Response Paper Crime has been measured in different ways since the earliest days of advanced civilization. Within those attempts to measure crime many people have tried to explain why crime happens, and how criminality has come to be. Today, I will be briefly explaining some of the theories used to study crime and criminality. What I will be evaluating these theories against will be small scale property crime such as theft. Critical theory states that the vast inequality in power and material well-being fosters the conditions that can lead to street crime and corporate crime (Bonger, 2013). Conflict theory states that different classes in society have different amounts of material and non-material resources and that of those classes the …show more content…
These very traits that differ can cause crime directly or indirectly (Peskin, 2013). According to Kevin Beavers (2011) research almost all antisocial phenotypes are influenced to differing degrees by genetic factors. The study that he did revealed that adoptees who were genetically predisposed to antisocial behavior, as measured by the criminality of their biological parents, were much more likely to be arrested, put on probation, imprisoned, or arrested multiple times when compared with the control group (Beaver, 2011). When using Biological or Biosocial theory to explain property crime I think it does a decent job. If you think about the type of people who commit these crimes there is a high probability that their parents may have been processed through the criminal justice system at one point or another. Additionally, there is so much about the human genome that we don’t know that there could be many different genes passed onto the next generation whether good or bad. These possible traits mixed with social interaction can create a melting pot of criminal interactions, but in some cases mixing with positive social interaction may counteract the way a person’s life may play …show more content…
Often they are considered life-course theories because crime occurs in sequences across time (Agnew, 2013). I left this section in here because I had already written it, but also because I feel like integrating many theories is a much more sound way to explain crime. There is no single clear cut reason that people commit crime. Instead there are many different reasons for many different people to do so. I have always thought that combining many of the theories I have learned about thus far in my college experience would be able to explain crime much better than one single theory ever
There are many views on crime and deviance and many theories to why they occur.
In addition to biological and psychological elements, there are the social factors that can influence people to engage in criminal activity. As a matter of fact, social and economic pressures play a major role in the cause of crime, since people are more likely to break the law when they have nothing else to lose. Therefore, the biological, psychological, and social factors should all be considered when trying to establish a reason for every crime. Word Count = 1,378
Crime causation is looking at why people commit crimes. There are many theories that have been developed to explain this. The theories can be grouped into eight general categories of which one is the Classical theory (Schmallegar, 2011, p. 79). A subset of this theory, rational choice theory, will be specifically looked at to explain the crime of burglary. Just as no one causation theory explains all crimes committed, the rational choice theory itself does not completely explain why all burglars commit their crimes. Therefore, the pros and cons of the rational choice theory will be discussed in relation to the crime topic of burglary.
Criminology theories are Conflict Theory which is based upon the view that the fundamental causes of crime are the social and economic forces operating within society. Critical Theory approaches to culture, and esp. to literature, that seeks to confront the social, historical, and ideological forces and structures that produce and constrain it. Labeling Theory is how the self-identity and behavior of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe or classify them. Life Course Theory focuses on the stage of life that exposure to health promoting or harmful influences occurs and the duration of exposure to these influences. Positivist Theory concerns with positive facts and phenomena, and excluding speculation upon ultimate causes or origins.
1. A In chapter 7 this chapter mostly talked about the different theories society has created through social routines. These theories were created to control and describe why criminals commit crimes through their community and social values. This chapter focused more on the variables and factors of why they commit crime rather than stating they commit the crime because of their deemed deviant. In fact, chapter 7 is mainly on the view part of recognizing why certain people replicate crime differently causing the criminal behavior to happen. One thing I liked about this chapter is how Gabriel Trade who coined the idea of crime is a learned process. Was able to look back on past theorist and interpret his ideas towards their research. He created
Nature vs. nurture has been one of the oldest and most debated topics among psychologists over the years. This concept discusses whether a child is born into this world with their developmental work cut out for them or if a child is a “blank slate” and their experiences are what shape them into who they are. Over the years and plenty of research, psychologists have all mostly come to agree that it’s a little bit of both. Children are both born with some genetic predispositions while other aspects of the child’s development are strongly influenced by their surrounding environment. This plays into the criminal justice system when discussing where criminal behavior stems from. Is a criminal’s anti-social behavior just part of their DNA or is it a result of their upbringing? The answer to this question is not definite. Looking at research a strong argument can be made that criminals developed their anti-social patterns through the atmosphere in which they were raise, not their DNA.
Through the work of great individuals such as Durkheim and Merton, who thought at great length about the question, and used a variety of theories to explain their subsequent answers. We shall explore five theories that will direct us towards a realistic answer. In pursuit of an answer to the aforementioned question, one must first understand the question itself and its very meaning. Crime itself is a very transient term; it is something that varies through the passage of time, society, geography, and by who commits the act.
Winslow, R. W., & Zhang, S. (2008). Contemporary Theories of Crime. Criminology: a global perspective (). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
...ifferent crime patterns and thought processes of criminals. The reasons can only come from these theories and will help the justice systems become more prepared to react towards different crimes. However, with adding some enhancements, projects and experiments these two theories have the potential to change the criminology realm forever.
Wilson, James and Herrnstein, Richard. "Crime & Human Nature: The Definitive Study of the Causes of Crime" New York: Free Press, 1998.
Crime exists everywhere. It is exists in our country, in the big cities, the small towns, schools, and even in homes. Crime is defined as “any action that is a violation of law”. These violations may be pending, but in order to at least lower the crime rate, an understanding of why the crimes are committed must first be sought. There are many theories that are able to explain crimes, but three very important ones are rational choice theory, social disorganization theory and strain theory.
Property Crime Crime is present at any moment and it is not that easy to get rid of it. For every crime that is out, there is a sentence to make it feel safe for the society. Some crimes had been part of society since it was created. The cause that motivates a person to commit a crime can differ from different reasons and motivations that could trigger a person to do it. Property crime is one of the most seen crime in the country.
Throughout history a lot of expects have tried to understand why some people feel the need to commit crimes, even though there have been harsh laws inforced for thouse who commit crimes. These people have come up with theories as to why people commit crimes. in order to understand these theories we have to understand what a crime is and also understand the definition of theories.
Different schools of thought propose varying theoretical models of criminality. It is agreeable that criminal behaviour is deep rooted in societies and screams for attention. Biological, Social ecological and psychological model theories are key to helping researchers gain deeper comprehension of criminal behaviour and ways to avert them before they become a menace to society. All these theories put forward a multitude of factors on the outlooks on crime. All these theories have valid relevancy to continuous research on criminal behaviour.
The general theory of crime I would pick is the neoclassical school of theory. Neoclassical focuses on the importance of character and the dynamics of character development, as well as the rational choices that people make when faced with opportunities for crime (Schmalleger, 2012). This theory is practically what is used in law enforcement today. The neoclassical theory focuses on punishment as being a deterrent for future crimes. Unfortunately, it is becoming more evident is the criminal justice system, criminals are being punished lightly or the charge is downgraded. More often than not, this is not helping the situation, but is allowing for the criminal to continue to commit crimes. Punishment has been established as an effective means