Forensics - Social/Psychological Explanations of Offending Behaviour Flashcards
what is eyesenck’s criminal personality theory?
the criminal personality type is innate and comes about via the type of nervous system we inherit.
what are the original 2 scales eyesenck used to determine personality type?
introversion/extraversion
neuroticism
which scale was added later to determine personality type?
psychoticism/normality
what type of personality did eyesenck say criminals have?
neurotic, psychotic extroverts
what is neuroticism?
tendency to experience negative emotions eg anger, anxiety, depression
what is extroversion?
outgoing with positive emotions however may get bored easily
what is psychoticism?
egocentricity, impulsivity and lacking of empathy
how is personality type measured?
using the eyesenck personality inventory (EPI)
what is the biological basis for extroversion?
chronically under-aroused nervous system
constantly seek excitement, stimulation and are likely to engage in risk-taking and dangerous behaviours
what is the biological basis for neuroticism?
more reactive sympathetic nervous systems
unstable and so react and get upset easil
may therefore overreact to situations of threat
how can psychoticism be linked to offending behaviour?
they are aggressive and lack empathy
what is the process of socialisation?
children taught to delay gratification and become socially oriented via conditioning
punished for anti-social behaviours and so even thinking about them creates anxiety
how did eyesenck view offending behaviour?
developmentally immature
it is selfish and concerned with immediate gratification.
what did eyesenck would happen to extroverted and neurotic people during socialisation?
their nervous systems make them difficult to condition
do not easily learn to respond to antisocial impulses with anxiety
more likely to act antisocial and criminal
what are the advantages of eyesenck’s theories?
research support - eysenck compared male prisoners’ scores on EPI with male controls - found to be more psychotic, extraverted and neurotic than controls
used a lie scale on questionnaire to account for social desirability bias
what are the disadvantages of eyesenck’s theories?
used a questionnaire as the EPI - social desirability bias
personality not consistent - unreliable as people would score different on different days
determinist - assumes all criminals are extroverted and neurotic, shown that some are introverted and stable
what are cognitive distortions?
faulty, biased and irrational ways of thinking
we perceive ourselves, other people and/or the world in a way that does not match reality + is usually negative
what are 2 cognitive distortions that can explain crime?
hostile attribution bias
minimalisation
what is hostile attribution bias?
tendency to misinterpret other people as aggressive, provocative and/or threatening
how does hostile attribution bias contribute to offending behaviour?
rationalises offending behaviour by blaming other factors for it e.g. the victim
what is minimalisation bias?
downplaying seriousness of actions to explain the consequences as less significant
how does minimalisation contribute to offending behaviour?
offender accepts consequences of their own offences and reduces the negative emotions associated with crimes as they genuinely think what they’re doing is ok
what is kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning?
decisions and judgements on issues of right or wrong can be summarised in a stage theory of moral development
higher stage = better moral reasoning
what are the 3 levels in kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning?
preconventional morality
conventional morality
post-conventional morality
what are the two stages in the pre-conventional stage of kohlberg’s theory?
punishment orientation
reward orientation
what is punishment orientation?
Reasoning based on whether or not the act will lead to punishment
what is reward orientation?
reasoning based on whether an action will lead to a reward
what are the 2 stages in the conventional stage of kohlberg’s theory?
‘good boy’/’good girl’ orientation
social order orientation
what is ‘good boy/girl’ orientation?
Reasoning based on what others expect
what is social order orientation?
reasoning based on doing duties as a citizen
what are the 2 stages in the post-conventional level of kohlberg’s theory?
Social contract and individual rights orientation
Conscience orientation
what is social contract and individual rights orientation?
Reasoning based on what is impartially right
eg democratic rules can be challenged if they infringe on the rights of others
what is conscious orientation?
Reasoning based on one’s own ethical principles
how do kohlberg’s levels of moral reasoning link to offending behaviour?
he said criminals more likely to have pre-conventional thinking
non-criminals progressed to conventional or beyond
why might criminals commit crime if they have pre-conventional morality?
they believe that breaking the law is justified if the rewards outweigh the costs or if punishment can be avoided.
what are the advantages of using cognitive distortions as an explanation for offending behaviour?
research support for hostile attribution bias - offenders found to be more likely to have an aggressive reaction than a control group
research support for minimalisation - found that sex offenders often downplay their crimes
applications - found to be effective using the theory to treat offenders
what are the disadvantages of using cognitive distortions to explain offending behaviour?
research support tends to be correlationary only
describes what offenders are doing but doesn’t explain
what are the advantages of using kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning to explain offending behaviour?
research support - found that offending group had less mature reasoning than a control
what are the disadvantages of using kohlberg’s theory to explain offending behaviour?
gender bias - theory based on studies on men only
gender bias - he then studied women but showed alpha bias saying they were less morally developed then men
reductionist - looks at thinking not behaviour - environmental factors eg poverty may override moral reasoning
what is differential association theory?
suggests individuals learn values, attitudes, techniques + motives for criminal behaviour through association and interaction with others
what does differential association theory say offending behaviour is dependent on?
the criminal norms/values of the offender’s social group
what are the 2 ways offending is learnt in differential association theory?
Learning attitudes towards crime
The learning of specific criminal acts
what are the most powerful sources of learning in differential association?
Personally relevant (esp. from role models)
Long-lasting
Salient/extreme
During critical period (IWM)
what are the advantages of differential association theory?
externally valid + holistic - explains lots of types of crime
accounts for environmental factors
research support - found that where there is a criminal father more sons had committed a crime by the age of 18 than control group
what are the disadvantages of differential association theory?
environmentally reductionist - ignores biological factors and diathesis-stress
research support correlational
socially sensitive/potentially unethical - stereotyping areas as criminal - determinist - self fufilling prophecy
what are the key ideas in psychodynamic theories about offending behaviour?
unconscious conflicts rooted in early childhood and determined by interactions with parents drive offending behaviour
what are the 2 psychodynamic explanations of crime?
inadequate superego
maternal deprivation
what is the role of the superego?
punishes the ego through guilt for wrongdoing, rewards it with pride for moral behaviour
what happens if the superego isn’t working properly?
offending behaviour is inevitable because the id is given ‘free rein’ and isn’t properly controlled
what are the 3 types of inadequate superego?
weak/underdeveloped superego
deviant superego
over-harsh/overdeveloped superego
how is the weak/underdeveloped superego formed?
same-sex parent is absent during phallic stage
child cannot internalise a fully-formed superego as there is no opportunity for identification
how does a weak/underdeveloped superego lead to offending behaviour?
little control over anti-social behaviour and likely to act in ways that gratify their instinctual id impulses
how is the deviant superego formed?
superego that the child internalises has immoral or deviant values (e.g. a child with a criminal parent)
how does a deviant superego lead to offending behaviour?
child may not associate wrongdoing with guilt
how is the over-harsh/overdeveloped superego formed?
A child internalises the superego of a very strict same-sex parent
Therefore, they develop an excessively harsh superego.
how does a over-harsh/overdeveloped superego lead to offending behaviour?
individual is guilty and anxious because any time they act on their id impulses - superego active
This unconsciously drives them to offend with a wish to be caught
satisfies superego’s need for punishment and reduce guilt.
what is the maternal deprivation theory?
If maternal deprivation occurs during the critical period, then the child will experience long-term consequences
these individuals are likely to offend and cannot develop close relationships with others as they lack necessary early experience to do so
what is maternal deprivation?
long-term separation or loss of emotional care from the mother or mother-substitute
what is the main consequence named by bowlby that will occur if a child has suffered maternal deprivation during the critical period?
affectionless psychopathy
what is affectionless psychopathy?
a lack of guilt, empathy or strong emotion for others and responsibility
what are the advantages of psychodynamic explanations to explain offending behaviour?
research support for maternal deprivation - 44 thieves study
applications - providing alternate emotional care for children separated from parents to prevent
one of the only explanations that accounts for emotional causes and recognises biological factors - holistic
what are the disadvantages of psychodynamic explanations to explain offending behaviour?
undermining evidence for inadequate superego - found no correlation between missing same-sex parent and offending behaviour
based on Freud’s work - showed a lot of beta bias and androcentrism
Bowlby’s 44 thieves was correlational
undermining evidence - found most important factors are poverty, personality (eyesenck), family history of offending (genetics), low school attainment
