What different Criminological theories are out there about what causes crime? The three theories that are being discussed in this paper are the biological, sociological and the psychology theories. There are many reasons a person may commit a crime in their life, it could be because that’s what they have been taught and have seen their parents do, it may be because they want to be cool and fit in with their new friends. These theories all have their own beliefs and thoughts as to why.
The biological theory states that a person can inherit genetic factors that can make them prone to commit crimes (Marsh & Melvilles, 2006). For example: If both your parents are criminals, your chances are higher to become a criminal. The adoption examples are
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The first one differential reinforcement is when a person teaches someone else to act criminal, which is done through reinforcement good and bad. An example for this would be: Friends may reinforce drug use (Crime Causation, 2015).
The second one is beliefs in which a person has learned beliefs which are “favorable to crime” (Crime Causation, 2015). Most of us have been taught from early on about right and wrongs, yet some people don’t abide by that depending on the issue at hand. For example: We all think it’s wrong to kill a person, but we might feel it’s justified if this person has done something bad like killer people etc.
The third modeling also called ‘The imitation of criminal models’ (Crime Causation, 2015), states that a person behavior functions not only on the reinforcements and beliefs of a person, but also on the people surrounding him or her (Crime Causation, 2015). We act like the people around us in most
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It’s known that when a person has any type of mental illness including but not limited to drug abuse, depression, schizophrenia are more likely to engage in criminal or violent behaviors (Review of the Roots, 2015).
The most debatable topic within this is the Nature vs Nurture debate. What really makes a person a criminal is it in his Nature or is it due to his Nurture. Some theorist believe that a low IQ can cause a person to become a criminal or even violent, while others argue that is not the case. Nature believes that IQ is genetically given to you while Nurture theories believe it’s something that is learned from social interaction (Review of the Roots, 2015).
For a criminal to be a criminal he or she will have to have seen that behavior from parents, family members, friends etc. Without any of those things a person will have a low chance of becoming a criminal less alone a violent offender. For year’s theorist have tried to understand why a person does what they do, but without looking at the whole picture that answer ay never fully be
The biological theories are essential to the criminal justice profession so that they won't assume that a person's genetic characteristics cause a person to commit a crime. However, there are born criminals and “these types of criminals are the most dangerous, and can be identified through his or her stigmata or identifying characteristics” (Akers, Sellers, See, & Kieser, 2013, p. 10). Biological theories are the bases for severe criminal behavior mostly found among people who are born with an innate impulse to commit a
A number of factors take place regarding incidents of crimes and why they may have been committed that might explain the difference between the two. In determining these factors, theories of crime must be considered since there is more than one factor present when one commits a crime. These theories include learning theory, labeling theory, social disorganization, trait theory, social conflict, choice theory, and life course theory.
What Starts Criminal Behavior? History shows that through life violence is a cycle within itself. Criminology shows different views on how and why criminal behavior happens. By watching the movie “Boyz in The Hood” we see the crimes take place and show why these events happened. Based off the information from class and from past theories I formulate my own theories of why crime happens.
Criminals are born not made is the discussion of this essay, it will explore the theories that attempt to explain criminal behavior. Psychologists have come up with various theories and reasons as to why individuals commit crimes. These theories represent part of the classic psychological debate, nature versus nurture. Are individuals predisposed to becoming a criminal or are they made through their environment. There are various theories within the biological explanation as to why individuals commit criminal behavior, these include: genetic theory, hereditary theory,.
This explains how a criminal can be made, by no particular person but by a society and a series of actions. This theory does not explain all criminal activity but it gives an insight into how criminals are formed, more specifically in the lower socio-economic groups of society who most likely have had the observational learning of criminal behaviour shown in the Social Learning Theory.
However, while the overstimulation of the Id and the failure to acquire and develop the the Ego and SuperEgo leads to criminal tendencies, while aggression may be out of adaptive values, and while genetic studies have pointed towards the influence of genes and criminal behaviour, these theories alone are insufficient to account for crime. Evolutionary theory does not explain or predict for the extreme degrees of aggression in individuals nor has the genetic theory proven for 100% heritability; which raises the need for us to examine the Nurture camp of crime theories as well.
How can theories help us to understand criminal behavior and to design strategies intended to control such behavior?
There has always been a fascination with trying to determine what causes an individual to become a criminal? Of course a large part of that fascination has to do with the want to reduce crime, and to determine if there is a way to detect and prevent individuals from committing crime. Determining what causes criminality is still not perfectly clear and likewise, there is still debate as to whether crime is caused biologically, environmentally, or socially. Furthermore, the debate is directly correlated to the notion of 'nurture vs nature'. Over time many researchers have presented various theories pertaining to what causes criminal behavior. There are many theories that either support or oppose the concept of crime being biological rather
When looking at criminal activity and the direct connection to the criminal behavior we see that there have been many research trials that have taken place over the history of humankind (Mishra & Lalumiere, 2008). Two of these research areas that have been developed to attempt to understand the causes of criminal behavior are known as biological and psychological perspectives of crime causation. These two sectors have their principles that are held in their theories as a standard scientific understanding of the basics that each evaluation of criminal behavior is built on (Dretske, 2004).
This essay will outline how crime theories are able to assist in recognizing the causes of criminal activity, as well as demonstrating two criminological theories to two particular crimes. Overviews of trends, dimensions and victim/offenders characteristics of both crime groups will be specified. The two particular crimes that will be demonstrated throughout this essay are; Violent Crime (focusing on Assault) being linked with social learning theory and White Collar crime (focusing on terrorism) being linked to General Strain theory. In criminology, determining the motive of why people commit crimes is crucial. Over the years, many theories have been developed and they continue to be studied as criminologists pursue the best answers in eventually diminishing certain types of crime including assaults and terrorism, which will be focused on.
For decades, criminological theories have been dominated by sociological and political perspectives to explain crime than biological and genetic factors. Not to state that all sociological and political perspectives are flawed, but these perspectives within traditional criminology are not complete and do not offer a full assessment of all the contributions of criminal behavior. This paper aims to offer why traditional Criminology avoids biological explanations, what traditional Criminology attempts to explain criminal behavior, and how Criminology has traditionally overlooked biology and genetics and what the potential consequences may be.
Figuring out why people commit crimes is one of the central concerns of criminology. Do most criminals act rationally after weighing the costs of crime? Is society ever to blame for an individual to commit a crime? Do mental diseases or even genetics factor into whether a person will live a life of crime. Over the years, many people have developed theories to try to answer these questions. In fact, the number of theories of why people commit crimes sometimes seems to equal the number of criminologists. I explore these questions and much more in the paper that follow.
The scientific study of the causes of delinquency and crime has been factually guided by theories thus far. A good theory is said to provide an initial view through which one can construe and comprehend the exhibition of any behavior(s). In the field of criminology, theoretical views have been primarily guided by ideas associated with the fields of psychology, sociology, and biology. The behavior(s) to be explained are stereotypical behavior(s) that violate the social norms of today’s society. According to Regis University some secluded theories have provided pragmatic understanding into the importance of factors apparent and they are likely to explain delinquency and crime, no single theory can fully explain all types of crime and delinquency or all the variations in crime and delinquency which is why there are multiple ones.
Many people have different theories as to why crime exists. Some believe crime happens because of the individual’s culture, education (or lack there of), or even their race. Others believe crime is associated with whom we surround ourselves with. There are three sociological theories that suggest why crime happens in society; they are social learning theory, social control theory, and social reaction (labeling) theory. These theories suggest it is our relationships and social interactions that influence our behavior.
20). This illustrates that not only is persons' genetics contributing to criminal behaviour 'but' also the environment in which the they are socialised can initiate deviancy.