Developmental Theories
Life-course perspective
Latent Trait perspective
Why do we need developmental theories?
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Can criminologists be satisfied with existing
theories?
Each of the theories tries to explain between
individual differences
Why do we need developmental theories?
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What about within individual differences?
Do you believe that people do not change?
Life course theory
Life is a dynamic process. As people travel through the life
course they are bombarded by changing perceptions and
experiences and as a result their behavior will change
directions (sometimes for better and sometimes for worse)
Developmental theories
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Common tendencies in development
You can predict what a person went through
Do not ask the “relatively simple” questions:
Why do people commit crime? Or Why do
some people desist from crime?
They want to know how the criminal behavior
changes over the life course
What are the possible scenarios?
Age-graded Theory
8-9 years
15-24 years
45-55 years
Age and Crime
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Age is inversely related to criminality
Younger people (regardless class, race, sex) commit
crime more often than their older peers
Dynamics of criminal behavior (can you
think of any theories that could explain these scenarios?)
Deviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Nondeviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
Deviant
behavior
DEVELOPMENTAL THEORIES
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LATENT TRAIT THEORIES
The General Theory of Crime: Gottfredson and Hirschi
The Differential Coercion Theory: Colvin
The Control Balance Theory: Tittle
LIFE COURSE THEORIES
Age-Graded Theory: Sampson and Laub
Theory of Delinquent Development: Farrington
Interactional Theory: Thornberry
LATENT TRAIT THEORY
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Master Trait: Personal attributes present at birth
or established early in life, and it remains stable
over time, i.e., personality, intelligence, and
genetic traits
Personal traits do not change
Criminal opportunities change
Maturity brings less opportunity
Early social control and proper parenting can
reduce criminal propensity
Mark Colvin-Differential coercion theory
Control varies along two continua and dimensions:
 Non-coercive and consistent
 Non-coercive and erratic
 Coercive and consistent
 Coercive and erratic
 Likelihood of crime and deviance varies according to
the amount of coercion experienced
Age-Graded Life-Course Theory
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Causal relationship between early delinquent
offending and later adult deviant behavior is
not solely a product of individual
characteristics
Social events may change some individuals
while others continue to offend
Informal social bonds to family and
employment during adulthood explain
changes in criminality
Age-Graded Life-Course Theory
Life-course model
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Social bonds created by strong attachment to
a spouse, military, job stability and
commitment, and employee-employer
interdependence reduce crime
The social ties embedded in adult transitions
(i.e. marital attachment and job stability)
explain variations in crime
Farrignton’s Developmental Theory
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Cambridge Study (longitudinal study of 411
London boys)
Persistent offenders start at 8 years old
(property crimes)
Poor parental supervision, delinquent friends,,
aggressiveness are the factors that predict the
future offending
Farrignton’s desisters
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Shy personality
Having few friends (at age 8)
Having nondeviant families
Being highly regarded by their mothers
Social bond variables (similar to Sampson and
Laub’s theory)
Interactional Theory
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Terence Thornberry (1987)
Interactions are very important in shaping
the behavior
Attachment to parents, peers, social
institutions change over time
Further, delinquents not only are
influenced by their social surroundings but
also have an impact on others through
their behavior
Thornberry’s Model
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Interactive or reciprocal
The base for the model came from control theory
and social learning theory
“Fundamental cause of delinquency lies in the
weakening of social constrains over the conduct of
the individuals”
Next step is association with delinquent peers
This association foster delinquent values and
delinquent behavior
Thornberry’s Model
Weak parental
attachment
1
Delinquent
association
2
3
Delinquent
behavior
4
5
6
This model answers the contradiction between
Social Learning theory and Control theory
about what goes first: deviant behavior or
association with delinquent peers.
Thornberry’s Model
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Interactional process creates a “behavioral
trajectory” that “predicts increasing
involvement in delinquency and crime”
Initial weak bonds lead to high delinquency,
the high delinquency further weakens the
conventional bonds
Combination of these effects make it difficult
to reestablish bonds to conventional society at
later age
Thornberry’s Model
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What about effect of employment, college,
military, and marriage?
These variables play an important role in
determining whether delinquency will
continue or desist
Patterson’s Social-Interactional
Developmental Model (1989)
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Children and their environment are in
constant interchange
The start of antisocial behavior happens in
dysfunctional families (harsh and
inconsistent discipline, little positive parental
involvement, poor monitoring)
Family members directly “train” the child to
perform antisocial behaviors
Patterson’s Social-Interactional
Developmental Model (1989)
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In dysfunctional families, coercion is a way of life
Child might see that only coercion can stop other
family members from employing hitting
Antisocial children manifest “conduct problems”
outside the home (rejected by peers)
Later they gravitate toward “deviant peer groups”
This association reinforces delinquent behavior
Later these children will have dysfunctional families
and promote coercion
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
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Control theorists focus on the factors that
“restrain” the behavior of individuals
Tittle made an innovation by arguing that
people are not only objects of control but also
agents of control
Each person has a certain amount of control
that she/she is under and a certain amount of
control she/he exerts
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
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Tittle sought to have a “General Theory” and thus to
explain all forms of deviance
For some, the relative amount of control is in
balance (Control Balance )
Some suffer from deficit of control and others
experience a control surplus (Control Imbalance)
Control balance is associated with conformity and
Control imbalance tends to be associated with
deviance
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
Submission
Defiance Predation Balance Exploitation Plunder Decadence
Conformity
Repression
Autonomy
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
vandalism
Submission
Serious forms of
crime
White-collar
crimes
Defiance Predation Balance Exploitation Plunder Decadence
Conformity
Repression
Autonomy
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
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Predisposition to deviance is in each of us
Human nature has a strong urge for autonomy (to
escape the control that others wish to impose on us)
Motivation appears when two conditions transpire:
a person becomes aware of his/her control
imbalance and realize that deviant behavior can
change this imbalance and person must experience"
negative emotion” of being humiliated or denigrated
Tittle’s Control Balance Theory
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Once motivation has emerged, deviant
behavior still might not occur
Opportunity must be present
Constraints (fear of being caught, moral
ambitions, social bonds) also must be
overcome