Chapter Nine Flashcards
developmental theories
view that criminality is a dynamic process, influenced by social experiences as well as individual characteristics
criminal career
engaging in antisocial acts early in adolescence and continuing illegal behaviors into adulthood. A pattern of persistent offending across the life course
lifecourse theory
theory that focuses on changes in criminality over the life course brought about by shifts in experience and life events
propensity theory
view that a stable unchanging feature, characteristic, property, or condition, such as defective intelligence or impulsive personality makes some people crime prone
latent trait
a stable feature, characteristic, property, or condition, such as defective intelligence or impulsive personality, that makes some people crime prone over the life course
trajectory theory
view that there are multiple independent paths to a criminal career and that there are different types and classes of offenders
population heterogeneity
the propensity to commit crime is stable; those who have it continue to commit crime over their life course
state dependence
the propensity to commit crime is constantly changing, affected by environmental influences and changing life events
early onset
view that kids who begin engaging in antisocial behaviors at a very early age are the ones most at risk for a criminal career
problem behavior syndrome
antisocial behaviors that cluster together, including family dysfunction, substance abuse, smoking, precocious sexuality and early pregnancy, educational underachievement, suicide attempts, sensation seeking, and employment as well as criminality
age-graded theory
a state dependence theory formulated by Sampson and Laub that assumes that the causal association between early delinquent offending and later adult deviant behavior involve the quality of relationships encountered at different times in human development
turning point
according to Laub and Sampson, the life events that alter the development of a criminal career
social capital
positive, life sustaining relations with individuals and institutions
cumulative disadvantage
the tendency of prior social problems to produce future ones that accumulate and undermine success
schemas
cognitive frameworks that help people quickly process and sort through information
criminogenic knowledge structure
view that negative life events are connected and produce a hostile view of people and relationships, preference for immediate rewards, and a cynical view of conventional norms
general theory of crime
Gottfredson and Hirschi’s developmental theory that links crime to impulsivity and a lack of self-control
self-control
a person’s ability to exercise restraint and control over his or her feelings, emotions, reactions, and behaviors
impulsive
lacking in thought or deliberation in decision making. An impulsive person lacks close attention to detail, has organizational problems, and is distracted and forgetful
authority conflict pathway
the path to a criminal career that begins with early stubborn behavior and defiance of parents
covert pathway
a path to a criminal career that begins with minor underhanded behavior and progresses to fire starting and theft
overt pathway
pathway to a criminal career that begins with minor aggression, leads to physical fighting, and eventually escalates to violent crimes
adolescent-limited offenders
kids who get into minor scrapes as youths but whose misbehavior ends when they enter adulthood
life-course persisters
delinquents who begin their offending career at a very early age and continue to offend well into adulthood
