psychodynamic explanations

Question 1

What are the psychodynamic explanations?

Answer 1

Inadequate superego

Maternal deprivation theory

Question 2

What is the superego?

Answer 2

Part of the tripartite
Forms at end of phallic stage when children resolve Oedipus complex
Works on morality principle
Punished ego through guilt, rewards it with pride

Question 3

What did Blackburn argue about the superego?

Answer 3

If it’s deficient then criminal behaviour is inevitable

Id is given free rein and uncontrolled

Question 4

What are the three types of inadequate superego?

Answer 4

Weak
Deviant
Over harsh

Question 5

What is the weak superego?

Answer 5

Same sex parent absent in phallic stage
Child can’t internalise a fully formed superego
No opportunity for identification
Makes criminal behaviour more likely

Question 6

What is the deviant superego?

Answer 6

Internalises immoral values

Raised by criminal same sex parent

Question 7

What is the over harsh superego?

Answer 7

Healthy superego is kind but firm
Over harsh superego cripples person with guilt and anxiety
Drives them to offend to satisfy superegos need for punishment

Question 8

What is the maternal deprivation theory?

Answer 8

Ability to form meaningful relationships dependent on child’s relationship with mother
Failure to establish this = damaging later life consequences

Question 9

What is affectionless psychopathy?

Answer 9

Result of maternal deprivation
Lack of guilt and empathy
Engage in acts of crime

Question 10

Describe the 44 thieves study

Answer 10

14 out of 44 were affectionless psychopaths
12 out of 14 experienced prolonged separation
Non criminal - only 2 had separation

Question 11

Evaluation - gender bias

Answer 11

Girls develop weaker superego - don’t undergo castration anxiety so don’t identify as much with parent
Should be more prone to criminality
Hoffman - children had to resist temptation, no gender differences

Question 12

Evaluation - contradictory evidence

Answer 12

No evidence that children without same sex parent are more criminal
Deviant parent influence could be genetic or social

Question 13

Evaluation - unconscious concepts

Answer 13

Unfalsifiable - no empirical testing

Pseudoscience

Question 14

Evaluation - methodological issues

Answer 14

44 thieves researcher bias - Bowlby knew what he was looking for
Didn’t distinguish between deprivation and privation

Question 15

Evaluation - correlation not causation

Answer 15

Lewis - analysed data from interviews, maternal deprivation poor predictor of future offending
Other factors - outside influence eg differential association theory