Development of Offending

Question 1

Development of Offending:

Out of the 4 named theories, which is the most important?

Answer 1

None. They’re all important and all need to be considered

Question 2

Development of Offending:

What does the social learning theory say on developing offenders?

Answer 2

Children could learn the actions by watching family members, friends and others. They learn the actions and consequences and can imitate them.

Question 3

What are reinforcers? List some examples

Answer 3

These are consequences that increase chances of behaviour.

Social approval - smiles, hugs, kisses, compliments
Money
Sex
Social inclusion

Question 4

Development of Offending:

Why is the social learning theory important?

Answer 4

It explains the process of learning complex behaviours. It doesn’t assume there’s any pathology

Question 5

Can IQ effect development of offenders?

Answer 5

Maybe but they have not been found to be directly linked so it could be other factors

Question 6

Low intelligence leads to poor learning skills, which can produce several detrimental effects. What are these effects?

Answer 6

1) Poor marketable skills to ear a living, unemployment.
2) Poor ability to avoid risks
3) Get caught easily

Question 7

Can self-regulation link to developing offenders?

Answer 7

Some research shows that links low self-regulation and aggression.
Being able to control your behaviour in various situations is important and if the two link then it could encourage criminal activity

Question 8

Is self-regulation a infinite or finite resource?

Answer 8

Finite

Question 9

What happens when your self-regulation store runs out?

Answer 9

People begin to get more impulsive until their store refills. In this period you may be more likely to commit inappropriate or criminal behaviours.

Research has found that people can become aggressive when their store has been used up

Question 10

Name a study on self-regulation research

Answer 10

Finkel, De Wall, Slotter, Oaten, and Fishee, (2009): self-regulatory failure and intimate partner violence perpetration

Question 11

Development of Offending:

What did Raine find in 2002 on child behaviours?

Answer 11

Children are more at risk of being sociopaths - drugs, gambling, sexual impulsivity.
Prefrontal deficits, low autonomic arousal, early health factors and the development of aggressive and antisocial behaviour.

Question 12

Is testosterone linked with aggression?

Answer 12

Yes

Question 13

Can twin studies help explain development of offenders?

Answer 13

Yes because if criminality is genetic then separated twins will either both become criminals or not

Question 14

Development of Offending:

What is Hans Eysencks’ biosocial theory of crime?

Answer 14

Biological factors have a big impact on criminal behaviour, but that impact depends, to various degrees, on external factors.

Question 15

Development of Offending:

Can the biosocial theory explain offenders on its own?

Answer 15

No it can’t, it needs to include social factors. Personality and environment can produce crime.

Question 16

Development of Offending:

What are the five reasons that offending starts in childhood.

Answer 16

1) more extreme, punitive ways to raise children
2) lack of love or rejection
3) lack of supervision
4) Family disruption
5) deviant parents

Question 17

Development of Offending:

How can more extreme, punitive ways to raise children encourage offending?

Answer 17

Punitive action could be away to act in their minds. If they are constantly punished, they are more likely to be counter-productive. This can lead to resentment towards parents. It can also make them tougher.

Question 18

Development of Offending:

How can lack of love or rejection encourage offending in children?

Answer 18

They might act out to get attention. They might not listen to their parents when they punish them. And because they have no validation from their parents they might find people who do validate such as criminals.

Question 19

Development of Offending:

How can lack of supervision encourage offending in children?

Answer 19

Sometimes the children or teenagers go somewhere where they may get involved in criminal behaviour that their parents do not know about as they are not supervising.

Question 20

Development of Offending:

How can a family disruption encourage offending in children?

Answer 20

Family disruption can lead to divorce, violence, or abuse.

Question 21

Development of Offending:

How can having deviant parents encourage offending in children?

Answer 21

They can be influential towards the children.

Question 22

What is the Anderson study?

Answer 22

College student completed a measure of trait aggressiveness and reported their actual aggressive behaviours.
They also reported their video game playing habits.
Those who reported playing more violent video games in junior in high school engaged in more aggressive behaviour.

Question 23

What is the Bartholow study?

Answer 23

People who play violent video games show diminished brain responses to images of real life violence but not to other emotionally disturbing pictures. This was positively correlated with aggression.

Question 24

In 1992, the APAs task force on television noted what facts?

Answer 24

The average child says 100,000 acts of violence and 8000 murders before the end of elementary school.
The rate of violence on prime-time TV is 5 to 6 incidents per hour but on Saturday morning, it’s 20 to 25.
Minorities are virtually absent and when they do show up, they are often victims of criminals.
TV has no clear affect on school achievement or academic skills.
Girls who watch the most TV have the most negative attitude towards women.

Question 25

How do violent videogames increased aggression?

Answer 25

1) practice: repeat behaviour over and over.
2) reinforcement: they make you feel good/have a good time. Games are very entertaining and interactive.
3) develop a script for acting aggressively.
4) you become desensitised to violence and aggression: participants who played violent videogames had lower heart rate and lower skin response measures (lower arousal).

Question 26

What is a script?

Answer 26

A script is a theoretical construct of behaviour. The more practice you are the more better you are. It can generalise aggression.

Question 27

Development of Offending:
Name the 4 types of theories for why people become criminals and list them in correct order based on the level at which they examine crime.

Answer 27

1) The Individual - what are the individuals characteristics? Genes? Trauma? Mental health? Early Socialisation? Deviant way of perceiving the world?
2) Group and Socialisation theories - peers and family influences
3) Community influence - different areas provide different opportunities/people/attitudes for progress or crime
4) Societal/macro-level theories - society is structured in a way that creates crime. Laws favour some groups to the detriment of others who want the same things.