Learning Theories Flashcards
What is Sutherlands Differential Association?
Spending time with different people can affect your behaviour.
Two important factors of SDA
- Imitation of criminal acts
- Learned attitudes
Example of SDA
White collar crime is an example of SDA, as it is normalised through claims such as “everyone else is doing it”
What is Skinners Operant?
If a particular behaviour results in a reward, it is likely to be repeated
What is behaviourism?
The cause of someones behaviour. It lies in the reinforcements and punishments that shape it
Positive reinforcement example
Theft - reward of it without consequences - likely to repeat
Negative reinforcement example
Theft - caught and sent to prison - unlikely to repeat
What happens if crime has more rewarding consequences than punishing ones?
The individual would be more likely to engage in criminal behaviour
What is Banduras social learning?
We learn our behaviour from observing and imitating other people
Role models
We model ourselves based on how we see our ‘role models’ behaving.
Explain the Bobo Doll experiment
All groups saw the model attack the Bobo doll
- Group one saw the model rewarded and therefore repeated the behaviour
- Group two saw the model punished and therefore didn’t repeat the behaviour
Pro of Banduras Social Learning Pt 1
+It takes account of the fact that we are social beings, and we learn from the experiences of others, not just from our own direct experience.
Cons of Banduras Social Learning Pt 1
-It is based on laboratory studies.
Pros of Sutherlands Differential Association
+Supports the theory that crime often runs in the family, as people with criminal parents are likely to become criminal after learning family techniques
+Attitudes of work groups can normalise crimes, enabling people to justify their behaviour. This is a strength because it shows that people imitate other’s behaviours, especially the people in their immediate social environment
Cons of Sutherlands Differential Association
- Not everyone exposed to ‘criminal influences’ automatically become criminal. This is a weakness because, it shows that Sutherlands theory is not as effective as it seems
- It doesn’t consider people who are self-motivated to offend. This is a weakness because, some people commit crimes based on their own free will, and not just because of their learned behaviours
Pros of Skinners Operant
+Skinner did a study with animals that showed they learned through reinforcement. This is a strength, because it proves that positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement can I fluence a person’s behaviour
+Another strength is that the theory can be applied to criminal behaviour, as Jeffery states people who get more reward are likely to offend again. This is a strength because, it allows us to understand why people may commit a crime, so we can learn how to change their behaviourism
Cons of Skinners Operant
- Based on studies of animals, so it is questionable whether the data is very accurate when compared to human behaviour
- Another weakness is that the theory ignores free will, suggesting people cannot choose their course of action despite punishment
Where do we learn our behaviours? SDA
From our family and peers
What is imitation? SDA
Individuals can acquire criminal skills and techniques through observing those around them
What is Learned attitudes? SDA
Socialisation within the group exposes the individual to attitudes and values about the law.
What happens if the attitudes are more unfavourable? SDA
If the individual internalises more unfavourable, then they are more likely to become criminal
What if we see the role model rewarded?
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
Pros of Banduras Social Learning Pt 2
+It shows children who observed aggressive behaviour being rewarded, imitated that behaviour.
Pros of BSL pt 2.2
This shows the importance of role models in learning deviant behaviour.
Pros of BSL pt 1.2
This is a strength because, if we understand why people commit crime, we can try to prevent it, by rewarding good behaviour
Cons of BSL pt 1.2
This is a weakness because, it is an artificial environment and may not be applicable to real life, so it may not be effective in explaining criminal behaviour
Cons of BSL pt 2
-It assumes people’s behaviour is completely determined by their learning experiences and ignores their freedom of choice.
Cons of BSL pt 2.2
This is a weakness because, some people are forced into committing crimes due to their social environment, and so their learning experiences may not be effective in explaining criminality
