Forensic - Theories of Crime Flashcards
Forensic psychology is the ________ of psychological knowledge and theories to ____ aspects of the ________ and civil justice systems including the ______ and the ______.
application all criminal processes people
Historical Perspectives
The classical school of criminology
- lawbreaking occurs when people, faced with a _____ between right and wrong, _____ choose wrongly.
- punishment should be ________ to the crime
- _______ punishment is more important than ______ punishment
- Hence, it is more important to increase the ______ rate
choice voluntarily/freely proportionate certain harsh catch
Historical Perspectives
The positivist school of criminology
- emphasised that ________ factors determine criminal behaviour, rather than ____ _____.
- punishment should fit the ______ rather than the _____
- sought to understand crime through the ______ method (to determine the factors impacting criminal bx, instead of focusing on choosing between right and wrong)
other free will criminal crime scientific
What did Cesare Lombroso and Ernest Hooton contribute to positivist theories?
Cesare Lombroso
- believed criminals were not as evolutionarily developed as other humans (not sufficiently mentally advanced)
Ernest Hooton
- took physical measurements and categorised certain types of crimes according to appearance
14 000 criminals! BUT maybe this was not representative sample - these were only the ones who were caught…
- strongly thought these were inherited and hence, eugenics - stop criminals having kids, etc
Sociological theories
Explained crime as the ______ of social or cultural ______ that are external to the _______. These exist _____ to any criminal act, and emerge from social ______, political, ecological or physical differences affecting large ______ of people. Strongly de-emphasised ________ _________.
result forces/factors individual prior class groups individual differences
Sociological theories
Describe structural explanations
- People all want the same thing (they have similar interests/motivations
- BUT people differ dramatically on how these things are attained
- Dysfunctional social arrangements and different opportunities thwart legitimate attainment of goals
- Discrepancies between aspirations and means create strains that lead to crimes
Sociological theories
Describe subcultural explanations
- crime originates when groups endorse cultural values that clash with conventional societal rules
- some people just think it’s ok to do certain things that is not in-keeping with the law
eg: gangs form unique norms
Sociological theories
List the disadvantages of this theory
- crimes can be committed by people who have never been denied opportunities
eg: Winona Ryder and Lindsay Lohan - some people with low SES do not commit crimes
- hence, it applies only to certain offenses - what about traffic tickets??
- hence the de-emphasis on individual differences is a problem
Biological theories
In constitutional theory, Sheldon suggested 3 somatotypes and their characteristics:
(1) ______ (obese, soft, round) - fun-loving and ______
(2) _______ (tall, thin) - _______ and sensitive
(3) ________ (muscular, athletic, strong) - more _______, vigorous and _____
Of these ______ are more suited to criminal behaviour BUT also has to have the appropriate ______ and ______ exposure for this.
Endomorph sociable Ectomorph introverted Mesomorph assertive bold
Mesomorph
influences
environment
Biological theories
constitutional theory - pros and cons
- there is some evidence from bullies in the playground that physique + environment can be related to aggressive bx
- correlation does not mean causation (is there a 3rd factor?)
- it’s hard to categoriese people in these 3 spots (all-or-none categories over-simplified)
- believe in eugenesis - stop large physique people reproducing
Biological theories
Genetic theories - criminality runs in families (inherited or learning environment?)
What have adoption studies told us about genetic theories? What are the cons of genetic theories?
- criminality runs in families
- biological parents have criminal records vs no criminal record - 4x more likely to commit a crime
- biological parents NOT criminals but adoptee parents are criminals 2x more likely
- adopted AND biological parents criminals = 14x more likely to commit a crime
- suggests genetic component to crime
- do people with these dispositions have the same choices as others?
- biased doesn’t acknowledge the base rate that most are not criminals
- unpopular because it NEGLECTS the social and environmental aspects of crime
- concerns because some people considered “inferior”
- doesn’t explain why people w/o these genes commit crimes and visa-versa
- not exactly clear what is inherited
Biological theories
What have some suggestions been of exactly what is inherited in criminal behaviour?
- constitutional - body type
- neuropsychological - impulse control and impaired judgement
- ANS - baseline under-aroused and sensitive to negative stimuli
- physiological - high testosterone, low serotonin, etc
- personality and temperament
Psychological theories
Crime results from ______ attributes possessed by the potential criminal. It emphsises _______ _______ about the way people think and feel about behaviour. However, they are limited as they focus solely on the ________, with no consideration for the ________.
personality
individual differences
individual
environment
Psychological theories
Describe psychoanalytic theory and its cons (Freud)
- crime is committed as a means to obtain a substitute gratitude of basic needs that are not met (eg: upset with your Mum, so you commit crimes against mothers)
- thanatos - all have desire to die, hence we engage in dangerous or self-destructive behaviours (unconsciously we want to get caught)
BUT most criminals do not want to get caught
AND there is no evidence for this as we cannot observe “unconscious” desires
Psychological theories
Describe personality traits theory and its pros/cons (Eysenck)
3 components to personality
- extraversion (inherently under-aroused so seek excitement)
- neuroticism (strong reactions to -ve stimuli)
- psychoticism
–> High levels of these 3 traits = do not learn well (extraversion) and don’t socialise well (neuroticism) criminality
PROS - first testable theory of criminality
CONS - only makes people more likely to commit a crime, not for sure
