More handpicked essays just for you.
Psychological and biological way to understand crime
Explain crime via classical theory
Explain crime via classical theory
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Psychological and biological way to understand crime
Katz’s Seductions of Crime Theory can be used to provide an explanation of why the teenager committed such a tragic crime that resulted in manslaughter. Katz (1988) proposed that criminal behaviour is greatly influenced by certain qualities and gains that crime encompasses. As the 16-year-old boy’s crime of a joyride is viewed as being extremely exhilarating and pleasurable, it can be suggested that there are tempting qualities of deviancy (Lyng, 2014). For this reason, the teenager may have chosen to perpetrate this crime and ignore the deadly consequences simply influenced by the momentary pleasure of that crime. Additionally, it can be suggested that the teenager tried to establish importance or a sense of superiority, by acting out against
The first argument put forward to explaining female crime was by Lombroso and Ferrero. They argued that the explanation was biological, stating that criminality is innate, but due to biological differences, very few females born with this trait. Lombroso argued that criminals represented a reversion to a more primitive state, physical traits being – ears of an unusual size, a sloping forehead and asymmetry of the face. This theory of physical differences was late disproved by Charles Goring in the English Convict, 1913 who found insignificant statistical differences between non criminals and criminals.
One Important part of the evidence was a note in which the culprit demanded $50,000 in Gold certificates. Dudley Shoenfield was a psychiatrist that analyzed the ransom notes. He concluded that the crime had been committed by a lone wolf criminal who was German and in his 40 he also concluded that he had schizophrenia. The note also featured a drawing of two interlocking circles and between them had been colored red as three small circles had been punched into the design.(Russell, Auito) This note and all the subsequent ones helped in the case against Richard Hauptmann because it was identified as his writing. Also the use of this drawing in the note with the holes indicates that this note and the other ones had been thoroughly planned as to
This criminal behavior psychological analysis paper is taking a look into the life of a serial killer, who is known as, John Wayne Gacy, Jr. He is best known for dressing up as a clown and committing violent killings of specific targets; the nickname he is known for is the “Killer Clown”. Moreover, Gacy is an important individual to study or analyze due to the many merciless anguish murders he committed and the factors that took place throughout his childhood to adulthood, which may have had influential elements of the actions he performed on his poor and vulnerable victims. Understanding Gacy’s actions and mindset can be quite complex to society as well as how he became one of the most prolific and notorious murders in the United States. The importance I find to be relevant, which played a major role in John Wayne Gacy’s numerous murders in Chicago, Illinois, are the social dysfunctional structures followed as: his father-son relationship, being antisocial in school, and environment. Future professionals in criminology can better understand and go into depth about the psychological theories found in most murderers in correlation to Gacy’s horrendous proceedings as some theorists have already been revealing theories of their own that relate to how Gacy grew up to be a murderer. For example, “Theorists consider moral behavior to be self-regulated through mechanisms of self-evaluation where one can approve or disapprove irresponsible or inhumane behavior. It is clear that Gacy showed a lack of moral behavior and hence, in the act was not able to disapprove his behavior adequately to avoid it completely” (“John Wayne Gacy Jr. | Criminology”, n.d.). The professionals can grasp the insight that there is value perhaps in keeping this...
People are uniquely different and because of this reason, they do have different behaviors. Crime is one kind of behavior that an individual can engage in. They are punishable by the law and may be prosecuted by the state (Helfgott, 2008). There are different theories existing that try to explain the actions of criminals. They deeply explain what causes an individual to commit a criminal activity. This paper discusses some examples of the biological theories, social theories and psychological theories of crime.
It discusses childhood characteristics and how those behaviours lead into their more violent and aggressive adolescent behaviours. It has been found that more than half of men have some sort of sexual fantasies whether they are violent or not and that a serial killer will fantasize and replay these fantasises in their minds until they are perfected enough to demonstrate in real life. This article will serve a purpose in discussing more concepts of serial killing and describing in more detail about what fantasies can lead into one becoming a future serial killer.
Eysenck, H.J., & Gudjonsson, G.H. (1989). The causes and cures of criminality. Contemporary Psychology, 36, 575-577.
"There is a feeling that if you commit murder, you can get away with it." (Filkins 2) There are several thoughts about murder, mainly discussed is the question why? "Rather than rehabilitating juveniles who have gone astray, the system often seems to release hardened criminals." (Glazer 1) One consideration on headlines worldwide was discussed by Sarah Glazer is Children killing Children.
Jennifer Jenkins is a high school teacher who lost her younger sister to a teenager who shot Jenkins’ pregnant younger sister and the sister’s husband. In Jenkins’ article, “On Punishment and Teen Killers” she describes the teenage boy who killed her sister as a privileged kid who “got a rush out of breaking the law” (Jenkins 91). She also called him a serial killer in the making because he admit that he had been planning the killing and had bragged about it ones it was done, that’s why he got caught. Jenkins also states, “There are advocates who wish to minimize these offenders’ culpability simply because of their age” (Jenkins 91). She argues that a teenager’s age has nothing to do with their ability to become a cold blooded killer. Some people may agree with her but the truth is that the teenage brain is too complex for anyone to understand. The teen years are difficult to get through, which explains all these suicides we hear about in the news. If the kid who killed Jenkins’ family members would have gotten the proper help, her family members might have still be alive and the kid would be free from
For every 12 homicides committed in the United States 1 of them involves a juvenile offender (Howard N. Snyder, Juvenile Offenders and Victims, 2006). Although most American don’t realize it, juvenile homicide is a problem in the United States that needs to be fixed. Even though statistics show that the homicide rate done by juveniles is at its lowest rate since the early 1980’s it is still a problem. Juvenile homicide has lowered in the recent years, but the fact that it still happens is chilling to most Americans. Most Americans believe that juveniles who show early signs of deviant acts are not a big deal, however if we try and help those juveniles, we can possibly stop them from committing homicidal acts when they get older. In fact the social learning theory, general strain theory, and social control theory point to the idea that juvenile homicide can be prevented.
The theory that juveniles are not mature enough to intentionally commit a crime has been around since the development of psychology as a science. In the 18th century, the authors of the English criminal code concluded that children, younger than seven had not acquired the mental ability to commit a crime such as murder, rape, burglary, etc. These experts used the following acts to determine if a crime committed was criminal or non-criminal: (1) The commission of the crime i...
In 1989 John Braithwaite proposed a theory of crime causation. Braithwaite’s primary proposal was that a society’s structure and culture can influence individual deviant acts by the process of disintegrated shaming. Most punishments may consist of some type of shaming either from friends, family, and the community or law enforcement. Braithwaite argues that the result of guilt serves both as the social process which builds our consciences as well as a form of informal social control when wrongdoing occurs. People often become stabilized in criminal roles when they are labeled as a criminal and they also begin to develop criminal identities. Braithwaite (1989) distinguished between two types of shaming: stigmatization and reintegration.
Psychology and Philosophy offer different dimensions to human behaviour, notably deviant behaviour. Psychologists have long been interested in explanations for crime. In Freud’s essay, Beyond the Pleasure Principle, he proposes that we have a ‘death drive’ known as Thanatos, which is the reason for our compulsive behaviour, and also explains the rush of exhilaration we get from things like bungee jumping or riding on roller coasters. Psychologists Gottfredson and Hirschi, however, argue that it is likely that the two main factors related to uncontrollable desires to commit crime are ineffective parenting and biology,
Criminals are born not made is the discussion of this essay, it will explore the theories that attempt to explain criminal behaviour. Psychologists have come up with various theories and reasons as to why individuals commit crimes. These theories represent part of the classic psychological debate, nature versus nurture. Are individuals predisposed to becoming a criminal or are they made through their environment.
Criminality constitutes strategic mannerisms characterized by apathy to misery inflicted on others, egocentricity and depressed self-control. Habitual criminal behaviour seeks to satisfy the offender’s desires for material prestige, power or pleasurable feelings regardless to damage inflicted to victim or society. Such behaviors extend mistrust, fuel prejudice, and largely corrupt social cohesion. Biological, psychological and environmental attributes are thought to heavily influence antisocial and criminal behaviour. Numerous studies have proven that active emulation, genetic predispositions and psychosocial labeling are all complementary to development and expressions of criminal behaviour. There has historically been a myriad of theories that attempt to explain criminal behaviour through different perspectives, all which constitute intricate paradigms that play a role in expressio...
People are strange creatures, we are born with our own free will; however, it is not something that we realize we have until we are a little older. Once children get to the age where they begin to discover their own free will, that is when they start to make choices on how to act, granted the adults or authority figures in their lives influence the choices that they make but they are not completely responsible for the choices made by children. Adults on the other hand are responsible for the choices that they make. As an adult I feel that just because of the experiences that we endure in our lives they are not totally responsible for the choices we make for the future. Criminals become criminals because of choices they choose to make; although, choices are a major part of why people become criminals there are also other contributing factors for example what they were taught or the environment that they grew up in both in home and out of home environments, and the psychological affects that has on them.