Michael Auzenne
Instructor
GCM, CJC
CAUSES OF CRIME
I.
THEORY IN CRIMINOLOGY
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
A.
The Role of Theory
i.
ii.
B.
Theory: An explanation of happening or circumstance that is
based on observation, experimentation, and reasoning.
Hypothesis: A possible explanation for an observed occurrence
that can be tested by further investigation.
The Fallibility of Theory
1.
A Theory Presented
a.
b.
c.
2.
Young males commit more crimes than the rest of society
Women most likely to have abortions are young, unmarried, minority,
and poor
The legalizing of abortion 20 years earlier lead to these young males
being aborted, therefore, causing a decrease in crime today
A Theory Rejected
a.
b.
II.
Criminology: The scientific study of crime and the causes of
criminal behavior.
Criminologists: A specialist in the field of crime and the causes
of criminal behavior.
Correlation: The relationship between two measurements or
behaviors that tend to move in the same direction.
Causation: The relationship in which a change in one
measurement or behavior creates a recognizable change in
another measurement or behavior.
In actuality, births to young, unmarried, minority, and poor women
increased 20 years ago
Crime, as a result, should have increased but instead plummeted
EXPLORING THE CAUSES OF CRIME
A.
Crime and Free Will: Choice Theories of Crime
i.
1.
Theories of Classical Criminology
i.
ii.
2.
B.
Classical Criminology: A school of criminology based on the
belief that individuals have free will to engage in any behavior,
including criminal behavior.
Utilitarianism: An approach to ethical reasoning in which the
“correct” decision is the one that result in the greater amount
of good for the greatest number of people affected by that
decision.
Positivism and Modern Rational Theory
i.
3.
4.
Choice Theory: A school of criminology that holds that
wrongdoers act as if they weigh the possible benefits of criminal
or delinquent activity against the expected cost of being
apprehended.
Positivism: A school of the social sciences that sees criminal and
delinquent behavior as the result of biological, psychological,
and social forces.
The Seduction of Crime
Choice Theory and Public Policy
“Born Criminal”: Biological and Psychological Theories of Crime
i.
ii.
1.
Biology: The science of living organisms, including their
structure, function, growth, and origin.
Psychology: The scientific study of mental processes and
behavior.
Genetics and Crime
i.
Genetics: The study of how certain traits or qualities are
transmitted from parents to their offspring.
a. Twin Studies
b. Adoption Studies
2.
Hormones and Aggression
i.
ii.
3.
Hormones: A chemical substance, produced in tissue and
conveyed in the bloodstream, that controls certain cellular and
body functions such as growth and reproduction.
Testosterone: The hormone primarily responsible for the
production of sperm and the development of male secondary
sex characteristics such as the growth of facial and pubic hair
and the change of voice pitch.
The Brain and Crime
i.
Neurotransmitter: A chemical that transmits nerve impulses
between nerve cells and from nerve cells to the brain.
Serotonin: regulates mood, appetite, and memory
Norepinephrine: regulates sleep-wake cycles and controls how
we respond to anxiety, fear, and stress.
Dopamine: regulates perceptions of pleasure and reward
4.
Psychology and Crime
a.
Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory
i.
b.
5.
C.
Psychoanalytic Theory: Sigmund Freud’s theory that attributes
our thoughts and actions to unconscious motives.
Social Psychology and “Evil” Behavior
Trait Theory and Public Policy
Sociological Theories of Crime
1.
2.
The Chicago School
Social Disorganization Theory
i.
a.
b.
Social Disorganization Theory: The theory that deviant behavior
is more likely in communities where social institutions such as
the family, schools, and the criminal justice system fail to exert
control over the population.
Disorganized Zones
The Value of Role Models
3.
Strain Theory
i.
ii.
4.
Cultural Deviance Theory
i.
ii.
5.
D.
Strain Theory: The assumption that crime is the result of
frustration felt by individuals who cannot reach their financial
and personal goals through legitimate means.
Anomie: A condition in which the individual suffers from a
breakdown or absence of social norms.
Cultural Deviance Theory: A branch of social structure theory
based on the assumption that members of certain subcultures
reject the values of the dominant culture through deviant
behavior patterns.
Subculture: A group exhibiting certain values and behavior
patterns that distinguish it from the dominant culture.
Social Structure Theory and Public Policy
Family, Friends, and the Media: Social Processes of Crime
i.
1.
Learning Theory
i.
2.
Learning Theory: The hypothesis that delinquents and criminals
must be taught both the practical and emotional skills necessary
to participate in illegal activity.
Control Theory
i.
3.
Social Process Theories: A school of criminology that considers
criminal behavior to be the predictable result of a person’s
interaction with his or her environment.
Control Theory: A series of theories that assume
individuals have the potential for criminal behavior,
restrained by the damage that such actions would do
relationships with family, friends, and members
community.
that all
but are
to their
of the
Labeling Theory
i.
Labeling Theory: The hypothesis that society creates crime and
criminals by labeling certain behavior and certain people as
deviant.
4.
E.
Social Process Theory and Public Policy
Social Conflict Theories
i.
1.
Marxism versus Capitalism
i.
2.
3.
III.
Social Conflict Theories: A school of criminology that views
criminal behavior as the result of class conflict.
Social Reality of Crime: The theory that criminal laws are
designed by those in power to help them keep power at the
expense of those who do not have power.
Issues of Race and Gender
Social Conflict Theory and Public Policy
FURTHER STUDY: EXPANDING CRIMINOLOGY
A.
Looking Back to Childhood: Life Course Theories of Crime
i.
B.
Life Course Criminology: The study of crime based on the belief
that behavioral patterns developed in childhood can predict
delinquent and criminal behavior later in life.
1.
Self-Control Theory
2.
The Possibility of Change
Victimology and Victims of Crime
i.
1.
2.
The Risks of Victimization
Repeat Victimization
i.
3.
Victimology: A school of criminology that studies why certain
people are the victims of crimes and the optimal role for victims
in the criminal justice system.
Repeat Victimization: The theory that certain people and places
are more likely to be subject to criminal activity and that past
victimization is therefore a valuable crime prevention tool
because it is a strong indicator of future victimization.
The Victim-Offender Connection
IV.
THE LINK BETWEEN DRUGS AND CRIME
A.
The Criminology of Drug Use
1.
2.
Theories of Drug Use
Drugs and the “Learning Process”
a.
First time users:
Learn the techniques of drug use
Learn to perceive the pleasurable effects of drug use
Learn to enjoy the social experience of drug use
B.
Drug Addiction and Dependency
1.
Drug Use and Drug Abuse
i.
2.
C.
Drug Abuse: The use of drugs that results in physical or
psychological problems for the user, as well as disruption or
personal relationships and employment.
Addiction Basics
The Drug-Crime Relationship
1.
Models of Explanation
Psychopharmacological model
Economically impulsive model
Systemic model
i.
2.
Prescription Drugs: Medical drugs that require a physician’s
permission for purchase.
Models of Addiction
i.
ii.
Medical Model of Addiction: An approach to drug addiction
that treats drug abuse as a mental illness and focuses on
treating
and
rehabilitating
offenders
rather
than
punishing them.
Criminal Model of Addiction: An approach to drug abuse that
holds that drug offenders harm society by their actions to the
same extent as other criminals and should face the same
punitive sanctions.
V.
CRIMINOLOGY FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE
A.
Criminology and the Chronic Offender
i.
B.
Chronic Offender: A delinquent or criminal who commits
multiple offenses and is considered part of a small group of
wrongdoers who are responsible for a majority of the antisocial
activity in any given community.
Criminology and the Criminal Justice System