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Classical theories of crime
Crime and its effects on communities
Theories of crime pdf
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Criminological theories have been used on a micro and macro level scale in order to search for an answer as to why people commit crimes. The broken windows theory and routine activity theory have been selected as the two theories provide different perspectives as to why crime occurs, and how to solve crime. The theories will be examined in order get a historical origins, outline main principles, distinguishing characteristics, misconceptions and critaziams of each theory.
Broken Window Theory
Origins
James Wilson and George Kelling originally developed broken windows theory as a hypothesis in their 1982 article in the Atlantic: The police and neighborhood safety, the idea was later expanded by George Kelling and Catherine Coles. Broken windows theory suggests that one broken window will lead to another through social disorder. Their theory suggested that unaddressed disorder could potentially lead to a rise in the fear of crime; the rise in fear causes the community to withdraw and take precautions or stop using community areas. The result is a decline and breakdown of community controls, which leads to more serious crimes and disorder. Famous psychologist Philip Zimbardo provided an experiment in 1969 that supported the idea of broken windows, before the theory had been constructed. Zimbardo left a car without a license plate and popped hood unattended in the Bronx in New York City, within 10 minutes the car was raided by vandals, Zimbardo did the same in Palo Alto, California, but this time the car remained untouched until Zimbardo himself smashed one of the windows himself, only then after was the car raided. (Wilson & Kelling, 1982).
Central Principles
Wilson and Kelling outlined the major concepts of their theory in th...
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...macro and micro theory of crime it can be criticized on the micro level. Routine activity accounts for why an offender may chose to commit an offense, but fails to explain why some chose not to commit crime when the three criteria are met, while others chose to commit crime. Miethe and Meier (1994) explained that routine activity fails to account for the motivation of crime, which becomes a major flaw when using routine activity theory to account for some types of crimes. Finally Routine activity fails to account for impulsive crime, for example thefts that take place in front of a capable guardian or robberies.
Conclusion
Broken windows and routine activates theory were both generated in the 1980’s as potential explanations for crime. Both theories can examine crime at the macro level, which is crucial for environmental criminologist, while routine activity can
Based upon the evidence provided on the six elements of a good theory, the Routine Activities Theory is a sound theory. These elements provide that the theory is scientific. The theory has brought together its three elements to help determine why crime occurs. Through research by multiple detached researchers, its hypotheses have been confirmed through tests and empirical evidence.
Lilly, J. R., Ball, R. A., & Cullen, F. T. (2011). Criminological theory: Context and consequences. Los Angeles, CA US: Sage.
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.
The theory focuses on the environment where the crime is likely to occur (Branic, nd). To avoid being the victim of a motivated offender one must make changes to their routine. The routine activity theory looks at how someone’s daily activities can become routine, making them an easy target for a criminal. An example is how rush hour traffic and that it is predictable during the
In 1982, the political scientist James Q. Wilson and the criminologist George Kelling psychologist, both Americans, published in The Atlantic Monthly in a study that for the first time, established a causal link between disorder and crime. In that study, called The Police and Neighborhood Safety, the authors used the image of broken windows to explain how the disorder and criminality could slowly seep into a community, causing its decline and the consequent drop in quality of life. Wilson and Kelling argued that if a window in a factory or an office was broken and was not repaired immediately, people who pass through there would conclude that no one cared about that locality. In other words, the people would believe that there is no responsible authority for the maintenance of order in that place. a move to mass incarceration or a nationwide clemency policy, a large-scale shift to more targeted policing patterns, etc. ), shifts in the distribution or composition of the population (e.g. immigration trends), disruption of wide-spread illicit drug distribution paths, and events that significantly modify a nation’s perception of its government’s legitimacy”.
Two major sociological theories explain youth crime at the macro level. The first is Social Disorganization theory, created in 1969 by Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay. The theory resulted from a study of juvenile delinquency in Chicago using information from 1900 to 1940, which attempts to answer the question of how aspects of the structure of a community contribute to social control. The study found that a community that is unable to achieve common values has a high rate of delinquency. Shaw and McKay looked at the physical appearance of the neighborhoods, the average income of the population, the ethnicity of the neighborhood, the percent of renters versus owners, and how fast the population of the area changed. These factors all contribute to neighborhood delinquency.
There have been many contributors when it came to tackling anti-social behaviour and preventing crime however, the most influential contributors are Wilson and Kelling. They came up with the theory of broken window which will be further explain in this essay. This essay will outline the broken window theory, as well as explain what is meant by broken window. Finally it will give examples that exemplify the broken window theory. (Maguire, Morgan and Reiner, 2012)
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...
The field of criminology has produced multiple theories, each that shaped the perception of how crimes occur in a neighborhood and by viewing these various impressions this can help explain why crimes occur. However, four criminological theories have developed the different perspectives of researchers and outlooks of the field. These approaches have enhanced society by allowing it to analyze crime by establishing an empirical foundation that way to assess which approach is most useful and regulate the difference between a good theory and a bad theory. Every method experiences level of criticisms from either researchers or public policies, however, the focus is only based on four principles that way there can be an assessment to decide which approach is viewed as right or wrong. In order, to determine which approach can be considered a good theory versus a bad theory there needs to be essential elements that give support for each theory. There needs to be criticism, however, with enough empirical evidence that can determine which
This approach is described as being neighborhoods that are seen as run down, will attract more crime if nothing is done to restore them. The theory started in Newark, New Jersey, where footpatrol was reestablished in effort to reduce crime. As a result of this citizens felt safer and trusted the police more. Even though it was reported that it did not effect the decrease in crime, officers themselves expressed a greater satisfaction with their work. As what was stated before the theory did not affect the rate of crime but made the citizens feel safer because “fear of crime was reduced, that is fear of being bothered by disorderly people: drunks, panhandlers, addicts, prostitutes, gangs, and rowdy teens” (Lombardo, Lough, 2007, p.123) The Broken Window theory was tested by Wesley Skogan who wrote a book on this called Disorder and Decline. According to Skogan he analyzed physical disorder which is described as “the presence of junk and trash in vacant lots, boarded-up buildings, vandalism, graffiti, and stripped and abandoned cars; and social disorder, which includes the presence of gangs, prostitutes, panhandlers, drunks, and open gambling and drug use” (Lombardo, Lough, 2007,
Winslow, R. W., & Zhang, S. (2008). Contemporary Theories of Crime. Criminology: a global perspective (). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
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.
The world will always be full of crime, thus it is necessary for scientist to grow along with the gruesome and increasing amount of violations. Due to this it sparked scientist to develop crime theories in which emerged to explain why crime is caused by individuals. Some of the few theories that have advanced over the past century and provided many answers to why crimes are committed are biological theories, psychological theories and learning theories. These theories provide an insight to its first use and change in order to provide answers.
Crime is an in inevitable occurrence in today 's culture. Despite the best efforts of our country 's criminal justice system, crime continues to be on the rise. In an effort to reverse this rising tide, efforts are being made to understand the underlying cause of crime and factors that can lead an individual into the life of crime. From the sociological perspective, there are three theories that are used to explain the cause of crime. They are the social structure theory, the bad neighborhood theory, and the social process theory.
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.