Characteristics Of Criminals Flashcards
What are the characteristics of type 1 murderers?
Disorganised asocial offender.
Below average IQ.
Maybe high school drop out.
Socially inadequate/doesn’t date/lives alone.
Unskilled workers, likely their father had an unstable job and low birth status.
Received harsh/inconsistent discipline in childhood.
What are the characteristics of type 2 murderers?
Non-social, organised offender.
Above average IQ generally.
Follow the media, socially adequate, lives with partner/sexually competent.
High birth order but harshly disciplined.
An adept ability to control their mood/emotions.
What are the characteristics of acquisitive criminals (fraud/burglary/robbery)?
Involved in drug use, seek access to criminal activity for pleasure/thrill.
Sometimes they will have a formal motivation/cause - taking on intelligence/economical reason for these crimes.
What is crime?
Any act/lack of acting that violates law and results in punishment.
How is crime a ‘social construct’?
As whether something is criminal or not is relies on the laws of the current time period or country.
Eg, abortion, homosexuality.
What is a career criminal?
Making an income from crime.
Explain the rationalisation characteristic of a career criminal.
People who live a life of crime tend to rationalise their own behaviour by diverting blame and questioning the motives of others ‘if that lady didn’t want to be robbed then she should’ve of locked her car’.
As part of the rationalisation process, they don’t evaluate the consequences of their behaviour.
Explain the entitlement characteristic of a career criminal.
Self-centred and oblivious to the needs of others, they live by the simple motto of ‘me, me, me’. Essentially, these people have the right to commit any crime they desire as life is all about them - all the time.
Explain the impulsive characteristic of a career criminal.
Inability to control one’s behaviour, by acting on every impulse. Not only do these outliers fail to have control over their impulses, but they often lack control over their temperament, which often leads to distasterous results.
Explain the power centric characteristic of a career criminal.
Habitual offenders tend to look at people/situations as a power struggle. Essentially each encounter becomes a battle between strong and weak. Once the criminal has decided they hold the strength they will exploit the weaker opponent.
