Chapter 14: Social Control Theory

Question 1

Later theorist of social control focused on what?

Answer 1

focused more on how the social bonds of individuals help constrain crime and delinquency.

Question 2

Social Control theory

Answer 2

People refrain from committing criminal acts because they do not want to jeopardize their bonds to conventional society.

Question 3

What does social control theorist assume?

Answer 3

humans are neither good or bad. However, we are born with the capacity to do wrong.

Question 4

Social control theory asks the questions “____” rather than “why do they do it”

Answer 4

“why don’t we all do it?”

Question 5

Who pointed out the importance of social bonds?

Answer 5

Emile Durkheim

Question 6

What are social bonds?

Answer 6

The degree to which an individual has ties to their society.

Question 7

Egoistic suicide

Answer 7

Occurs from when a persons social ties are so weak that they are free of social constraints and act on their self-interest.

Question 8

Anomic Suicide

Answer 8

Occurs when a lack of social integration, leaves a society without a clear system of moral beliefs and sentiments.

Question 9

If the rules are weak and if there is minimal agreement about their applicability, …..

Answer 9

society will be unable to regulate morality effectively, and deviance is more likely as people pursue their aspirations without check.

Question 10

Who are some theorist on social disorganization theories?

Answer 10

Durkheim, Thrasher, Shaw and McKay.

Question 11

Communities characterized by poverty, physical deterioration, and racial or ethnic conflict were too _____ to exert effective control over the behaviour of residents

Answer 11

disorganized

Question 12

_____ arise spontaneously in areas where social controls are weak.

Answer 12

Gangs

Question 13

_______ is the natural result of the activities of youth in areas with weak social controls.

Answer 13

Delinquency

Question 14

WHO ARGUED IT: “high rates of crime are attributed to the failure of social institutions to provide adequate social controls.”

Answer 14

Shaw and McKay

Question 15

From the 1930s to 1960s, very few changes were made to social theory for 2 reasons, what were they?

Answer 15

1. Early research was methodologically flawed.

2. subject to the problem of ecological fallacy.

Question 16

Ecological Fallacy

Answer 16

An error made when information is gathered at a group level and conclusions are drawn about individuals.

Example: low-income people commit the most crime.

Question 17

Who was the first to distinguish between social controls and personal controls.

Answer 17

Albert Reiss

Question 18

Includes ties to primary groups such as the family and community institutions.

Answer 18

Social controls

Question 19

Have been internalized by an individual.

Answer 19

Personal Controls.

Question 20

According to Reiss, delinquency will result how?

Answer 20

if social and personal controls are absent, break down, in conflict, or cannot be enforced.

Question 21

He found that success or failure on probation was associated with the absence of social and personal controls

Answer 21

Reiss

Question 22

He developed a techniques for measuring self-reported delinquency

Answer 22

Ivan Nye

Question 23

Nye believed that ______ was the most significant group in the development of social control.

Answer 23

Family.

Question 24

He linked 4 aspects of social bonds that constrain our behaviour

Answer 24

Travis Hirschi

Question 25

What are the 4 social bonds of Hirschi’s theory?

Answer 25

1. Attachment
2. Commitment
3. Involvement
4. Belief

Question 26

What is attachment?

Answer 26

The degree to which an individual has effective ties to other persons. (Hirschi’s theory)

Question 27

what is Commitment?

Answer 27

The degree to which an individual pursues conventional goals. (Hirschi’s theory)

Question 28

What is Involvement?

Answer 28

The degree to which an individual is active in conventional activities. (Hirschi’s Theory)

Question 29

What is Belief?

Answer 29

The degree to which an individual believes in conventional values, morality, and the legitimacy of the law. (Hirschi’s Theory)

Question 30

The following phrase is an example of which social bond theory by Hirschi: “society has a common value system, however, individuals vary in the degree to which they believe they should obey it”

Answer 30

Belief.

Question 31

The control theorist say that deviant acts are made possible by what?

Answer 31

the absence of beliefs forbidding them.

Question 32

Which one of Hirschi’s social bonds are wrong and harmful?

Answer 32

Involvement.

Question 33

Which 2 theorists proposed that individuals who lack self-control have a greater propensity to commit crimes when they have the opportunity to do so?

Answer 33

Gottfredson and Hirschi.

Question 34

Individuals who ____ _________ are impulsive and focus on the moment instead of planning the future.

Answer 34

lack self-control.

Question 35

Why do some people lack self-control?

Answer 35

Because of poor early childhood socialization.

Question 36

which theorist do not view physical punishment as the best way to control behaviour

Answer 36

Control theorists

Question 37

what sanction is most most powerful according to control theorists?

Answer 37

disapproval by people one cares about

Question 38

Families with inconsistent or lax discipline were much more likely to have what type of children?

Answer 38

Delinquent Children

Question 39

TRUE OR FALSE: Strict parents results in lower rates of delinquency

Answer 39

FALSE!

results in higher rates.

Question 40

TRUE OF FALSE: Schools play a primary role in socialization and is an important determinant of delinquency.

Answer 40

TRUE!

Question 41

TRUE OF FALSE: The correlation between school failure and delinquency is relatively weak

Answer 41

FALSE!

The correlation is relatively strong.

Question 42

In 1969, which two theorist reported that religion was not related to delinquency?

Answer 42

Hirschi and Stark

Question 43

What are some criticisms of social control theory

Answer 43

1. Does not adequately explain white collar crime.
2. does not account for the motivation to deviate.
3. TOO individualistic and conservative.