Department of Criminal Justice
California State University - Bakersfield
CRJU 100
Introduction to Criminal Justice
Dr. Abu-Lughod, Reem Ali
Theories of Crime
Intro:
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Demonology
1.
Supernatural forces
2.
Religion and the role of Church
3.
Trial by ordeal; guilt or innocence. Today’s
perception of GOD, e.g. Andrea Yates
Classical School of Criminology
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Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham
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Free will
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Severity of punishment
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The “cause” of crime
Cesare Beccaria
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On Crimes and Punishment (1738-1794)
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His 9 Principles
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Today: right to confront accusers, speedy trials, presumption of
innocence, right not to testify against oneself
Bentham
 “utilitarianism” theory
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Views on pain and pleasure
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4 factors to be considered: duration, intensity,
certainty/uncertainty, propinquity or remoteness
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Today’s shift to focus on policies ands social
circumstances
The transition to the Positivist School of Criminology
Going beyond free will
SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME
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The environment?
The Chicago School
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Shaw and McKay
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Social disorganization
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Curran and Renzetti: not necessarily ethnic ort racial
minorities , but deteriorated neighborhoods, economically
disadvantaged, weak social norms
Differential Association Theory
 Edwin Sutherland (1883-1950)
 Association with others, but how does it take place?
Differential Association and Behaviorism
 Aker borrowed from Sutherland and incorporated
behavior
 Operant conditioning
 Positive/negative reinforcement
 Modeling others
Strain Theory
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Robert Merton
Influenced by Emile Durkheim
Anomie and normlessness
Merton (unequal access to attain goals in
society). SO WHAT?
5 modes of adaptation
Neutralization Theory
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Justification of behavior
Sykes and Matza’s 5 techniques (denial)
Critical Sociological Theories of Crime
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Addressing different issues of crime
Critical Theory: social justice as a legitimate end
Distribution of power in society
How power reflect the role of the CJ system
“conflict” or “radical”
Marxism
 Karl Marx (1818-1883)
 Social Theorist: communism reflection
 Marx’s critique of capitalism and its impact on social
justice
 Argued (after studying capitalism system in Europe)
that owners of means of production paid workers
poorly and used government to pass laws that
prevented reform
 One with econ power controlled system
 Institutions (churches, schools, etc…) under control of
owner class
 “false consciousness”
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Solution in response to “false consciousness”
Social class and power in society; corporate versus street crimes
GENDER AND JUSTICE
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Male versus female subjects
Feminist movements in 1960s
FEMINISM/FEMINIST views
Curran & Renzetti identify 3 ways crime can be perceived from feminist views:
1. LIBERAL FEMINISM and criminology
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2 issues: 1) power for accomplishment versus gender
2) behavioral approaches among men and women
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The opportunity for women to commit crime
2. RADICAL FEMINIST crim
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Sexism in a patriarchal society
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Rape, pornography
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Are we addressing their concerns?
3. SOCIALIST FEM crim
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Social class and gender as a disadvantaged status
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Social control as a reason for deviance and violence
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What if race becomes a factor?
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Feminist perspective as a social movement
4. CRITICAL RACE T
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Overrepresentation of people of color in CJS
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“ we are as nation of laws and not of men”
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Legitimizing white supremacy and oppression of the weaker class
INTEGRATED T
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Bridging together different T and disciplines
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Possible research designs
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Social context within which crime exists