Criminological Theory Tibbetts Hemmens Sections 3-6 Flashcards
The belief that the size of the skull represented the superiority or inferiority of certain individuals or ethnic racial groups
Craniometry
The study of and policies related to improvement of the human race via control over reproduction.
Eugenics
The science of determining human dispositions based on distinctions in the skull(bumps)which are believed to conform to the shape of the brain.
Phrenology
The study of facial and other bodily aspects to indicate developmental problems such as criminality.
Physiognomy
A person or feature of an individual is a throwback to an earlier stage of evolutionary development. Serious criminals were lower forms of humanity and turns of evolutionary progression.
Atavistic (Lombroso)
Physical manifestations of the atavism of an individual, features that indicate a prior evolutionary stage of development.
Stigmata (Lombroso)
The assumption that most human behavior is determined beyond free will and free choice.
Determinism
Modern medicine has supported identification documentation and importance of______________ which it holds may indicate high risk of developmental problems.
Minor physical anomalies (MPAs)
Created the IQ test.
Alfred Binet
This person used Binet’s IQ test for the purpose of deporting, incapacitating, sterilizing and otherwise ridding society of low IQ individuals.
H. H. Goddard
Those who had significant below average levels of intelligence (low IQ).
- Morons
- Imbeciles
- Idiots
Feeblemindedness
-abnormally large or small noses -abnormally large or small ears - abnormally large or small eyes - abnormally large or small jaw bones -a protruding brow -asymmetries in the face or other parts of the body -abnormal amounts of body hair -tattoos -family history of epilepsy
Examples of Stigmata:
a new theory of physiognomy that attempted to predict criminality by body type (three distinct body types).
Somatotyping-In the 1940s William Sheldon developed
-characterized by a round shape and undeveloped muscles
-Short and squat, likely to become obese
-Were said to be jolly and lazy. To be social and outgoing
Endomorphic
- athletic or muscular build
- Were said to be risk taking and aggressive. Have a competitive nature and seek power etc.
- most likely to be criminal.
- they’re stronger and thus more capable and confident in committing physical violence
- their strength makes them better targets to be recruited into gangs.
- they’re more likely to be encouraged to do sports and thus be socialized to be more aggressive and competitive.
- more likely to be encouraged to do risk-taking or adventurous activities
- Mesomorphic
-a thin, lean build. Only lightly muscled
-Were said to be shy and introverted
Ectomorphic
1. Human nature is naturally good or a “blank slate”
2. Human behavior is “deterministic”
**human behavior is attributed to biological, psychological and sociological factors which cause people to behave a certain way
Positive School
The culmination of all this early work on Craniometry, Phrenology and Physiognomy was
Cesare Lombroso’s theory of the “born criminal”
Controls primary drives and desires. The devil/pleasure.
The Id
Relates desires to behaviors. Its goal is to satisfy the Id as efficiently as possible.
The Ego
The conscience basically. Judges what is right or wrong. The angel.
The Super Ego
Focuses on the genetic makeup of individuals with a specific focus on the chromosomal makeup.
Cytogenetic studies
Males with an extra male chromosome
Occurs in about 1 out of every 1,000 males.
XYY
Chemicals in the brain and body that help transmit electric signals from one neuron to another.
Neurotransmitters
The neurotransmitter for feeling pleasure
Dopamine
The neurotransmitter that is probably the vital in all information processing, including learning and processing emotions.
Serotonin
Research uses brain wave studies
CNS
Blood pressures, resting heart rate, blood pressure are tested
ANS
a person’s genetic makeup has the largest impact on determining their behavior
Nature
How a person is socialized/nurtured has the largest impact on determining their behavior.
Nurture
Twins that come from a single egg and share 100% of their genotype
Monogyzotic (MZ)
Twins that come from two separate eggs and share 50% of their genotype. Same as any siblings with the sane parents.
Dizygotic (DZ)
Most prominent researcher of adoption studies
Sarnoff Mednick
Explanations of crime that focuses on differences between varying groups in society
Social structure theories
Social theories if crime happened when
Early to mid 1800s during the industrial revolution
Father of sociology. First to suggest using the scientific method to study society
August Comte
Parts of society related to stability and order. These things don’t change
Social statics
Aspects if social life that change how societies are structured
Social dynamics
First to study crime statistics. He found that violent crime was higher in poor areas as property crime was higher in wealthy areas
Andre-Michael Guerry
Found that certain types of individuals are more likely to commit crime. Young makes who were poor, uneducated and unemployed were most likely to offend
Adolph’s Quetelet
First to focus on how social class structure could affect offending
Adolph’s Quetelet
Biggest influence on the development of social structures theories
Emile Durkheim
All members perform pretty much the same (hunting, gathering, farming)
Mechanical societies (Durkheim)
Degree to which individuals in a society think alike
Collective science
The modern era with very specialized divisions of labor
Organic societies
Everything that happens serves some purchase
Structural formalism
A state of normalness in society which may occur in times of rapid social change
Anomie
Theories that focus on frustration strain/stress) as the leading factor causing people to commit crime
Strain theories
Everyone in US society is judged by whether they achieve monetary success or not. Robert Merton’s strain theory.
The American dream
In US society there is too much emphasis placed if the goals if the American dream and too little in the means of achieving it (who’s theory is this)
Robert Merton
Individuals work hard and want to achieve financial success and keep striving to meet that goal. (Merton)
Conformity
Individuals accept the means of society but reject the goals. They work hard but have no expectations of becoming wealthy.
Ritualism
Individuals accept goals of society but reject the conventional means. They want to be rich but don’t want to work hard to get it. Most criminals fall here. (Merton strain)
Innovation
Individuals reject goals and means of society. They drop out of society and don’t care about achieving financial success. Drug addicts and homeless. (Merton).
Retreatism
Individuals reject goals and means of society and installs their own ideas about whys the means should be. (Merton)
Rebellion
Developed a strain theory to explain why gangs form in lower class areas.
Albert Cohen
Adopting attitudes or committing behaviors opposite of what is expected by society as a form of defiance and a way to feel less guilty for not living up to the middle class measuring rod. (Cohen)
Reaction formation
These are kids that join gangs, vandalize, commit crimes etc to reject conventional society and gain status in the eyes of their peers.
Delinquent boys
Responds to his disadvantage by dedicating himself to working hard and trying to meet middle class standards despite unlikely chances for success. (Cohen).
The college boys
Accepts their place in society in the lower class and passively tries to make the most of life at the bottom of their social order. (Cohen)
The corner boys
Published another theory of strains role in gang formation 5 years after Cohen. All youth are socialized into believing the American dream. Chances to achieve the American Dream are not equal.
Cloward and Ohlin
Theses gangs form in lower class neighborhoods where there is an organized structure of adult criminal activity (Cloward and Ohlin)
Criminal gang
Theses gangs tend to develop in neighborhoods that have weak stability and little or no organization. No adult criminal network. Disorganized youths. (Cloward and Ohlin)
Conflict gangs
These gangs are formed by people who could not achieve success in legitimate society OR criminal or conflict gangs. Escape from society through drug use.
Retreatist gangs
The first new strain theory
General Strain theory by Robert Agnew.
Failure to achieve monetary success.
But also covers strain related to failure to achieve any type of positive goal in life.
Agnew’s source of strain (3)
Failure to achieve positively values goals.
Relates to strain resulting from losing something good in life.
- losing a job
- loved one pass
- relationship end
Removal of positively valued stimuli
Relates to strain resulting from something bad being introduced into ones life.
- a bad job.
- abusive relationship
- illness
Presentation of a noxious stimuli
Some strainful events are more severe than others.
Magnitude
More recent events are more consequential than older events
Recency
Strainful events of longer duration have moor impact
Duration
Strainful events closely clustered in time have a greater effect. Stress build up.
Clustering
These include any healthy way of dealing with stress, anger, depression and other negative emotions resulting from strain.
Legitimate coping mechanisms
These include any unhealthy or destructive ways of coping with stress and other negative emotions resulting from strain
Illegitimate coping mechanisms
Argument that the American dream and the social conditions it brings about are responsible for the problem of crime (Messner and Rosenfeld.
Institutional Anomie Theory
Refers to a commitment to the goal of material success to be pursued by everyone in society, under conditions of open, individual competition. It doesn’t matter how you get there. Win or lose. (Messner and Rosenfeld)
The American Dream.
Personal worth tends to be based in what people have achieved rather than who they are or how they relate to others in social networks.
Achievement orientation
People are encouraged to make it on their own. (Messner Rosenfeld)
Individualism
Everyone is encouraged to aspire to social assent and everyone is susceptible to evaluation on the basis of individual achievements. (Messner and Roaenfeld)
Universalism
Money is the sole measure if success
Monetary awards
Relatively stable sets of norms and values, statuses and roles, and groups and organizations that regulate human conduct to meet the basic needs of a society.
Social institutions
Has the primary responsibility for the replacement and maintenance of members of a society
Family
Schools given responsibility for transmitting basic cultural standards to new generations.
Education
Political institutions are responsible for protecting members of society from invasions from other nations, controlling crime and disorder and providing channels for resolving conflicts of interest
Polity
Economicq dominance is manifested in 3 wats
- Devaluation of non-economic institutional balance of power.
- Accommodation to economic requirements by other institutions
- family life revolves around work - Penetration of economic norms into other institutions
The scientific study of the relations living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment.
Ecology
Focuses on how changes in the ecology of the urban environment led to crime and other social problems.
The Chicago school
Ecogical work of the Chicago School began with…
Proposed that much of human behavior followed the basic principles of ecology. Growth of cities follows standard/natural pattern of evolution. Factories invaded cities.
Robert Park
Everyon is better off working together as a whole (Robert Park).
symbiosis in cities
identifiable areas of a city that take on a life of organic unity of their own rather than that of the larger city.
ex. community filled with immigrants from a certain country.
Natural Clusters
They devided the city into five “concentric zones”
Park and Burgess
The central business district (Park and Burgess)
Zone 1
The zone in transition from residential to industrial area as the zone 1 businesses expand.
Zone 2
Working class people’s home. Modest houses, lots of apartments. Blue collar households.
Zone 3
Higher priced homes and more expensive apartments. White collar house
Zone 4
The suburbs. The commuter zone. People who live here mostly commute to the center city for work.
Zone 5
A formal theory of why certain neighborhoods have more crime than others. Most crime in zone 2.
Social disorganization Theory (Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay)
Low economic status is one factor that makes up social disorganization. (Shaw and McKay)
poverty.
There’s a mix of racial and ethnic groups in the neighborhood which leads to a lack of unified values and beliefs. Lessens the sense of “community”. (Shaw and McKay)
Racial/Ethnic Heterogeneity (mixed races)
Area is ran down. People aren’t maintaining their property. Causes people to move away ad those who stay to not care about the community as much. ((Shaw and McKay)
Physical dilapidation (broken windows)
Lots of people moving in and out. More rental housing than owned housing. (Shaw and McKay)
High mobility of residents.
High infant mortality, high rate of disease, etc…(Shaw and McKay)
Other social ills.
Poverty, heterogeneity, physical dilapidation, high mobility of residents, and other social ills lead to social disorganization that leads to ….(Shaw and McKay)
Criminal behavior
Shaw and McKay’s social disorganization lack of clear policy implications (no answer)
No answer
Defines social disorganization/organization as the attachment residents have with their neighbors, the community in general and how active they are in local affairs. (Kasarda and Janowitz)
Systemic Model of Social Disorganization
- density of local friendship ties
- Groups of unsupervised teens in the community
- Low level of participation in local organizations
Additions to (Shaw and McKay’s social disorganization theory that was apart of Samson and Groves systemic social disorganization.
developed the Broken Windows Thesis
(Wilson and Kellig)
Police could prevent crime by focusing on disorder (Wilson and Kellig)
The Broken Windows Theory
dilapidated physical conditons such as graffiti that is not removed, boarded up abandoned buildings, trash filled vacant lots. ((Wilson and Kellig))
physical disorder
nuisance behaviors like public drinking, vagrancy, loitering, making excessive noise, etc.
Social disorder
Study published where car was abandoned in Palo Alto, CA and the Bronx. The car was stolen in the Bronx and not bothered in Palo Alton until the scientist busted the window. Others began to vandalize the car and destroyed it. Supports the _____ thesis.
The Zimbardo Experiment
found aggressive enforcement for minor things like traffic offenses reduced more serious crime. (Wilson and Boland)
Earlier Research on Policing
Communities must do what they can to stop disorder from going untended. Don’t allow things like public drinking to go on. clean up things like grafitti and trash quickly.
Broken Windows Theory policy implications.
They explain crime in communities by arguing that high crime communities have levels of collective efficacy
Robert Sampson and others
the combination of
- social cohesion and mutual trust among neighbors and
- willingness to intervene on behalf of the common good.
Collective efficacy
Where CE (collective efficacy is high)
crime tends to be low
Where CE (collective efficacy) is low
crime tends to be high
Sampson and Raudenbush (1999) argued that crime and disorder of the same thing. Disorder is just a minor form of crime
Crime and disorder are the same thing
He believed that the lower class subculture was characterized by believing in a series of six focal concerns which shaped their behavior (FATTES). Name of theory?
Walter Miller (Theory of Lower Class Focal Concerns
A belief that life is mostly luck and you can only live the life you’ve been dealt. Disregards responsibility and accountability for one’s own actions. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
F(ate)
Value of independence from authority. Resist teachers, police and other sources of authority. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
A(utonomy)
Life is dominated by concerns over staying out of, and getting into, trouble. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
T(rouble)
Have to be tough and maintain your reputation on the street. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
T(oughness)
Tendency to be risk taking and thrill seeking. Try to liven up on otherwise mundane lower class existence. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
E(xcitement)
Emphasis on “street smarts”. Being able to con people. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
S(martness)
Miller’s theory of lower class focal concerns didn’t receive much research support. (Walter Miller-FATTES)
No evidence of a uniform subculture across the entire lower class.
Violence was a culturally learned adaptation to dealing with negative life events. Violence was emphasized over other methods of dealing with problems (Philadelphia 1960s)
Ferracuti and Wolfgang’s subculture of violence.
Due to very deprived inner city conditions, black residents in these ares feel a sense of hopelessness, despair and isolation).
Elijah Anderson
The key currency in Anderson’s “code of the streets”
Respect.
Trial of manhood (Anderson-Code of the Streets)
must be tough at all times
Self image is key
Anderson’s code of the streets (gotta have them jays)
earn status by challenging others to fight and winning, stealing their belongings etc.
Challenges are common.
These families fully embrace and promote the code of the streets (Anderson)
Street families
These families adhere to middle class values. They follow the code of the streets by knowing how to handling themselves in the streets.
Decent families
an individual may switch back and forth between the decent and street codes depending on the situation. (Anderson)
Code switching
- local areas with bars, restaurants
- business strips whos stores cater to street oriented working class and poor.
- Mixing grounds -dances, roller rinks, sporting events, etc turf wars happen here. (Anderson)
Staging areas
It has been consistently been found that rates of violence are highest in the US Southeast relative to other regions.
Nisbett and Cohen developed the most complete theory of violence in the south.
White males will respond with violence when their honor is being challenged.
Culture of Honor
