Peasant in Europe and America, W.I. Thomas defined social disorganization as a “decrease of the influence of existing social rule of behavior upon individual members of the group” (Thomas DR: 4). The likelihood of an individual on the lower end of the economic ladder living in a crime ridden neighborhood is high. Therefore, the likelihood that individual will be involved in illegal activity when he ages is substantially higher because he grew up in that environment and sees crime just a way of life. In addition, individuals poor neighborhoods might engage in social deviance as a desire for security. The individual may be motivated by fear to avoid death by finding any means necessary to procure items for survival (W
However, his work has been very influential in both the policy making process and criminological theories both in Britain and around the western world. Merton’s theory does not explain all crime but it has great merit in the ones he attempts to explain. --------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] Merton. R-(1968) Social Theory and Social Structure.
Muncie, J., Talbot, D. and Walters, R. Crime: Local and Global, William Publishing, (Devon). P. 3.
For decades researchers have speculated about the relationship between levels of violence, and societal conditions such as poverty, urbanism, population composition, and family disruption. National and international level research has concluded that each of these factors are related to crime rates and their trends overtime (Avison & Loring, 1986; Lafree, 1999, Lauristen & Carbone-Lopez, 2011). To examine these factors more closely we should recognize that they are the foundation of many criminological theories, both motivational and control, applied to the macro and individual level. Specifically, these include social disorganization theory (Shaw & MCkay, 1942), anomie-strain theory (Merton, 1968), violent subcultural theories (Anderson, 1999), social bond theory (Hirschi, 1969), self-control theory (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990), and biosocial perspectives (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1983).
Theories are designed and developed in order to explain the causes and effects of processes and phenomena, as well as to predict likely outcomes. There are many theories that attempt to explain the motives of criminal and deviant behaviours, including strain theory, structural functionalism, and conflict theory (Akers, Krohn, Lanza-Kaduce and Radosevich, 1979). Social learning theory examines the individual learning process, the formation of self, and the influence of society in socialising individuals (Brezina and Piquero, 2002). It is proffered that the formation of one’s identity is a learned response to social stimuli (Brezina and Piquero, 2002). That is, social learning theory postulates that an individual’s identity is not merely the product of the unconscious, but rather the result of modelling oneself in response to the expectations of others. Behaviours and attitudes are theorised to develop in response to the reinforcement and encouragement from the people around us (Jenson and Akers, 2002).
This theory however as some have argued has emerged from social disorganisation theory, which sees the causes of crime as a matter of macro level disadvantage. Macro level disadvantage are the following: low socioeconomic status, ethnic or racial heterogeneity, these things they believe are the reasons for crime due to the knock on effect these factors have on the community network and schools. Consequently, if th...
Rational Choice Theory is the belief that man is a reasonable actor who decides means and ends, costs and benefits, and makes rational choices. Routine activity theory provides a simple and powerful insight into the causes of crime problems. At its heart is the idea that in the absence of effective controls, offenders will prey upon attractive targets. Social Control Theory gives an explanation for how behavior conforms to that which is generally expected in society. Social disorganization theory explains the ecological differences in levels of crime based on structural and cultural factors shaping the nature of the social order across communities. This approach alters the sociological studies on which is any of two or more random variables exhibiting correlated variation of urban growth to examine the concentration and stability of rates of criminal behavior. Strain Theory. Conflict theory explains the belief that individuals choose to commit a crime, which many po...
“There is a widespread concern that the level and type of crime reported in the media present a distorted view of the real level of crime in the community” (Media portrayals of crime, 2000). If a crime is portrayed as ‘out of control’ or perceived as ‘dangerous’ to a community through the media, it could create social repercussions, such as isolation of consumers who believe that their community is in a high-crime or high-violence area. Statistics recorded from the Australian Institute of Criminology confirms property crime, such as break and enter, burglary, vehicle theft and shoplifting are continually being reported at a higher rate than violent crime (Media portrayals of crime, 2000). In 2013 alone, there were approximately 739,317 property offences in total (homicide incidents, 2017). Therefore, the increase in property offences in society was the highest recorded in 2013, compared to violent crimes that are decreasing in a total of 151,714 in the same reviewed period. In addition, this evidence shows that the majority of crime in our society is not of a violent nature.
If there is one thing Australian society has an abundance of, it is images and opinions about crime. It is the central theme running through many forms of communication in the modern society. Whether the issue of crime is, drug-related, violent, juvenile, child abductions, serial killers, youth gangs, or crimes against the elderly, a public consensus exists that crime is rampant, dangerous and threatening to explode.
Winslow, R. W., & Zhang, S. (2008). Contemporary Theories of Crime. Criminology: a global perspective (). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
It does not consider other factors such as criminal associations, individual traits, and inner strains, which plays significant role in determining punishment for the individuals in committing crimes. It is observed that this theory endeavours to know that whether the activities of crime as well as the victim’s choice, criminals commit the activities on start from rational decisions. The theory also determines that criminals consider different elements before committing crime. They engage in the exchange of ideas before reaching on any final decision. These elements consist of consequences of their crimes, which include revealing their families to problems or death, chances of being arrested, and others elements, which comprises of placement of surveillance systems (Walsh & Hemmens, 2010; Lichbach,
We are all affected by crime, whether we are a direct victim, a family member or a friend of a victim. It can interfere with your daily life, your personal sense of safety and your ability to trust others.
Human antisocial behaviour is complex and trying to understand it has always proven to be a daunting intelligent task, especially in modern culturally diverse societies. Crime, broadly defined as behaviour through which individuals obtain resources for others through uncouth means, presents as one of the most refractory internal social dilemmas. Understanding individual criminal acts such a murder, rape or motives behind them is intricate, rather their behavioral definitions and causes offers a more clear platform for argumentative reasoning. Criminal behaviour, regardless of manner, involves use of barbaric methodologies to obtain symbolic or material resources. Criminal behavior results from methodical processes that involve intricate interactions among isolated, societal, and environmental factors in people’s lives.