Criminology Unit #1 – Flashcards
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What is the consensus view of law & crime?
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We all agree on what's right and wrong and how to respond to someone stepping outside of the acceptable boundary. ("Happy Circle"). The Law reflects our GroupThink The Law itself is a tool to social order (Collective Conscience)
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What is The conflict view of law and crime?
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The ruling class is in control of the law and the have-nots don't have much say in any of the laws. There is recognition that the law may help us, but we realize that the laws may not reflect all of our interests. Often an unfair system. The mere fact that we have crime in our society shows the lack of a consensus. Thus, the presence of crime itself suggests a flaw w/ the Consensus theory.
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What is Theory?
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Explanation.
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What is an Empirical Generalization?
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Factual statements about what we know to be true based on our observations (based on patterns.) -- One war story is not [this]. Example: Men commit more crime than women (this says nothing about why it's the case.) - Not a theory - younger people commit more crimes. Need theory to move beyond stereotyping -- A dangerous game. (u.s. has more crime. we don't know why based on the example.)
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What are concepts?
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Words or phrases that represent something in the world. Theory helps us understand and group how these are related to one another. Crime is an example of one.
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Conceptual Definitions Nominal Definitions:
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Basic; dictionary-type concept definitions for general understanding. "Crime = something that breaks the law."
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Operational Definitions:
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Telling us how concepts are going to be measured for empirical testing. This is something the nominal def'n won't tell us. How would be operationalize [measure] crime or unemployment?
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Propositions
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Like a Hypothesis
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Philosophical Assumptions
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Ideas/Beliefs that cannot be tested empirically or scientifically (Bohm, '97). AKA ideology, domain assumptions, etc. Ideology is rooted in experience and circumstances, etc. Ideology conceals contradictions by displacing blame, by diluting the importance of something "not that bad". by denying its existence, etc. Part of Social Life and can influence & how we process knowledge.
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Ethical Assumptions
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Beliefs about what is right or wrong, bad or good, what ought to be done, etc. Positivists argue that science shouldn't enter the right/wrong moral/immoral argument. They should simply stay with what is and what is not. These have political and policy implications.
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Conservative:
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Preserve Tradition, status quo, less governmental systems except they favor more CJ: 3 strikes, crime as an individual choice.
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LIberal:
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Reform social institutions, crime as constrained choice or pathology of society.
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Radical:
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Forget preserving or reforming; adopt a completely new system. START OVER! Our system is rotting our citizens and that is why crime occurs @ a high rate.
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Epistemological Assumptions
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How you know what you know. Sources of knowledge (Parents, friends, experiences: trial/error, authority (teachers, gut, faith, tradition, systems/gov't).)
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Metaphysical Assumptions
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They determine the nature of reality.
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Ontology
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Free will or determinism. Your feelings about human nature are influenced by ideas about humans in a hypothetical state of Nature. HObbes: Humans are all evil by nature We need to double-down on the concept of self-interest and use it to avoid a "war against all."
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Social Control Theories
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Rousseau: Humans are all inherently good --Something is wrong in our society that is causing corruption. The system itself rather than the individual choice. Locke: Humans are born w/ a blank slate --- We're all a product of our lived experiences (social learning)
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The Nature of Society (Cosmology):
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Consensus v. Conflict
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Consensus:
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The law reflects the interests of most people in society.
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Conflict:
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The law disproportionately reflects the interest of a powerful minority w/in society. (When in doubt, it's CONSENSUS.)
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Paradigms:
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Schema that helps Organize theories & other aspects/things
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T/F: "Criminology has had multiple paradigm shifts over the years."
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FALSE.
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Mens Rea
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Guilty Mind
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Felonies
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Severe crimes, subject to punishments of a year + in prison or to capital punishment.
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Misdemeanors
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Less Severe crimes, subject to a maximum of 1 year in jail.
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Violations
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Minor Offenses, normally subject only to fines..
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Theory
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A Systematic set of principles that explain how 2+ phenomena are related.
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Hypothesis
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A testable proposition that describes how 2+ factors are related.
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Data
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Facts, Observations, and other pertinent information.
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Primary Data
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Facts and observations researchers gather for the purpose of a particular study.
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Secondary Data
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The facts they find in government sources, or data that were previously collected for a different investigation.
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Survey
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The systematic collection of a respondents' answers to questions asked in Questionnaires or interviews.
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Population
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The large group of persons interviewed in a survey.
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Sample
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A representative subset of the population.
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Random Sample
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A group determined by random selection, whereby each person in the population to be studied has an equal chance of being selected..
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Nonparticipant Observation
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Investigators do not join in the activities of the groups they are studying: they simply observe the activities in Everyday settings and record what they see.
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Participant Observation
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Investigators take part in many of the activities of the groups in order to gain acceptance, but they generally make clear the Purpose of their participation.
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Case Study
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Is an analysis of all pertinent aspects of one unit of study, such as an individual, and institution, a group, or a community.
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Index Crimes
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Also called Part I offenses.
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Victimization Surveys
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Measure the extent of crime by interviewing individuals about their experiences as victims. (MCVS).
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Self-Report Surveys
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Asking people to report their own criminal acts in a confidential interview or anonymous Questionnaire.
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Aging-Out Phenomenon
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The decline in criminal activities with age.
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Criminal Careers
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A concept that describes the onset of criminal activity, the types of and amount of crime committed, and the termination of such activity.
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Longitudinal Studies
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Of a particular group of people over time should enable researchers to uncover the factors that distinguish criminals from noncriminals and those that differentiate criminals in regard to the # and kind of offenses.
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Birth Cohort
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A group of people born in the same year.
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Classical School
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Based on the assumption that individuals choose to commit crimes after weighing the consequences of their actions. Individuals have free will! They can choose legal or illegal means to get what they want, fear of punishment can deter them from committing crime, and society can control behavior by making the pain of punishment greater than the pleasure of the criminal gains.
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Positivist School
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Posits that human behavior is determined by forces beyond individual control and that it is possible to measure those forces. Unlike classical criminologists, they view criminal behavior as stemming from biopsychosocial factors.
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Utilitarianism
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Assumes that all human actions are calculated in accordance with their likelihood of bringing happiness (Pleasure) or Unhappiness (Pain). People weigh the probabilities of present & future pleasures against those of present & future pain. "Human Calculators."
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Biocriminology
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Is the study of the physical aspects of psychological disorders. It has been known for some time that adults who suffer from depression show abnormalities in brain waves during sleep, experience disturbed nervous system functioning, and display biochemical abnormalities.
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Hypoglycemia
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Is a condition that occurs when the level of sugar in the blood falls below an acceptable range. The brain is particularly susceptible.
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(MBD): Minimal Brain Dysfunction
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Is classified as ADHD. IT produces asocial behavioral patterns such as impulsivity, hyperactivity, aggressiveness, low self-esteem, and temper outbursts. This may explain criminality when social theories fail to do so. It is also an easily overlooked diagnosis.
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Psychoanalytic Theory
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Attributes delinquent and criminal behavior to at least 3 possible causes: - A conscience so overbearing that it arouses feelings of guilt - A conscience so weak that it can't control the individual's impulses. - The need for immediate Gratification.
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Id
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Consists of powerful urges & drives for gratification & satisfaction.
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Ego
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The Exec of the personality, acting as a moderator between the id and the superego.
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Superego
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Acts as a moral code or conscience.
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Specificity
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Attachments are selective, usually directed to one or more individuals in some order or preference
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Duration
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Attachments endure and persist, sometimes throughout the life cycle.
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Engagement of Emotion
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Some of the most intense emotions are associated with attachment relationships.
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Ontogeny (Course of Development)
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Children form an attachment to one primary figure in the first 9 months of life. That principal attachment figure is the person who supplies the most social interaction of a satisfying kind.
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Learning
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Though learning plays a role in the development of attachment, Bowlby finds that attachments are the products not of rewards or reinforcements, but of basic social interaction.
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Organization
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Attachment behavior follows cognitive development and interpersonal maturation from birth onward.
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Biological Function
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Attachment behavior has a biological function -- survival. It is found in almost all species of mammals and in birds.
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Behavioral Modeling
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Children learn how to behave by fashioning their behavior after that of others. Behavior is socially transmitted through examples, which come primarily from the family, the subculture, and the mass media.
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Differential Association-Reinforcement
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This theory suggests that (1) the persistence of criminal behavior depends on whether or not it is rewarded or punished and (2) the most meaningful rewards and punishments are those given by groups that are important in an individual's life-- the peer group, the family, teachers in school, and so forth.
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Psychoticism
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Are aggressive, egocentric, and impulsive.
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Extroversion
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Are sensation-seeking, dominant, and assertive.
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Neuroticism
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Low self-esteem, excessive anxiety, and wide mood swings.
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Cortical Arousal
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Activation of the cerebral cortex.
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Cesare Beccaria
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Essay on crime and punishments. So radical @ the time that he published it anonymously. Reform guy -- Blueprint for UK CJ System. Crime is caused by Bad laws & a poorly performing CJ system. More bad laws, more crime -- Positive Linear Proposition
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Beccaria on crime
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The only reason ever to punish is to DETER. Against using laws to control vices. Crime/Not the offender (young/old, male/female, race, religion doesn't matter!) Limit to responsible parties, not relatives + Family.
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Jeremy Bentham
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A fragmentation on Government: an Intro of morals & legislation. Fixing the laws should prevent crime and be better for everyone. Fan of Beccaria; founding father of utilitarianism (Greatest happiness for greatest #).
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Certainty
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Catching Offenders every time they misbehave. This is argued to be the most effective!!!
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Celerity
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Quickly ; Narrow interval between detection & infliction.
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Public
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No utility in humiliation -- General Deterrence.
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Proportional
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Relative to the harm produced by the crime. (Capital punishment for stealing a loaf of bread).
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NCVS - Certainty?
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Most crime is never reported to the police. In 2010, Only 50% of all violent crime & 40% of all property crime is reported to the police. Classical crim would suggest a problem with Certainty. Most cases are Unsolvable!
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Critique of Classical Criminology
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Not a true theory of crime -- more often a reform of CJS. Armchair theory. ASSUMES CONSENSUS. Anytime we hear consensus, we should automatically become skeptical. It's unfair to assume that the social contract benefits everyone the same way. Ideological reform rather than altruistic. Impossible mandate: celerity vs. Due process.
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Contemporary Neoclassical Theory
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Becomes popular in the 1970s/1980s Crime is politicized: Get tough! Horton: "Weekend Prison Passes."
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Neoclassical Criminological Theory
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Main difference between classical & contemporary classical theory. Modified understanding of free will. Reluctant acceptance of the idea of "constrained choice."
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Stafford and Warr
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Punishment Avoidance. Certainty Issue. Direct punishment avoidance: If I speed and don't get caught, I'm more likely to commit the same crime again. Indirect: friend speeds and doesn't get caught, so I can too. Punishment avoidance will always outweigh punishment.
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Positivism: Psychological and Biological Theories
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Reaction to the classical theory/school: Became popular by the late 1800's & highly influential even today! Guided by empirical scientific inquiry. Internal and/or external forces cause crime & Not free will.
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Compte
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Course in Positive Philosophy Applies scientific methods of physical sciences to social sciences.
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Darwin
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On the Origin of Species Evolution Adaptive Mutation Natural Selection Criminals as evolutionary throwbacks (unevolved).
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Human Physiogamy
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(Porta). The study of facial features + relation to behavior Basically, the uglier you were; the more criminal you were.
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Phrenology
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Gall & Spurzheim Higher propensity to commit crimes based on skull bumps
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Atavistic Stigmata
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Physical Features of the "creatures" from an involved time. (Pronounced canines, long ape-like arms, jaws).
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Craniometry/Skull Studies
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As a military physician; he had access to corpses and would study their skulls. i.e. italian homicide offenders.
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