Key terms Flashcards
Violent offences
Aggressive crimes resulting in physical harm or death to the victim.
Drug related offences
Crimes involving trading in or using illegal substances
Acquisitive offences
Crimes where capital or belongings are acquired through illegal means e.g. theft
Sexual offences
Crimes where a victim victim is forced to commit or submit to a sexual act against their will
Anti-social offences
Criminal acts that cause harassment, alarm or distress to people who do not share a home with the perpetrator
Subjectivity
Based on personal opinion rather than fact
Social construct
A concept that exists as the result of interactions between people who make up a society
Deviation from norms
When an act or behaviour goes against the accepted standards of a society
Culture
A collective set of norms and values that determine the way of life of a group of people
Anti-social behaviour
Behaviour by a person which causes or is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household as the person
Self-report
A method that involves participants reporting on themselves through answering questions
Social Learning Theory
A theory that explains behaviour in terms of observation and imitation
Role model
A person held in esteem by another
Identification
The process where a person aligns themselves with another
Observation
The process where people pay attention to behaviours and retain them in memory
Imitation
A process where people recall behaviours and reproduce them in their on actions
Vicarious reinforcement
When a behaviour is strengthened by an individual observing this same behaviour and being rewarded in another
Direct reinforcement
When a behaviour is strengthened an likely to be repeated due to positive outcomes for the individual
Internalisation
The process whereby a behaviour becomes an integral part of an individual’s personality due to continuous reinforcement
Consequences
The result of something, usually negative
Aggression
Spoken or physical behaviour that is threatening or involves harm to someone
Arousal
Activation of the nervous system making individuals awake, alert and attentive
Disinhibition
When people have a lack of control over their own behaviour because they are not concerned about what is expected
Criminal personality
A set of relatively fixed traits associated with people who commit crimes
Genetic inheritance
When genetic information is passed on from parents to child through the pairing of chromosomes at conception
Extraversion
A trait measuring how out-going an individual is
Neuroticism
A trait measuring how anxious an individual is
Psychoticism
A trait measuring how impulsive and aggressive an individual is
Biological
Relating to brain and body
CNS
A system consisting of the brain and spinal cord, to which sensory impulses are transmitted and from which motor impulses pass out
Reticular activation system
A neural network that mediates consciousness and alertness
Cerebral cortex
The outer layer of the brain which is important for conscious awareness
Dopamine reward system
A neural network that is responsible for people experiencing pleasure
Automatic nervous system
The system responsible for unconscious control of the body’s internal organs
Limbic system
A neural network that controls emotional expression
Dopaminergic neurons
Nerve cells that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine
Synaptic transmission
The process where neurotransmitters are released by a a presynaptic neuron and bind to and activate the receptors of postsynaptic neuron
Conditioning
Learning by association and consequence
Early socialisation
The process where young children are conditioned to accept the norms and values of their family and wider society
Individual differences
How people are unique and different from on another
Self-esteem
How much an individual values themselves
Punishment
When negative consequences follow a certain behaviour and reduce the chance of that behaviour and reduces the chance of that behaviour happening again
Prison
A place where people are confined as a punishment
Fine
A monetary charge imposed on an individual who has committed an offence
Community sentence
Time that has to be given back to the community in the form of unpaid work
Deterrent
Something that reduces the likelihood of a crime being committed
Rehabilitation
The process of reintegrating a convicted person back into society, with the aim that they will no longer want to commit crimes
Pro-social behaviour
Behaviour that involves us being caring, helping and sharing. We may show pro-social behaviour because we are concerned about the well-being of others around us.
Restorative justice
A way of rehabilitating offenders by giving them the choice to be aware of the consequences of their actions
