exam 1 (ch1-ch3) Flashcards
criminology definition
the scientific study of the nature, cause, and control of criminal behavior
penology definition
subarea of criminology that focuses on the correction and control of criminal offenders
victimology definition
study of the victim’s role in criminal events
crime definition
a violation of criminal law
deviance definition
an act that departs from the norm
delinquency definition
participation in illegal or antisocial behavior on the part of a minor
status offense definition
acts defined as unacceptable for minors and used as the bases for court proceedings
criminal intent definition
willed or conscious desire to commit an act that violates criminal law
felony definition
a serious offense that carries a penalty of imprisonment for more than one year
misdemeanor definition
minor crime punished by short jail time or fine
utilitarianism / hedonism definition
human behavior is motivated by the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain
phrenology definition
studying the shape of skulls and bumps to conclude that physical attributes linked to criminal behavior
atavism definition
evolutionary throwbacks
moral entrepreneurs definition
interest groups that attempt to control social life by promoting their own personal set of moral values and establishing them as law
aggravated assault definition
unlawful attack an another person for the purpose of inflicting serious injury (typically involves a weapon)
arson definition
willful or malicious burning of a property
burglary definition
breaking or entering to commit a crime
dark figure definition
crimes that occur but are not reported to the police
distance phenomenon definition
frequency of offending or delinquent behavior diminishes as the individual matures
larceny theft definition
unlawfully taking the property of another excluding: motor vehicle theft, embezzlement, forgery, and fraud
rape definition
carnal knowledge of a female forcibly or against her will
robbery definition
taking or attempting to take something of value fro another person by force of the threatened use of force
motor vehicle theft definition
theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle
murder definition
the willful killing of another human being
subculture of violence definition
a normative code that mandates the use of lethal force to settle interpersonal disputes
liberation hypothesis
adler and simon suggested that social and economic roles of women control their crime rates
chronic offender definition
people with five or more arrests
blaming the victim
a progressive concept whereby the victim is seen as responsible
victim deification definition
idealizing the victim and seeing them as faultless
victim vilification definition
casting populations as worthless by their very nature
active precipitation definition
when the victim aggressively provokes the attacker
passive precipitation definition
characteristics of victims that make them attractive targets
criminologists seek to do what?
develop reliable measures of criminal behavior, study law and the legal system, develop theories of crime causation, identify offenders, and prevent crime
penology deals with what ideas?
deterrence, rehabilitation, drug courts, and capital punishment
rehabilitation deals with what issues?
drugs, alcohol, mental illness, and sex offenders (debateable)
what are the two exceptions to criminal intent?
insanity and age
what’s not excused for criminal intent?
intoxication and ignorance of the law
what U.S state does not use common law?
louisiana
a felony can entail loss of what rights?
political rights
what are the goals of criminal law?
maintain social orders, control antisocial behavior, discourage revenge, express public opinion on morality, deter crime and punish wrongdoing, ensure equality, remove benefits of crime
what is the consensus view of crime?
crimes are behaviors viewed as repugnant, criminal law reflects the values morals views and beliefs of the vast majority of society. most widely accepted theory
what is the conflict view of crime?
society is composed of diverse groups of conflicting interests, criminal law is defined by those in power, law protects the interests of the powerful, focuses on white collar crime and political crime, concern with bias in the system
what is the interactionist view of crime?
criminal law reflects preferences and opinions of people who hold power in a jurisdiction, criminals are those labeled as such by society, criminal law is shaped by moral entrepreneurs
what word summarizes classical criminology?
choice
main ideas of classical criminology?
people have free will and choose criminal behavior, people choose to commit a crime for reasons for greed or personal need, crime can be controlled by fear of criminal sanctions, punishment that is swift and severe will deter crime
ideas of positivist criminology?
uses the scientific method to conduct research, speaks to predict and explain social order in a logical manner, relies on empirical verification, seeks to be value free
who is lombrosso?
an italian physician who argues that criminals were atavisms
lombrosso is known as ?
the father of criminology
what criminologists is associated with classical criminology?
beccaria, who was a philosopher and an economist
what is common law?
a fixed body of rules that emerge from decisions if a new rule is applied to a number of cases, it became a new precedent, precedents would be applied in all similar cases
what is the uniform crime report (UCR)?
official crime stats from the FBI with detailed info on part 1 offenses
what is the criteria for part 1 offenses?
serious, frequent, and come to attention of police often
what are the part 1 offenses?
violent: rape, murder, robbery, aggravated assault
property: burglary, mvt, arson, larceny theft
what are some problems with official stats?
only most serious offense is recorded, police handle cases differently, victims don’t always report, attempt is made but not completed
what is a victimization survey?
survey of individual’s experiences with criminal victimization
what is the NCVS?
national crime victimization survey
what does NCVS reveal about crime?
the dark figure of crime
problems with the NCVS?
can underestimate
can overestimate
unwilling or misinterpretations
what is a self-report survey?
respondents report their own violations in interviews or questionaires?
problems with self reported surveys?
may under report
fabricate crimes
focus on trivial crimes
what do self reported surveys reveal about crime?
the dark figure of crime
almost everybody has committed a criminal violation at some point in their life
what are some trends from UCR and victimization
UCR: peaked in 1991 and declining since 2014
NCVS: 1973 had a peak 43 million victimization and 2008 had nearly half that
violent crime is highest in what region?
southern states
social class and crime
high crime rates among the lower class. self reported data indicates few differences in minor offending
age and crime
age is inversely related to crime. peak age for violent crime is 18. adults over 45 less than 10 percent of arrests. maturation coincides with increased responsibility
gender and crime
male crime rates are much higher. 1999-2008, female arrests have gone up. 2 reasons: socialization differences between men and woman and the liberation hypothesis
race and offending
minorities over presented among arrests, self reports indicates little difference between whites and minorities in minor offending. some say results of bias and discrimination and economic disparity
methods of the philadelphia cohort study?
followed 10,000 boys and their delinquent careers
data came from police and school records
findings of the philadelphia cohort study?
6% were chronic offenders and those committed 52% of all offenses. 80% robberies, 70% murders, 65% aggravated assaults were chronic offenders
who is marvin wolfgang?
an american sociologists who did studies on criminology
how were victims viewed traditionally?
as a passive target of predatory offenders greed or anger
blame and cause. difference?
blame: moral or ethical concept
cause: a scientific concept
social ecology of victimization
more serious crimes take place after dark, most rapes happen between 6pm and 6 am. inner city have higher risk of theft, larger african american western suburban homes are the most vulnerable
victim characteristics
men are more likely to be victimized (except rape and SA)
women are more likely to be victimized by someone they know
younger people are victimized more and minorities
victim precipitation
many victims initiate the confrontations that lead to their victimization
routine actives theory
crime is a function of everyday life. components include motivated offenders, attractive targets, and lack of capable guardian. cohen and felson
