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Alevel Criminology YR1 > Individualistic theories > Flashcards

Individualistic theories Flashcards

Learning, psychodynamic, psychological and cognitive

1
Q

what are the 4 types of individualistic theories

A

1.learning theories
2.psychodynamic
3.psychological theories
4.cognitive theories

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2
Q

what do psychodynamic theories argue

A

personality contains active forces that cause us to act the way we do
these forces are powerful urges, feelings and conflicts within the unconscious mind

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3
Q

who created Psychoanalysis

A

Sigmund Freud

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4
Q

when was freud’s psychoanalysis put forward

A

1923

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5
Q

what does Psychoanalysis argue about early childhood experiences

A

they determine personality and behaviour
ex-traumatic experiences may have mental effects such as anxiety

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6
Q

what are the 3 elements of human personality (freud)

A

Id
Ego
Superego

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7
Q

what are the 3 elements of the mind (freud)

A

conscious
subconscious
unconscious

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8
Q

according to Freud, what is the conscious mind

A

mental activity we know about
eg: thoughts and perceptions

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9
Q

according to freud what is the subconscious mind

A

things we could be aware of if we wanted to
eg: memories, stored knowledge

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10
Q

according to freud what is the unconscious mind

A

things we are unaware of and can’t become aware of
eg: instincts (sexual + aggressive), fears, unacceptable sexual desires, violent motives, traumatic experiences

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11
Q

according to freud, what is the Id

A

-unconscious mind
-“devil personality”
-powerful pleasure seeking
-governed by pleasure principle- desire to satisfy urges
-if we acted on urges they would often lead to anti-social behaviour

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12
Q

according to freud, what is the super ego

A

-“angel”
-contains conscience of moral rules
-learnt through interactions with parents during early socialisation
-socialisation develops idea of right and wrong
-“internal nagging parent”
-punishes with guilt and anxiety

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13
Q

according to freud, what is the ego

A

-role is to balance id and superego
-reality principle
-learns from experience in real world
-ego works to satisfy id’s desires in a morally acceptable way

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14
Q

how does freud’s psychoanalysis link to crime

A

-Weekly developed superego: individual will feel less guilt about anti-social actions -> acts on Id’s selfish and aggressive urges
-Harsh and unforgiving superego: creates extreme guilt, craves punishment as a release from feelings, may be involved in repeat offending
-A deviant superego: child is successfully socialised but into deviant morals

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15
Q

who created the Maternal Deprivation theory

A

bowbly

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16
Q

what is the key argument of bowbly’s maternal deprivation theory

A

a child needs a close and continuous relationship with its primary carer (mother) from birth to age 5 in order for normal development

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17
Q

what does bowlby argue will happen if the attachment is broken by seperation

A

child could be unable to form meaningful emotional relationships
“affectionless psychopathy”

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18
Q

according to bowlby what is affectionless psychopathy

A

-inability to show affection/concern to others which can lead to criminal behaviour

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19
Q

what year was Bowbly’s 44 thieves carried out

A

1944

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20
Q

what was the procedure of bowbly 44 thieves

A

opportunity sample of 88 children were selected from Bowblys clinic
44/88 were juvenile;e thieves who had been referred to him because of stealing
-each child and their parents were interviewed to record details of child’s early life

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21
Q

what is the evidence for Bowbly 44 theives

A

39% had suffered maternal deprivation before the age of 5 in comparison to 5% of a controlled group of non-deliquents

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22
Q

when was Eysenk’s personality theory put forward

A

1951

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23
Q

what is the key argument of eysenks personality theory

A

argues criminality is a result of a particular personality type

criminals tend to be strongly extraverted and neurotic

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24
Q

what did eysenk add in his later research

A

Psychoticism (P)
people with high P levels are more likely to engage in criminality because they tend to be solitary misfits who are cruel, insensitive, aggressive and lacking in empathy
high P can overlap with psychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia

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25
Q

what 2 ideas does eysenk explain his findings with

A

conditioning and genetic inheritance

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26
Q

what is conditioning (eysenk)

A

through experience we learn toseek pleasure and avoid pain

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27
Q

according to eysenk what is genetic inheritance

A

some individuals inherit a nervous system which causes them to develop criminal behaviour. this works as follows:
-extraverts: nervous system that needs a high level of stimulation from their environment, so they are constanly seeking excitement, leading to impulsive rule-breaking behaviour
-neurotics: harder to condition into following societies rules due to having anxiety preventing them from learning from punishment

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28
Q

what do learning theories argue

A

-criminal behaviour is learned behaviour
-influence of our immediate social environment such as the family and peer groups
-key role of reinforcement and punishments in the learning process

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29
Q

what are the 3 learning theories?

A

1.Sutherland’s differential association
2.Skinner’s operant learning theory
3.Bandua’s social learning theory

30
Q

When was Sutherland’s differential association theory put forward

A

1939

31
Q

what is Sutherland’s key argument (differential association)

A

individuals learn criminal behaviour largely in the family and peer groups
result of imitation and learned attitudes

32
Q

what does Sutherland say about imitation (differential association)

A

individuals acquire criminal skills and techniques through observing others around them individuals

33
Q

what does sutherland say about learned attitudes

A

socialisation within the group exposes individuals to attitudes and values about law
eg: In his study of White Collar Crime, he found that workplaces often normalised criminal behaviour by claiming that everyone did it

34
Q

who created the operant learning theory

A

skinner

35
Q

when was the operant learning theory put forward

A

1937

36
Q

what is the key argument of operant learning theory

A

if a particular behaviour results in a reward it is likely to be repeated, whereas if a behaviour is punished then it is unlikely to be repeated

37
Q

what is behaviourism (operant learning theory)

A

the cause of someone’s behaviour lies in the reinforcements and punishments. the focus on behaviour shaping has led to the theory becoming known as behaviourism

38
Q

what animal did skinner us for operant theory

A

rats

39
Q

what does jeffery argue about criminal behaviour (also operant learning theory)

A

criminal behaviour is learned through the reinforcement of particular behaviours.
if a crime has rewarding consequences, people are more likely to engage in the behaviour
Does punishment outweigh the reward?

40
Q

who created the social learning theory

A

bandura

41
Q

what is the key point of bandura’s social learning theory

A

we learn much of our behaviour by imitating other people
Bandura calls these people “models”- we are more likely to imitate the model’s behaviour if they are of higher status than us

42
Q

according to social learning theory does the behaviour we imitate depend on consequences

A

yes- depends on the consequences of that behaviour
if we see the model being rewarded for their behaviour, we are more likely to imitate it than if we see them being punished for it

43
Q

tell me about bandura’s experiments (social learning theory)

A

-divided children into 3 groups
-all groups were shown a video of an adult model being aggressive towards an inflatable doll
-Group 1 saw a version where the model was rewarded with praise: this group imitated the behaviour
-Group 2 saw a version where the model was punished: didn’t imitate the behaviour
-Group 3 saw a version where the behaviour was ignored : imitated the model, less so

44
Q

how can bandura’s social learning theory be applied to criminal behaviour

A

if an individual observes a model (eg: peer) getting rewarded for their criminality, the theory predicts that the behaviour is more likely to be imitated

45
Q

what are cognitive theories

A

refers to the thinking and mental processes
argue that mental processes shape behaviour

46
Q

what are the 2 cognitive theories?

A

-Criminal personality theory, Yochelson and Samenow
-Kohlberg’s moral development theory

47
Q

what is the key idea of the criminal personality theory

A

criminals are prone to faulty thinking and this causes them to commit crime

48
Q

what are thinking errors in the criminal personality theory

A

argue that criminals show a range of errors and biases in their thinking and decision making

49
Q

what is Yochelson and Samenow’s Criminal personality theory based on

A

a long-term study of 240 male offenders, most of whom had been committed to a psychiatric hospital

50
Q

what are the 10 thinking erros of Criminal Personality theory

A

1.Closed channel thinking
2.Victimstance
3.Views self as a good person
4.Lack of effort
5.Lack of interest in responsible performance
6. Lack of time perspective
7. Fear of fear
8.Power thrust
9. Uniqueness
10. Ownership attitude

51
Q

what is the key argument of Kohlberg’s moral development theory

A

argues that our idea of right and wrong develops through a series of levels and stages from childhood and adulthood

52
Q

what does kohlbergs argue happens at the pre-conventional level

A

young children define right and wrong simply in terms of rewards and punishments
adults identify right and wrong in terms of moral principles and values

53
Q

how does Kohlberg’s moral development theory link to criminality

A

criminals moral development is stuck at a less mature level than others
they think solely in regard to rewards and punishments of actions rather than how it affects others- making them more likely to offend

54
Q

what is Cognitive behviour therapy (CBT)

A

aim to build cognitive skills and restructure biased or distorted thinking
elements can include cognitive skills training, anger management, moral development and relapse prevention

55
Q

what was developed as a result of cognitive theories

A

cognitive behaviour therapy

56
Q

what are the 2 strengths of Psychoanalysis, Freud

A

-theory points to the importance of early socialisation and family relationships in understanding criminal behaviour
-psychoanalytic explanations have had influence on policies

57
Q

what are the 2 limitations of Freud Psychoanalysis

A

-critics doubt the existence of an “unconscious mind”
-psychoanalytic explanations are unscientific and subjective = rely on claims

58
Q

what are the 2 strengths of Bowlby maternal deprivation

A

-research provided statistical evidence
-his work shows the need to consider the role of parent-child relationships in explaining criminality

59
Q

what are the 5 limitations of bowlby’s maternal deprivation theory

A

-retrospective study = relies on recall
-accounts for 39% of children in terms of MD but not the 61%
-bowbly’s later research found no evidence of “affectionless psychopathy”
-overestimates how far early childhood experiences have a permanent effect on later behaviour
-Sammons and Putwain not the idea of a link between MD and criminality is not longer accepted

60
Q

what are the 5 limitations of Eysenk’s personality theory

A

-Farrington examined a range of studies, that showed prisoners as neurotic and psychotic but not extraverted
-E scale may be measuring 2 separate thing: impulsiveness and sociability
-evidence shows a correlation between personality and crime- could prison cause someone to become neurotic?
-offenders within the study may not be typical offenders
-uses self-report questionnaire= relies on honesty

61
Q

what are the 2 strengths of Eysenks’ personality theory

A

-theory is useful to describe how measurable the tendencies could increase the risk of offending
-eysenk predicts that high E, N and P scores lead to criminality and some studies support this theory

62
Q

what are the 3 strengths of Sutherlands differential association

A

-crime running in family supports the theory
-matthews found that juvenile delinquent are more likely to have friends who commit anti-social acts
-attitudes of work groups can normalise white collar crime

63
Q

what is 1 limitation of differential association

A

not everyone who is exposed to criminal influences becomes a criminal

64
Q

what are 3 limitations of Skinner’s operant learning theory

A

-based on studying animals= not adequate model of humans
-theory ignores internal mental processes such as thinking, values and attitudes
-humans have free will and can choose their course of action

65
Q

what are 2 strengths of skinners operant learning theory

A

-skinners studies of learning in animals show how they learn from experience through reinforcement- some human learning is also this kind
-can be applied to offending. (Jeffery’s statement)

66
Q

what are 2 strengths of social learning theory

A

-unlike skinner, bandura takes account of the fact that we are social beings + learn from the experiences of others
-bandura shows that children who observed aggressive behaviour being rewarded, imitated that behaviour = shows importance of role models

67
Q

what are 3 limitations of the social learning theory

A

-theory is based on lab studies= artificial setting, findings may not be valid for real-life settings
-theory assumes behaviour is completely determined by learning experiences, ignores freedom choice= conflicts legal values
-not all observed behaviour is easily imitated

68
Q

what are 3 limitations of criminal personality theory

A

-no control group of non-criminals to compare
-sample was unrepresentative, no women, most of the men found insane/psychiatric patients
-high sample attrition (drop out) only 30 in the study at the end

69
Q

what are 2 strengths of the criminal personality theory

A

-idea that criminals thinking patterns are different has led to further research EX-PICTS (questionnaire to address criminal thought patterns)
-successful treatment CBT has been developed

70
Q

what are 2 strengths of the moral development theory

A

-some studies show delinquents are more likely to have immature development
-thronton and reid found the theory to be truer for crimes such as theft than violent crimes

71
Q

what is a limitation of the moral development theory

A

focuses on moral thinking rather than moral behaviour
someone may be perfectly capable of thinking morally while acting immorally

Alevel Criminology YR1 (11 decks)

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