The Social Influences Of Criminology

This essay aims to examine weather serial killers are born a certain way and their genetics define their psychotic tendencies or whether they're a product of a bad environment that they grew up. This essay looks at recent killings in the late 20th century as there is more information on the killers from this period and it's easier to gain details about their childhoods. Whilst I will look at various different killers to reach more rounded conclusions (see appendix for comparison table), this essay will focus on four in detail to examine the debate; Ted Bundy (1946-89), Jeffery Dahmer (1960-1994), John Wayne Gacy (1942-1994) and Gary Ridgway (1949-present).

Homicide always will be an aspect of life, whether it is in the 16th century, 21st century or in the future. At times of extreme stress, people may turn to murder as an outlet of a greater problem they cannot fix or control. Presently, homicide has a greater value in society due to popular culture references through the media such as television, film and writing; society constantly has homicide and murder in the subconscious. In David M. Buss’ findings in The Murderer Next Door: Why the Mind is Designed to Kill,

Several serial killers have a definitive and common personality profile. Almost every major social, biological, psychological behavioural influence that has been seriously suggested as playing a role in causing crime has been thoroughly thought as potentially

We’ve all heard it hundreds of times from people that the news and media is overdramatic. That is one of the biggest complaints about the media, but is it true? Scholarly articles have found that the news is in fact over dramatic about crime which induces public fear and may produce many myths about how much crime is actually happening in our society. As a broadcasting major, it is easy for me to see why the news would cover stories in such a dramatic way. These types of stories capture the users attention which means more people will watch your station resulting in advertising spots being worth more which in the end benefits the stations because they will make more money. Popular examples such as the “knockout game” and the Central Park jogger case both show just how much the media has an effect on society, copycat criminals and other crimes. Is the media overdramatic? Does the media cause higher public fear? What myths does the media create?

The question of whether or not man is predetermined at birth to lead a life of crime is a question that has been debated for decades. Are serial killers born with the lust for murder, or are their desires developed through years of abuse and torment? Many believe it is impossible for an innocent child to be born with the capability to commit a horrible act such as murder. But at the same time, how could we have corrupted society so much as to turn an innocent child into a homicidal maniac? Forensic psychologists have picked apart the minds of serial killers to find an answer as to what forces them to commit such perverse acts. Their ultimate goal is to learn how to catch a serial killer before

This documentary specifies that there is no easy answer to what is going on inside the mind of killers, and we cannot simply place these individuals into “neat diagnostic boxes” that explain why their actions turned so violent. However, the investigators present research studying different avenues regarding ways to “predict” the likelihood that an individual will commit violent crime, will maintaining that no method is perfect. Throughout the presentation, viewers are offered mountains of research highlighting a mix of nature and nurture ranging from neurologists from Harvard studying brain patterns affected by genetics, to psychologists studying maternal care and attachment during infancy.

When many people think of serial killers, the image that comes to mind is that of Theodore Robert Bundy. There had been serial killers before Bundy, but because he was good looking and socially adept, he challenged the conceptions that people had about the appearance of evil. Up until that point, many people were convinced that bad or evil people would appear different from other people. Bundy made people aware that the most evil and dangerous members of society could not be detected by appearance alone.

The ideology ‘rendezvous discipline’ refers to the study being multidisciplinary, in which many fields and outlooks are used. This mean the study of criminology is micro in nature because behaviour can be analysed in depth form different angles of approach. According to Sellin, criminology can include the realms of politics (such as left and right realist approaches to criminal behaviour and prevention strategies), psychology (such as biological and social theories for the onset of criminal activity), law (such as drug laws and government strategies to overcome street crimes) and sociology (such as the deviance amplification model). The collaboration between various disciplines and experts within the field means the complexity of crime is valued highly. Jock Young, ‘In Praise of Dangerous Thoughts: a Review’ explains how criminology aids the ability to look at criminal behaviour in a micro sense as ‘an intricate understanding of crime initiates thorough conceptualisation of people and wider society in relation to crime.’

For centuries, the world has been plagued with murderous criminals who find joy in the sick torture and killing of people they claim as victims. These offenders are often psychotic and sociopathic, feeling no guilt during or after the murder of their victims. As the years have progressed, studies have shown more clear information that may lead to determining why a person would choose to kill, why they would choose the specific victim that they do, and if their psychological problems relate back to their childhood. Many theories claim that the upbringing of the child may cause their psychological problems, while other theories state that it is a work of mother nature.

Murder is a disturbing crime that shocks people when it occurs, however it’s more disturbing to think that a child is capable of such a violent and atrocious act. It is often very hard to imagine that a young child can be the source of such extreme violence and act in such an extreme manner. We as adults may not always be able to understand why they commit delinquent acts, or exhibit extremely violent and even commit a heinous crime such as murder. Psychological theories are able to give us some understanding of why these things happen and understanding what drives a juvenile to engage in criminal behavior may be able to ultimately help prevent further delinquency or delinquent behavior taken into account the various factors that are involved.

Public violence has been an ongoing issue throughout the world for years. The notable problem is that no one knows or understands why someone kills violently. It is impossible to know when someone will go into a rage and shoot up a movie theater, blow up a crowded public building or visit a school with murder on the mind. People kill for attention or to feel better about something that made them angry. The study of crime along with psychologist and sociologist suggests that that people commit crimes when they model behavior after others they see being rewarded for the same acts. The rewards may include air time on television or a book detailing their crimes.

Criminology is a discipline that has a variety of other disciplines which seek to construct and theorise explanations and possibilities as to why crime occurs in particular places, ways and too and by certain people. Due to differing field areas interlinking Newburn (2013: 6) described criminology as ‘a strange beast’ by coherently joining conflicting disciplines to try and theorise crime. Walklate (2011) suggested the other disciplines are not only a wide variety but are also highly thought provoking and when though about critically allow for interesting and frustrating debates. In this essay the main theories of Criminology which will be focused on will include: the Chicago School, Feminism, Classicism and Positivism. This essay will also explore the media and how it contorts certain aspects of crime and defame certain offenders more than others based on several different factors. Finally this essay will consider the roles that different social research methods have on obtaining data from research from a criminological perspective.

Socialization is defined as the process through which people learn social norms, values, behavior, and skills through their interaction with significant others such as teachers, family, and friends. Furthermore, the social process theory connects socialization and crime by stating that criminality is a function of people’s interactions with various organizations, institutions, and processes in society. Socialization is key to understanding criminal behaviors. So, according to the social process theory, if someone is socialized with dysfunction and destructive relationships, tradition success may be unachievable and the person may see crime as their only alternative. In addition, anyone can develop antisocial behavior

In my small, young mind growing up I had found this world to be perfect and peaceful, though that’s how it seemed. Learning of deaths, shootings, and killings seemed to be a nebulous concept to me since I was very young at the time. As I became the eighteen year old I am today it seems that homicides have been on the rise which intrigues me. This topic interests me because I never understood how we are always taught that killings are morally wrong in society but despite that they continue. There is more to uncover about why the murderers commit these crimes. Once a mass murder occurs the news reports or articles tend to highlight the murderer 's personal life such as what they’ve posted on their social media, their background and what their classmates and family have to say about how they once were. I feel this is not enough to fully understand what has brought them to take a life and believing it to be acceptable. Could it be that these people commit crimes because of how they were raised socially? A traumatic event? How exactly do people become murderers or is it genetic? I examine three famous killers to help me understand this: Elliot Rodger, Amarjeet Sada, and Jeffrey Dahmer.

Criminology is the scientific study of crime as an individual and social phenomenon. Criminological research areas include the incidence of crime as well as its causes and consequences. They also include social and governmental regulations and reactions to crime. Nation master.com (2013) highlights that “in criminology the positivist school has attempted to find scientific objectivity for the measurement and quantification of criminal behaviour”. The Positivist School of thought presumes that criminal behaviour is caused by various internal and external factors which are outside of the individual 's control. The scientific method was introduced and applied to the study of human behaviour. Positivism can be broken up into three segments which include biological, psychological and social positivism Nation master (2013)