basic criminal psychology Flashcards
Different types of crimes
violent = crime involving causing physical harm to the body of a person ( Murder )
Drug - related = involves trading in or using illegal substances
Acquisitive crime = where capital or belongings is acquired through illegal means e.g. theft
Sexual = involves forcing a victim to be subject to sexual acts or commit sexual acts against their will
anti-social = criminal act that cause harassment, alarm or assault to people who do not share a home with the predator
Why is it difficult to define crime?
- there’s so many different laws in different countries
- criminal behaviour is subjective and social construct
e.g. euthanasia
Key term : deviation from norm
when an act or behaviour goes against accepted standards of society - the norms are based on what majority do or expect others to do
Key term : cultural norm
collective set of norms and values which determine the way of life of a group of people
as culture changes, norms change
How crime is measured ?
- self report / victim surveys
- official statistics - not all crimes are reported
