Psychological explanations: Differential association Flashcards
Differential association theory proposes that individuals learn values, attitudes, techniques and motives for offending behaviour through what?
Association and interaction with other people
Differential association theory proposes that individuals learn what through association and interaction with other people?
values, attitudes, techniques and motives for offending behaviour
One person might associate with people who have very negative attitudes towards crime and another might be exposed to more positive attitudes. What is this an example of?
Differential association
Differential association theory says that offending is a _______ behaviour
learned
Differential association theory says that offending is a learned behaviour which may be acquired in the same way/a different way compared to any other behaviour
in the same way
Differential association theory suggests that offending behaviour is acquired through processes of what?
Learning
Differential association theory suggests that offending behaviour is learnt most often through…
interactions with significant others who the child values most and spends most time with
Differential association theory suggests that offending behaviour is learnt most often through interactions with significant others who the child values most and spends most time with, such as…
the family and peer group
Differential association suggests that it should be possible to mathematically predict…
how likely it is that an individual will commit offences
True/False: Differential association suggests that it should be possible to mathematically predict how likely it is that an individual will commit offences
True
What do we need to know about exposure to mathematically predict how likely it is that an individual will commit offences with differential association theory?
Frequency, intensity and duration of exposure to deviant and non-deviant values
Differential association theory suggests that we should be able to mathematically predict how likely it is that an individual will commit offences, providing that we know which three things about their exposure to deviant and non-deviant values?
Frequency, intensity and duration of exposure
Differential association theory suggests that we should be able to mathematically predict how likely it is that an individual will commit offences, providing that we know the frequency, intensity and duration of exposure to…
deviant and non-deviant values
Differential association says that offending is a learned behaviour that arises from which two factors?
Learned attitudes towards offending and the learning of specific offending acts/techniques
When a person is socialised into a group what will happen in terms of differential association?
They will become exposed to values and attitudes towards the law
What does Sutherland argue about the number of pro-criminal attitudes a person comes to acquire?
If the number of pro-criminal attitudes a person comes to acquire outweighs the number of anti-criminal attitudes, they will go on to offend
True/False: According to differential association theory, the learning process involved in learning attitudes towards offending is the same whether a person is learning offending or conformity to the law
True
In addition to being exposed to pro-criminal attitudes, differential association says that would-be offenders may also learn particular…
techniques for committing offences
Give an example of an offending act/technique that someone may learn through differential association
Any from how to break into someone’s house through a locked window, how to disable a car stereo before stealing it, etc.
True/False: Differential association theory can account for offending within all sectors of society
True
Sutherland recognised that some types of _______ may be clustered within certain inner-city, working-class communities
offences
Sutherland recognised that some offences are clustered among more ________ groups in society
affluent
Which offences was Sutherland particularly interested in?
So-called ‘white-collar’ or corporate offences
Who coined the term white-collar crime in a speech delivered in 1939?
Sutherland
Sutherland was particularly interested in so-called ‘white-collar’ or corporate offences and how this may be a feature of…
middle-class social groups
The fact that some offences are clustered among more affluent groups in society shows that it is not just the…
‘lower’ classes who commit offences
True/False: Principles of differential association can be used to explain all offences
True
Edwin Sutherland set himself the task fo developing…
a set of scientific principles that could explain all types of offending
Edwin Sutherland said ‘the conditions which are said to cause crime should be…
present when the crime is present, and they should be absent when the crime is absent’
Differential association was and is designed to discriminate between…
individuals who become offenders and individuals who do not, whatever their social class or ethnic background
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory runs the risk of doing what?
Stereotyping individuals who come from impoverished, crime-ridden backgrounds
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory runs the risk of stereotyping individuals who come from impoverished, crime-ridden backgrounds as…
‘unavoidably offenders’
Even though Sutherland took care to point out that offending should be considered on an individual case-by-case basis…
the theory tends to suggest that exposure to pro-crime values is sufficient to produce offending in those who are exposed to it
Sutherland took great care to point out what about offending?
It should be considered on an individual case-by-case basis
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory ignores the fact that many people choose…
not to offend, despite such influences
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory ignores the fact that not everyone who is exposed to pro-crime attitudes…
goes on to offend
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory was successful in moving the emphasis away from…
early biological accounts of offending as well as theories that explained offending as being the product of individual weakness or immorality
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory was successful in moving the emphasis away from theories that explained offending as being the product of…
individual weakness or immorality
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory draws attention to the fact that what may be more to blame for offending than deviant people?
Deviant circumstances and environments
Why is Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory more desirable?
It offers a more realistic solution to the problem of offending
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory offers a more realistic solution to the problem of offending instead of which other solutions?
The biological and morality solution
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory aimed to provide what kind of framework?
A scientific and mathematical one
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory aimed to provide a scientific and mathematical framework within which future offending behaviour…
could be predicted
Why is it difficult to test the predictions of differential association?
Many of the concepts are not operationalised and it doesn’t have scientific credibility
It is hard to see how the number of pro-crime attitudes has or has been exposed to, could be measured. This is a limitation of which psychological explanation for offending?
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory is built on the assumption that offending behaviour will occur when…
pro-crime values outnumber anti-crime values
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory is built on the assumption that offending behaviour will occur when pro-crime values outnumber anti-crime values. Without being able to measure these, we cannot…
know at what point the urge to offend is realised and when the offending career is triggered
As well as offering an account for how offending may ‘breed’ amongst specific social groups and in communities, Sutherland’s theory can also account for…
why so many convicts released from prison go on to reoffend
Which psychological explanation for offending can account for how offending may ‘breed’ amongst specific social groups and in communities?
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory
It is reasonable to assume that whilst inside prison inmates will learn specific techniques of offending from other, more experienced offenders. This is an example of which psychological explanation for offending?
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory
It is reasonable to assume that whilst inside prison inmates will learn specific techniques of offending from other, more experienced offenders. This is an example of which psychological explanation for offending?
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory
It is reasonable to assume that whilst inside prison inmates will learn specific techniques of offending from other, more experienced offenders and may put this into practice upon release. How may this learning occur?
Through observational learning and imitation or direct tuition from offending peers
Sutherland suggested that what is crucial in determining whether an individual is likely to engage in offending?
The response of the family
If the family is seen to support offending activity then this becomes a…
major influence on the child’s value system
If the family is seen to support activity then this becomes a major influence on the child’s value system, making it seem…
legitimate and reasonable
The fact that offending behaviour often seems to ‘run in families’ could also be interpreted as what in terms of psychological explanations for offending?
Supporting other explanations
True/False: The fact that offending behaviour often seems to ‘run in families’ could be interpreted as supporting differential association theory, or supporting biological theories as…
a particular combination of genes or innate neural abnormality could be evident
Why must we consider whether the nature or nurture argument is more persuasive when it comes to psychological explanations for offending?
The nurture argument of differential association is strong, but offending behaviour seeming to ‘run in families’ could also be interpreted as supporting other explanations such as biological theories, as this may be a particular combination of genes or innate neural abnormality
