Crime 1

Question 1

Social psychology assumptions about crime (4)

Answer 1

1) All behaviour is learned; 2) Behaviour is rational and predictable; 3) Behaviour is best understood in terms of environmental factors that indicate choice and consequences that influence future behaviour; 4) Both normal (legal) and abnormal (criminal) behaviour are influenced by the same environmental/learned factors

Question 2

Major philosophical issue

Answer 2

Is a criminal act an excessive behaviour that needs to be reduced by using the negative consequences developed by our society? OR Is a criminal act a deficit behaviour that needs to be strengthened by positive consequences?

Question 3

If crime is conceptualised as an excess behaviour then

Answer 3

committing a crime has positive short term consequences but negative long term consequences

Question 4

What should be advocated if crime is an excess behaviour

Answer 4

advocate punishment

Question 5

Other examples of excess behaviours

Answer 5

overeating; drug use

Question 6

Positives in crime

Answer 6

100:1 ratio of committing crime: being incarcerated

Question 7

Number of household burglaries

Answer 7

1000; number reported 390; burglary arrests 40; burglary convictions 13; number of incarcerations 10

Question 8

Does punishment work

Answer 8

1) NO: prison rates reflect crime rates but have no relation-ship with homicides rates; 2) YES: if you tie executions to first degree murders [planned, intentional crimes versus ones of passion]

Question 9

If crime is conceptualised as a deficit behaviour then

Answer 9

committing crime has negative short term consequences but positive long term consequences

Question 10

What should be advocated if crime is an deficit behaviour

Answer 10

advocate rehabilitation

Question 11

Other examples of deficit behaviours

Answer 11

studying; physical exercise; saving for a car

Question 12

Re-arrest rates of treated and untreated sex offenders

Answer 12

untreated = 17.6%; all treated = 13.2%; relapse prevention treatment = 7.2%

Question 13

3 sources of information about crime

Answer 13

1) official police records; victim surveys; offender (self) records

Question 14

Official police records

Answer 14

crime reported to police and acted upon by police

Question 15

Official police records were thought to be…

Answer 15

These records were thought to be the most accurate picture of crime but differ from victim surveys (report a lot more crimes than in police reports)