Unit 3 - Ch. 3

Question 1

Behaviourism

Answer 1

A school of thought in psychology that emphasizes the view that all behaviour can be described and studied scientifically without reference to internal psychological constructs such as the mind.

Behaviourism focuses on the study of observable processes (Skinner 1953), and many theories of crime have their roots in behaviourism. These theories often focus on how criminal behaviour is learned (and how hypotheses about such learning can be tested). While the specific factors focused on in each theory vary, these theories generally propose that criminal behaviour is learned in the same way that non-criminal behaviour is learned.

Question 2

Psychodynamic Theories

Answer 2

…focus on the internal (often unconscious) psychological forces that influence human behaviour. Many of these theories are rooted in Freudian thinking. These theories often focus on factors that influence personality development, how personality development influences our ability to resolve intra-psychic conflicts, and how these conflicts impact our behaviour (including antisocial behaviour). According to this perspective, experiences occurring early in childhood, such as separation from one’s mother, are thought to have a profound effect on personality development and thus, how people behave.

Question 3

Learning Theories…

Answer 3

…which are rooted in the behaviouristic tradition, take a different approach to understanding crime. These theories of crime focus on how information is encoded, processed, and retained in the process of learning to become criminal. These theories often propose specific conditions that promote (or inhibit) learning and they describe various forms of learning.

Question 4

Social Learning Theories…

Answer 4

…for example, focus on one particular form of learning; that is, learning that takes place by observing others being reinforced or punished for their prosocial and antisocial behaviour.

Question 5

What theories are many interventions for offenders currently based on?

Answer 5

Psychodynamic theories, learning theories, social learning theory (Akers)

Question 6

Learning theories of crime place great importance on the consequences associated with….

Answer 6

behaviour. ie whether people received reinforcement or punishment for behaving antisocially.

Question 7

Antisocial

Answer 7

Hostile or harmful to organized society.

Being or marked by behavior deviating sharply from the social norm.

Relating to, or characterized by an antisocial personality, the antisocial personality disorder, or behavior typical of either.

Question 8

Behaviourism theories methodology

Answer 8

Cross-sectional research designs - Type of research design whereby different groups of people who differ on a variable of interest (e.g., involvement in delinquent activity) are observed at a particular point in time to determine how they differ on some other variable (e.g., parental supervision) or set of variables are very common.

Longitudinal research - Using this methodology, researchers follow groups of individuals to examine how their behaviour develops or changes over time (e.g., does exposure to a risk factor in youth lead to criminal activity as an adult?)

Meta-analysis - is becoming a common methodology used to test the theories discussed in this chapter, just as it has been used to test biological theories of crime. Once a number of studies exist that have examined the same variables (for example, the relationship between some potential risk factor and criminality), meta-analytic techniques can be applied to those studies to determine what the overall, or average, relationship is between these variables.

Question 9

According to the psychodynamic perspective, crime generally occurs when…

Answer 9

…the inherent human antisocial traits that are driven by pleasure-seeking and destructive impulses are not adequately controlled (often unconsciously). This is thought to happen when internal psychic forces tasked with the job of regulating such impulses fail to develop as they should, typically due to traumatic childhood experiences.

Question 10

Id (Freud) - What is it and what is it governed by?

Answer 10

The unconscious, instinctual part of the Freudian personality that seeks the immediate gratification of basic drives (e.g., aggression).

Thought to be governed by the pleasure principle

Question 11

Pleasure Principle - What is it and two forces are believed to control it? (Freud)

Answer 11

The driving force of the id, which leads people to seek immediate pleasure while trying to avoid pain.

It seeks immediate pleasure with little consideration of the undesirable consequences that may result if an impulse is acted upon. These potentially destructive forces are believed to be controlled in one of two ways:

First: psychoanalysts believe that the activity of the id is opposed by the next personality structure to develop, the ego, which attempts to mediate between one’s primal needs and society’s demands. The ego is guided by the reality principle: its development coincides with the emergence of reality-oriented thinking and it allows the id to function in socially acceptable ways by suppressing the id’s impulses until appropriate situations arise (e.g., by allowing for the delay of gratification).

Second: in challenging id drives, the ego is guided by the superego, the last of the three personality systems to develop according to psychoanalysts. The superego represents the internalization of group standards, typically conveyed to the child through parental care and discipline, and it acts as a moral regulator. The superego is thought to consist of two sub-systems: the conscience, which allows an individual to distinguish between right and wrong and forces the ego to inhibit id pursuits that are out of line with one’s morals, and the ego-ideal, which represents the socially accepted standards to which we all aspire

Question 12

Ego (Freud) - What is it? What guides the Ego?

Answer 12

The conscious part of the Freudian personality, which acts as the mediator between the instinctual demands of the id and the social restrictions of the superego.

The Ego is guided by the reality principle and the superego.

Question 13

Reality Principle (Freud)

Answer 13

The driving force of the ego, which leads people to defer gratification until it is physically and socially safe to pursue it.

Its development coincides with the emergence of reality-oriented thinking and it allows the id to function in socially acceptable ways by suppressing the id’s impulses until appropriate situations arise (e.g., by allowing for the delay of gratification)

Question 14

Superego (Freud) - What is it? What are the two sub-systems?

Answer 14

The part of the Freudian personality that acts as the moral regulator, making sure that we act in accordance with internalized group standards. Includes two sub-systems called the conscience and the
ego-ideal.

The superego represents the internalization of group standards, typically conveyed to the child through parental care and discipline, and it acts as a moral regulator.

Question 15

Conscience (Freud)

Answer 15

One component of the Freudian superego, which allows an individual to distinguish between right and wrong and inhibit id pursuits that are out of line with one’s morals.

Question 16

Ego-Ideal (Freud)

Answer 16

One component of the Freudian superego that represents the socially accepted standards that we all aspire to.

Question 17

Problems that result in superego formation are thought to stem from… (Freud)

Answer 17

…failure to identify with prosocial parental figures. This is of particular interest to those attempting to develop explanations of crime.

Psychoanalysts have proposed three main sources of criminal behaviour, each relating to inadequate superego formation. The three sources relate to the development of a:

Harsh superego,
Weak superego, or
Deviant superego.

While these general categories of criminal types are useful, they provide inadequate information about the actual causes of crime, other than the fact that problems with superego development may play an important role.

Question 18

Harsh Superego (Freud)

Answer 18

One of the three main sources of criminal behaviour relating to inadequate superego formation.

An individual who commits crime as a result of a harsh superego is sometimes referred to as a neurotic criminal (assumed to lead to pathological levels of unconscious guilt that can be resolved by receiving punishment (e.g., a legal sanction for a crime)). The unconscious guilt is typically over unresolved infantile desires and criminal behaviour is meant to subconsciously invite punishment in an attempt to resolve this guilt (see page 69 of textbook for an example case of this - David, an example of a neurotic criminal).

Question 19

Neurotic Criminal (Freud)

Answer 19

An individual who commits crime as a result of a harsh superego, which is assumed to lead to pathological levels of unconscious guilt that can be resolved by receiving punishment (e.g., a legal sanction for a crime).

(see page 69 of textbook for an example case of this - David, an example of a neurotic criminal).

Psychologists generally accept that neurotic criminals of this kind are very rare, although some appear to exist.

Question 20

Weak Superego (Freud)

Answer 20

One of the three main sources of criminal behaviour relating to inadequate superego formation.

Individuals who commit crime because of a weak superego are commonly associated with the psychopathic personality.

Possessing a superego that fails to sufficiently regulate the instinctual needs of the id, this type of individual is typically “egocentric, impulsive, guiltless, and unempathic”. Many violent offenders are often assumed to commit crimes due to a weak or underdeveloped superego.

Question 21

Deviant Superego (Freud)

Answer 21

One of the three main sources of criminal behaviour relating to inadequate superego formation.

For these individuals, superego standards have developed, but those standards are thought to reflect deviant identification (i.e., identification with a deviant role model). This could occur, for example, when criminal parents have a good relationship with their son and the son grows up to mirror his parents’ criminality; in this case, the child’s delinquent behaviour “reflects an absence of guilt, but not the abnormality of psychic structures”.

Question 22

Deviant Identification

Answer 22

The process of identifying with a deviant role model (e.g., a criminal father).

Question 23

Theory of Maternal Deprivation (Bowlby)

Answer 23

A theory of crime proposed by John Bowlby that suggests that if children are not exposed to consistent and constant maternal care in their early years they will experience difficulties in developing the ability to establish meaningful prosocial relationships and, as a result, will be more likely to exhibit antisocial patterns of behaviour.

Bowlby’s view was that young children require consistent and continuous maternal care in order for them to develop normally (Bowlby 1989). According to Bowlby, disruption to the mother–child relationship can have many harmful and potentially irreversible long-term effects, especially in relation to the child’s ability to establish meaningful prosocial relationships. Lacking such abilities, the child will not develop the means to control his conduct (i.e., destructive impulses) and will be more likely to exhibit antisocial patterns of behaviour

Draws heavily on the psychodynamic perspective and was a popular theory for how juvenile delinquency develops.

Question 24

How has Bowlby’s study on his Theory of Maternal Deprivation criticized? What is now clear about this study?

Answer 24

Methodologically and on empirical grounds

Methodologically, Bowlby’s studies have been criticized for everything from the unrepresentative nature of his delinquent sample to poor control group matching.

Empirically, Bowlby’s results do not appear to hold up, especially in studies where large sample sizes are relied on (such as Hirschi’s or Nye’s studies).

What now seems clear is that maternal deprivation is not a critical factor to a child’s healthy development (i.e., a paternal figure can provide adequate care), that any damage caused by early deprivation is not necessarily irreversible, and that the theory over-predicts juvenile delinquency given that many individuals who experience maternal deprivation do not get involved in crime.

Question 25

What were the Glueck’s and Glueck’s work influenced by?

Answer 25

Psychodynamic thinking

Question 26

What were the primary interests of Glueck and Glueck? What was their approaches to examine this subject? What was the summary of their findings?

Answer 26

According to Sampson and Laub (1995), the primary interests of the Gluecks were discovering the causes of crime and assessing the effectiveness of correctional treatment in controlling criminal behaviour.

One of their approach was to use cross-sectional research comparing the lives of juvenile delinquents with non-juveniles. The study was based on 500 delinquent boys and 500 non-delinquent boys matched on demographics and intelligence.

They also conducted longitudinal research on the delinquent boys included in this study.

The Gluecks took a multidisciplinary approach to examining delinquency; for each boy, information was collected, including social, psychological, and biological information, information about the boys’ family lives, school performance, and work experiences. Not only were the boys interviewed, so were their parents and teachers.

Based on their findings, the Gleucks were able to provide a portrait of the delinquent. (note the psychodynamic tone to much of their description):

The delinquents, far more than the non-delinquents, are of the essentially mesomorphic [strong and muscular], energetic type, with tendencies to restless and uninhibited expression of instinctual-affective energy and to direct and concrete, rather than symbolic and abstract, intellectual expression. It is evidently difficult for them to develop the high degree of flexibility of adaptation, self-management, self-control, and sublimation of primitive tendencies and self-centred desires demanded by the complex and confused culture of the times.

To a large extent, the Gluecks attributed the differences between delinquents and non-delinquents to parenting factors, the primary source for superego development.

For example, among the parents of the delinquents, there was a greater incidence of emotional disturbances, mental retardation, alcoholism, and criminality. Parents of the delinquent boys were also less educated, less likely to stay together, and less ambitious. Furthermore, the parents of the delinquents showed greater carelessness in the supervision of their children and often appeared neglectful. Finally, a greater proportion of delinquent families were found to lack cohesiveness, warmth, and respect for the integrity of family members, and fewer of the delinquents were affectionately attached to their parents, especially their fathers.

Psychodynamic Theory - Freudian

Question 27

Glueck and Glueck, based on the finding of their study on delinquent vs non-delinquent boys, proposed a “tentative causal formula” that could, in their view, be used to predict who would become engaged in juvenile delinquency. What is their “tentative causal formula”?

How was their claim received?

Answer 27

They believed that by drawing on their physical, temperamental, attitudinal, psychological, and socio-cultural data they could make accurate predictions, from a very young age, about the likelihood of children getting involved in crime.

The claims were met with resistance, and researchers quickly proceeded to show that the claims being made by the Gluecks were exaggerated. In addition, the work of the Gluecks has been challenged on methodological grounds. For example, the Gluecks have been heavily criticized for not carefully examining issues related to causal ordering (i.e., whether the factors they highlighted preceded delinquency or were the result of delinquency) as well as for inappropriate use of statistical techniques and procedures.

Question 28

Hirschi’s theory?

Answer 28

Control Theory - Contains important psychodynamic themes (ego, superego mechanisms plays role in controlling one’s antisocial impulses) however not traditionally considered to be a psychodynamic theory.

-Views all humans as having the potential to exhibit antisocial behaviour
-the major question that he considers when attempting to understand crime is a classic psychodynamic one: it is not why people violate the law, but rather why more people don’t violate the law.
-According to Hirschi’s social control theory, or social bond theory, the reason why people don’t violate the law is because of social controls, or “the bond of the individual to society”
-Specifically, Hirschi presented four interrelated social bonds that are collectively thought to promote socialization and conformity: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. According to Hirschi (2002), “delinquent acts result when an individual’s bond to society is weak or broken”.

Question 29

Hirschi’s social control theory (1969) presents four interrelated social bonds that are collectively thought to promote socialization and conformity. What are the four bonds and what do they refer to? Which psychodynamic term (Freudian) does each represent to?

Answer 29

1. Attachment: Refers to attachment and interest in others, most importantly parents, friends, and teachers. Hirschi believed that one’s acceptance of and abidance with social norms and ideals depends on attachments to other human beings (particularly the quality of such attachments). An individual does not commit crime as they don’t want to jeopardize their relationships to others. In psychodynamic terms, attachment represents the ego-ideal (Freudian).
2. Commitment: Refers to the time, energy, and effort placed in conventional behaviour (ie getting an education), People who have an investment in conventional pursuits run a heightened risk of losing that investment if they become involved in crime. Commitment serves the same theoretical value as the ego (Freudian).
3. Involvement: Refers to the time and energy one spends taking part in activities that are in line with the conventional interest of society (school). Heavy involvement in conventional activities limits the time that is available to participate in criminal behaviour.
4. Belief: Refers to one’s conviction to the view that people should obey common rules. This entails a respect for a societal value system, including respect for the law and institutions that enforce the law. If such beliefs are weak, involvement in crime is assumed to be more likely. This bond has parallels with the conscience part of the superego (Freudian).

Question 30

What was Hirschi’s study that is one of the most frequently discussed and tested theories in criminology?

Answer 30

Hirschi (1969) tested his social control theory by conducting a study of delinquents and non-delinquents using a cross-sectional design described in his book Causes of Delinquency. Like the Gluecks, Hirschi collected a wide range of data on an impressively large sample of adolescents—4077 in all (3605 were boys), some of whom were delinquent and some of whom were not. Hirschi’s analysis largely supported the core concepts of social control theory (and, for that matter, the major findings of the Gluecks; Andrews and Bonta 2010)

Question 31

Recent research suggests that Hirschi’s theory might need to be reassessed. Why?

Answer 31

Peer attachment: Hirschi believed that its presence or absence was important, not whether the peers were involved in delinquent acts (i.e., even for youths who were attached to delinquent peers, the stronger the attachment, the less likely the individual was to be delinquent). This is no longer thought to be the case. Now, attachment to peers is thought to lead to conformity only when the peers are not delinquent. Causal ordering is also important to consider, given that some research shows that delinquent behaviour can precede weak bonds (e.g., delinquency may precede weak attachment to school; Liska and Reed 1985). In addition, some bonds (e.g., attachment) seem to be more important than others (Agnew 1991), different bonds appear to be more or less important at different ages (LaGrange and White 1985), and the explanatory power of certain social bonds appears to vary across genders (Rosenbaum and Lasley 1990).

Question 32

Causal Order

Answer 32

Causal order is concerned with the problem that the occurrence of some events may affect other events in the future, while other events may not influence each other.

Question 33

In 1990, Hirschi, along with his colleague Michael Gottfredson, proposed a more refined and parsimonious control theory. What was the theory?

Answer 33

General Theory of Crime

Instead of focusing on the indirect controlling effects of social bonds, as Hirschi’s (1969) original theory did, Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime argues that self-control, internalized early in life, is the primary determinant of crime.

Crime is not an inevitable consequence for those who lack self- control; opportunities to commit crime are also crucially important. Low self-control in the presence of criminal opportunities is assumed to explain an individual’s propensity to commit crimes.

Still, given their view that most offences are easy to commit, requiring “little in the way of effort, planning, preparation or skill” and that opportunities for crime are readily available, Gottfredson and Hirschi argued that, over time, people with low self-control will inevitably become more deeply involved in a criminal lifestyle.

Question 34

General Theory of Crime

Answer 34

Gottfredson and Hirschi’s theory (1990)

Theory of crime proposed by Michael Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi that suggests that people do not commit crime because they possess high levels of self-control.

Referred to as a general theory of crime because they believe that it can account for all crime in addition to a range of other behaviours that have been deemed “analogous” to criminal behaviour (e.g., alcohol, drug, and tobacco use).

They are all “short lived, immediately gratifying, easy, simple, and exciting” (p. 14), and therefore are appealing to those who are unable to resist temptations of the moment, those who are insensitive to the needs of others, and those who are unable to consider the potential long-term negative consequences of their own behaviour; in short, to people who can be characterized as low in self-control.

The level of self-control a person possesses depends on the quality of parenting in their early years.

Children whose parents care about them, monitor them, and discipline them appropriately will likely develop the self-control that is needed to behave in a prosocial manner. Such children will be “more capable of delaying gratification, more sensitive to the interests and desires of others, more independent, more willing to place restraints on his activities, and more unlikely to use force or violence to attain his ends”

Children without such an upbringing will tend to be “impulsive, insensitive, physical (as opposed to mental), risk-taking, short-sighted, and nonverbal” thus explaining the increased likelihood of these individuals giving in to the temptations presented by crime.

Consistent with a psychodynamic perspective

Question 35

Is Gottfredson and Hirschi’s General Theory of Crime supported by others?

Answer 35

Yes. Their theory (despite being proposed relatively recently) has generated an enormous amount of interest and attention from other researchers.

Most of the subsequent research provides at least partial support for the predictions put forward. For example, there seems to be a link between low self-control and crime, and this link appears to exist across a variety of cultures

Meta-analytic research supports the view that there is a relationship between self-control and crime, even when self-control is defined using a broad range of behavioural and attitudinal measures and applied to a broad range of samples (e.g., community members vs. offenders, young vs. old, etc.; Pratt and Cullen 2000). However, Pratt and Cullen’s meta-analysis also clearly showed that, while self-control is an important predictor of criminal behaviour, it is not the sole cause of crime, given that it only accounted for approximately 19 percent of the variance in criminal behaviour.

In looking at the role of parenting, self-control, and delinquency, Perrone et al. (2004) also found partial support for the general theory of crime. Based on a random sample of over 15 000 youths, they found that parental efficacy (basically the mother’s attachment to the child) was a significant predictor of the youth’s level of self-control, which is consistent with the view of Gottfredson and Hirschi. However, self-control only partially mediated the relationship between parental efficacy and delinquency, indicating that a valid theory of crime needs to account for more than just self-control.

Question 36

What is the most commonly raised criticism about Gottfredson and Hirschi’s General Theory of Crime? What other criticisms are there?

Answer 36

-The concept of self-control (Lack of self control causes crime. How do you know if someone has low self-control? They commit crime. Goes in a circle)

-The argument that self-control is fixed at a very young age and stable throughout the lifespan

-Theory does not deal with questions around opportunities for crime which is a crucial aspect of the theory.

Akers (1991) views the general theory of crime as tautological, based largely on circular reasoning. According to him, defining self-control as the failure to refrain from crime, and then proposing self-control as a cause of crime, makes it impossible to falsify the hypothesis that self-control is the primary determinant of crime. Why do people commit deviant acts, one might ask? Because they lack self-control. How do we know they lack self-control? Because they’re committing deviant acts! To avoid this tautological problem, Akers argues that operational measures of self-control must be developed that are separate from measures of deviant acts or a propensity toward committing such acts. According to Akers, at least, this issue has not been adequately resolved

In addition, Gottfredson and Hirschi’s (1990) argument that self-control is fixed at a very young age and stable throughout the lifespan has been the target of much criticism. Gottfredson and Hirschi’s argument is not that criminal involvement won’t decline with age, which is a consistent empirical finding, but that between-individual differences in self-control will remain stable over time and be unaffected by social (or other) factors (i.e., if Person A is lower in self-control at Time 1 compared to Person B, they will be consistently lower in self-control, and thus always more likely than Person B to be involved in crime given equal opportunities; other factors, beyond parental socialization processes, can “redirect offenders into a pathway to conformity”.

This has led some researchers to conclude that the general theory of crime is overly simplistic, ignoring the reality that “change is as much a part of criminal careers as stability” (Lilly et al. 2006: 319; see also Buker 2011). Indeed, some studies have shown that self-control is malleable enough that it can be improved through targeted intervention, and that these interventions can help reduce delinquency.

In addition to potential problems with the concept of self-control, the theory has also been criticised for not dealing with important questions around opportunities for crime (Schulz 2006), which is another crucial aspect of the theory. For example, as Goode (2008) points out, many questions remain unanswered. We do not yet fully understand what the relationship is between self-control and criminal opportunities. Are they independent or related in some meaningful way? Is it possible that individuals with low self-control are more likely to perceive criminal opportunities where high self-control people do not? Furthermore, does the lifestyle of individuals with low self-control open up more criminal opportunities?

Question 37

What distinguishes learning theories of crime from psychodynamic theories of crime?

Answer 37

Learning in this case refers to “a change in pre-existing behaviour or mental processes that occurs as a result of experience” . This emphasis on learning is what distinguishes learning theories of crime from psychodynamic theories of crime.

For example, you will recall that control theories assume that “we would all be deviant if only we dared”. Learning theories of crime, on the other hand, assume that there is no natural, or inherent, impulse to act antisocially. Instead, criminal behaviour must be learned, just as we learn to exhibit non-deviant behaviour.

Question 38

Classical Conditioning

Answer 38

A form of learning that takes place when an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., food) that produces an unconditioned response (e.g., salivation) is paired with a conditioned stimulus (e.g., a tone) such that, over time, a conditioned response (e.g., salivation) is reproduced using only the conditioned stimulus.

Question 39

Unconditioned Stimulus UCS (Classical Conditioning terms)

Answer 39

In classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally (i.e., automatically) triggers a response (e.g., food is an unconditioned stimulus that triggers salivation).

Question 40

Unconditioned Response UCR (Classical Conditioning terms)

Answer 40

In classical conditioning, an unlearned response that occurs automatically following the presentation of an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation is an unconditioned response to the presentation of food).

Question 41

Conditioned Stimulus CS (Classical Conditioning terms)

Answer 41

In classical conditioning, a previously neutral stimulus that comes to evoke a conditioned response after it is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., a tone becomes a conditioned stimulus that elicits a salivation response when repeatedly paired with food, an unconditioned stimulus).

Question 42

Conditioned Response CR (Classical Conditioning terms)

Answer 42

In classical conditioning, a response to a previously neutral stimulus turned conditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation is a conditioned response when it occurs after the presentation of a tone, which has become a conditioned stimulus by repeatedly pairing it with food, an unconditioned stimulus).

Question 43

Extinction (Classical Conditioning)

Answer 43

In classical conditioning, when the conditioned response no longer gets elicited by the conditioned stimulus as a result of the conditioned stimulus not being paired with an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation—a conditioned response—no longer gets elicited by the presentation of a tone—a conditioned stimulus—because the tone has been repeatedly presented in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus, such as food).

Question 44

Stimulus Generalization

Answer 44

Stimulus generalization occurs when an individual responds to stimuli that are similar to the original conditioned stimulus. For example, the boy was was conditioned to fear rats may also fear anything that is small, white, and fluffy, like gerbils or mice or small dogs.

Question 45

Aversive Conditioning

Covert Aversive Conditioning

Overt Aversive Conditioning

Answer 45

Aversion therapy, also called aversive conditioning, or counter conditioning is a type of behavioral therapy. It is a psychological treatment that pairs a negative behavior or habit with a negative stimulus. For example, a dog owner may spray a bitter liquid on objects the dog should not chew.

Covert Aversive Conditioning: Imagined scenarios/consequences

Example: Using covert aversive conditioning, the goal is to have the offender pair an imagined aversive consequence with his deviant fantasies or behaviour in order to eliminate such fantasies or behaviour. A standard technique, described by Maletzky (1991), consists of having the offender listen to a story that contains the following three parts: (1) the offender’s preferred deviant stimulus and a buildup of sexual arousal (e.g., a child molestation); (2) an aversive consequence that causes intense disgust, pain, or humiliation (e.g., imagining that they are vomiting while carrying out the offence); and (3) release from the adverse consequence by reversing the activity (e.g., removing the imaginary aversive consequence and encouraging relaxation).

Overt Aversive Conditioning: Same goal as covert, but actual aversive stimuli instead of imagined. The deviant stimulus may involve slides, videos, or movies depicting the deviant experience or object. The aversive stimuli may be electric shocks, foul odors, nausea-inducing drugs, or even shame (e.g., by having the offender act out the deviant behaviour in front of observers).

Question 46

Arousal Reconditioning

Answer 46

The goal of arousal reconditioning is to weaken deviant sexual arousal and simultaneously strengthen appropriate arousal. One method is called masturbatory satiation, which might involve an offender masturbating to consenting adult pornography. Just after ejaculation, when sex drive is assumed to be lowest, he continues masturbating but the offender switches to pornography involving sex between a man and a child. He does this for 30 minutes. The rationale of this method is that it causes the deviant fantasy to become conditioned to low sex drive as well as to excessive masturbation—an aversive stimulus—while the “normal” fantasy becomes conditioned to the pleasure of ejaculation.

Question 47

Biosocial Theory of Crime

Answer 47

Theory of crime proposed by Hans Eysenck that suggests that people commit crime as a result of the interaction between biologically determined characteristics (e.g., nervous system processing) and environmental stimuli (e.g., parental discipline).

Eysenck also believed that differences in nervous system functioning shape one’s personality and behaviour, and he made predictions about personality differences between antisocial and prosocial individuals.

Specifically, Eysenck believed that criminals and other antisocial individuals are deficient with respect to classical conditioning, or conditionability, a process he thought was important in the socialization or conscience-building process.

Eysenck argues that what we call “conscience” is, in effect, a set of classically-conditioned emotional responses.

Eysenck viewed the conscience as a set of conditioned fear responses

Question 48

Is it believed that antisocial individuals will condition less effectively than prosocial individuals?

Answer 48

Yes. Several reviews of the research have found that, generally speaking, this is true.

Research of this type shows that problems with conditionability are generally more pronounced in people with antisocial inclinations (e.g., psychopaths). What is less clear is how conditionability relates to the socialization process.

Question 49

What are some criticisms of Eysenck’s theory of crime? (Biosocial Theory of Crime)

Answer 49

-Many criticisms relate to the predictions that Eysenck made regarding personality differences between antisocial/prosocial individuals that weren’t supported by empirical research.

-Some criticize Eysenck’s ideas about classical conditioning and crime but they are philosophical in nature – questions view that behaviour is as rule-governed and deterministic as Eysenck makes out

-Challenges based on empirical grounds and relate to the fact that not all studies demonstrate conditioning deficits in antisocial individuals - No strong evidence linking conditionability to the socialization process.

Question 50

Operant Conditioning - What is it? What are the four context (or contingencies) of Operant Conditioning?

Answer 50

A form of learning that takes place by experiencing environmental consequences caused by behaviour, especially reinforcement and punishment.

Operant conditioning play a crucial role in many criminal justice interventions.

Basically, this approach to understanding human behaviour, including criminal behaviour, assumes that the emergence, maintenance, and cessation of behaviour is determined largely by its environmental consequences

Harvard psychologist B.F. Skinner (1904–1990) is primarily credited with establishing the principles of operant conditioning

Positive Reinforcement
Negative Reinforcement
Positive Punishment
Negative Punishment

Question 51

What are the four context (or contingencies) of Operant Conditioning?

Answer 51

Positive Reinforcement: an increase in the likelihood of a behaviour being exhibited in the future due to the addition of a pleasant stimulus following the behaviour.

Negative Reinforcement: an increase in the likelihood of a behaviour being exhibited in the future due to the removal of an aversive stimulus following the behaviour.

Positive Punishment: a decrease in the likelihood of a behaviour being exhibited in the future due to the addition of an aversive stimulus following the behaviour.

Negative Punishment: a decrease in the likelihood of a behaviour being exhibited in the future due to the removal of a pleasant stimulus following the behaviour.

Note that the labels “positive” and “negative” are not being used in the popular sense to mean “good” and “bad”; offenders may see nothing “good” about positive punishment. Instead, “positive” and “negative” refer to either the addition or subtraction of a stimulus to/from the environment following a behaviour (either naturally or through manual means). Also note that the processes of reinforcement and punishment are defined solely in terms of their behavioural outcome and can be situation and/or person specific. In other words, a stimulus is not a “reinforcer” or a “punisher” unless it increases (in the case of reinforcement) or decreases (in the case of punishment) the preceding behaviour, and what might be reinforcing or punishing for one situation (or for one person) might not be for another.

See p. 80 in textbook for picture explaining stimulus (positive/negative)

Question 52

What are three factors that are important to consider when applying operant conditioning?

Answer 52

1. Immediacy: the sooner the reinforcement (or punishment) follows the targeted behaviour, the more likely that behaviour will be to increase (or decrease)
2. Consistency: the more often the consequence follows the targeted behaviour, the more effective the consequence will be (however, in the case of reinforcement, intermittent schedules of reinforcement, where the consequence only occasionally follows the behaviour, can produce behaviours that are very resistant to extinction
3. Intensity: the intensity of the consequence is an important factor that partly determines how effective the consequence will be in increasing or decreasing behaviour (Moffit 1983). As a general rule, the stronger the consequence, the more effective it will be

Question 53

What are some applications of Operant Conditioning in criminal justice/criminal behaviour?

Answer 53

The principles of operant conditioning have typically been drawn on to develop strategies for intervening with offenders.

The use of token economies in prisons or psychiatric facilities, for example, where prisoners/patients earn points for good behaviour, which can then be exchanged for desired items (e.g., cigarettes), is an obvious instance of positive reinforcement.

The use of positive punishment in our criminal justice system, such as when a fine or prison sentence is handed down by a judge in an attempt to decrease undesirable behaviour. It is also common to see the factors listed above (specifically lack of immediacy, consistency, and maximum intensity) called on to explain real-world failings of criminal justice strategies, especially the ineffective use of punishment to deter crime.

What is less common is the direct application of operant conditioning principles to an understanding of how criminal behaviour patterns emerge. Few theories of crime rely exclusively on these principles, although some come pretty close. The theory proposed by Jeffery (1965) is one example.

Question 54

What was the theory proposed by Jeffery (1965 - Operant Conditioning) differential reinforcement theory

Answer 54

Jeffery proposed simply that whether someone commits crime depends on whether the individual has been reinforced for similar behaviour in the past. Specifically, he believed that what matters most is whether the reinforcing stimuli associated with previous criminal behaviour (e.g., the value of stolen goods in the case of burglary) outweighs the aversive stimuli associated with that behaviour (e.g., legal sanctions). Jeffery’s differential reinforcement theory states that “A criminal act occurs in an environment in which in the past the actor has been reinforced for behaving in this manner, and the aversive consequences attached to the behaviour have been of such a nature that they do not control or prevent the response” (Jeffery 1965: 295). Thus, if an offender experiences only reinforcing stimuli when committing burglaries, the criminal behaviour is likely to continue. If, on the other hand, legal sanctions (or some other negative consequence) are consistently experienced, the aversive consequence is likely to deter the act.

Question 55

Social learning theories were proposed in part to deal with the primary criticisms of theories based on operant and/or classical conditioning principles, which include the fact that these theories underemphasize:

Answer 55

(1) the role of internal (i.e., cognitive) processes in the learning of criminal behaviour and

(2) the important role that social context plays in the learning process, in particular learning that occurs by observing others.

Question 56

While psychodynamic theories help us understand the crucial role of childhood socialization plays in the development of criminal behaviour, they do not explain how people learn to become criminals. What type of theories fill in those gaps?

Answer 56

Learning Theories.

Learning theories of crime, which are based heavily on the principles of classical and/or operant conditioning, fill in some of the gaps left by psychodynamic theories. As argued above, learning theories suggest that people learn to commit crime in the same way they learn any other behaviour—through processes of associative learning and/or by experiencing the environmental consequences of their behaviour.

While learning theories contribute to our understanding of criminal behaviour and form the basis of successful intervention strategies for tackling crime, they also have several weaknesses—most notably an under-emphasis on learning in social settings.

Question 57

Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory

Answer 57

Theory of crime proposed by Edwin Sutherland that suggests that people commit crime when they are exposed (e.g., in intimate group settings) to an excess of definitions (i.e., attitudes) that are favourable to law-breaking versus definitions that are unfavourable to law-breaking.

Sutherland discounted “internal” causes of crime (psychodynamic theories like the Gluecks’) and believed instead that crime could be explained by learning in social contexts through interaction and communication.

In particular, Sutherland believed that a group’s social norms played a huge part in the likelihood of committing crime.

According to differential association theory, it is the balance between contact with prosocial attitudes on the one hand and antisocial attitudes on the other that influence behaviour.

Question 58

What are the nine testable postulates put forth by Sutherland to summarize his Differential Association Theory?

Which 2 are postulates are the heart of his theory?

Which postulate is also very important and what are the 4 things that it can be impacted by?

Answer 58

1. Criminal behaviour is learned.

2.Criminal behaviour is learned in interaction with other persons in a process of communication.

3. The principal part of the learning of criminal behaviour occurs within intimate personal groups.
4. When criminal behaviour is learned, the learning includes: (a) techniques of committing the crime . . . and (b) the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes.
5. The specific direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal code as favourable or unfavourable.
6. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favourable to violations of the law over definitions unfavourable to violations of the law.
7. Differential associations vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity.
8. The process of learning criminal behaviour by association within criminal and anti-criminal patterns involves mechanisms that are involved in any other learning.
9. Though criminal behaviour is an expression of general needs and values, it is not explained by those general needs and values since non-criminal behaviour is an expression of the same needs and values. (pp. 6–8)

The heart of Sutherland’s differential association theory is postulates 6 and 8, but postulate 7 is also very important. To be clear, postulate 7 says that the impact of criminal and anti-criminal definitions can be affected by: (1) how often one interacts with the group(s) exhibiting these definitions (frequency); (2) the length of exposure to particular definitions (duration); (3) how early in life one encounters the definitions (priority); and (4) the prestige or status of the group members holding the definitions (intensity).

Put simply, to the extent that these four conditions are favourable to violations of the law (i.e., high frequency of contact, for a long duration, beginning early in one’s life, with high-status members), the more likely it is that a person will become involved in an antisocial or criminal lifestyle.

Question 59

Differential Association Theory has had a significant impact on the field of Criminology and has had significant influence on other theories of crime.

What 2 core concepts have become important predictors of crime and are included in the most-effective modern day assessment tools for predicting reoffending?

Answer 59

The importance of antisocial attitudes

The important of antisocial associates.

Question 60

What is the main criticism about Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory?

Answer 60

Sutherland’s concept of “definitions.” It was never clear what Sutherland meant by definitions that are favourable or unfavourable to violations of the law. Sutherland provided no guidelines on how to operationalize the ratio of definitions favourable to violations of the law over definitions unfavourable to law violations. Some have argued that, in practice, it would be extremely difficult if not impossible to quantify these values

Similar arguments can be made in reference to the measurement of factors that influence the impact of differential associations. For example, how does one measure the prestige or status of group members, or the frequency or duration of contact with them? Equally problematic is the fact that Sutherland neglected to specify how the learning process operates (Burgess and Akers 1966). Because Sutherland proposed that criminal behaviour is learned the same way other behaviours are learned (postulate 8), it was logical to seek insight into the learning mechanisms within behavioural psychology

Question 61

Differential Association-Reinforcement Theory

Answer 61

Theory of crime proposed by Robert Burgess and Ron Akers that combines operant conditioning principles with differential association principles and suggests that people commit crime when criminal behaviour is more reinforced (e.g., in intimate group settings) than non-criminal behaviour.

Question 62

Aker’s Social Learning Theory

Answer 62

Like Gottfredson and Hirschi’s theory, Akers’ social learning theory is a general theory of crime (i.e., it is intended to explain all crime). As such, it goes beyond a model of learning based on direct environmental consequences of behaviour. While Akers’ theory includes an emphasis on the operant conditioning principles outlined by Skinner (1953), it also draws heavily on the work of social learning theorists, such as Albert Bandura (e.g., Bandura 1973)

According to Akers’s social learning theory, crime is learned primarily through group interactions, by way of operant and vicarious conditioning.

More specifically, the likelihood of someone exhibiting criminal behaviour (and continuing to exhibit that behavior) depends on how the behaviour, relative to alternative behaviours, has been reinforced and punished in the person’s past (and continues to be reinforced or punished in the person’s present).

In other words, “Behaviour (whether deviant or conforming) results from greater reinforcement, on balance, over punishing contingencies for the same behaviour and the reinforcing-punishing contingencies on alternative behavior”.

In addition, through interactions with significant groups in their lives, people learn to define particular behaviours as “good” or “bad”; the more a person defines a criminal behaviour as “good”, the more likely that person is to exhibit that behaviour. Particularly important groups include friendship circles, families, schools, and churches.

In sum then, according to Akers’s social learning theory, “…deviant behavior can be expected to the extent that it has been differentially reinforced over alternative behavior (conforming or other deviant behavior) and is defined as desirable or justified”

Question 63

Observational Learning

Answer 63

Learning that occurs as a function of observing and often imitating behaviour exhibited by other people.

Question 64

Vicarious Conditioning

Answer 64

A form of learning that takes place by observing the environmental consequences of other people’s behaviour, especially reinforcement and punishment.

Question 65

What indirect and direct evidence is there to support Aker’s social learning theory?

Answer 65

Indirect: Studies examining the effectiveness of rehabilitation and treatment programs based on social learning principles. Studies show a significant greater impact on reducing crime.

Direct: Research shows the importance of variables derived from the theory in explaining criminal activity. For example, studies that have directly compared social learning theory to other theories usually show that social learning variables account for a larger proportion of the variance in dependent variables such as delinquency and other deviant behaviour

In addition, a meta-analysis of 140 studies showed consistent support for the theory, while another meta-analysis showed that social learning variables (e.g., antisocial attitudes and peers) were at least as promising as other variables (e.g., Gottfredson and Hirschi’s 1990 construct of self-control) in accounting for variations in criminal involvement. Empirical support for this theory appears to hold across nations and cultures.

Question 66

What are some criticisms of Aker’s Social Learning Theory?

Answer 66

Akers’ social learning theory has often been criticized for not paying enough attention to the temporal sequence of its primary variables, most notably differential peer association and crime. Specifically, rather than delinquent associations causing delinquency, some have argued that it might be the case that delinquency actually causes delinquent associations (causal ordering).

Another common argument is that social learning theory places too much weight on antisocial peer associations while ignoring other potentially important sources of reinforcement for antisocial behaviour. This criticism is fuelled by the fact that peer association is often the only variable studied in many tests of the social learning approach. However, this is somewhat of an unfair criticism. While antisocial peer associations are undoubtedly front and centre in Akers’ theory, other sources of influence are clearly incorporated, most notably the family

Question 67

PIC-R Theory?

Answer 67

Personal, interpersonal, and community-reinforcement theory of crime (PIC–R) developed by Don Andrews (1941–2010) and Jim Bonta, both well-respected Canadian psychologists.

This theory fits within a general personality and social psychological framework and is heavily influenced by a behavioural and cognitive social learning perspective. The theory is a driving force behind much recent research and many offender treatment approaches being implemented worldwide.

The PIC–R is a truly integrated theory of criminal behaviour, using knowledge from both the biological and social sciences to explain crime.

Question 68

What ideas does the PIC-R (personal, interpersonal, community-reinforcement) theory incorporate from other theories/perspectives?

Answer 68

The theory incorporates ideas on the role of socialization in the development of antisocial attitudes, self-control in resisting temptations in the immediate situation, classical and operant conditioning in shaping criminal and non-criminal behaviour, and observational learning, especially in the context of peer groups, as a way of picking up on the many rewards and costs that can be associated with crime.

Question 69

PIC-R Theory - How is it in line with its roots in behavioural psychology?

Answer 69

Behaviour and criminal behaviour is assumed to be under control of both antecedent and consequent events.

Criminal behaviour is thought to be determined both by events (antecedents) that precede the behaviour (such as encouragement by peers to commit crimes = increased likely hood to commit crimes) and by events (consequents) that follow the behaviour (increased statis among peers when committing crimes = more likely to commit more crimes).

Essentially, antecedent and consequent events gain control over one’s behaviour with costs/rewards for different behaviours (operant conditioning - either additive or substractive).

Question 70

PIC-R Theory - How is it in line with its roots in social learning perspectives?

What are the four important sources controlling properties of antecedent and consequent events according to PIC-R model?

Answer 70

The controlling properties of antecedent and consequent events are assumed to be acquired from multiple sources.

1. The Individual: Personally mediated events such as rewarding oneself after evaluating the impact of a criminal act;
2. Other People: Interpersonally mediated events i.e. approval from one’s peer group for exhibiting antisocial behaviour;
3. The Act Itself: Non-mediated events i.e. experiencing the arousal of getting away with a crime; and
4. Other Aspects of the Situation

Question 71

The PIC–R theory also reserves important roles for the major predictors of crime that have been identified through empirical research. What are the major predictors?

Answer 71

-Antisocial Attitudes
-Antisocial Associates
-History of antisocial behaviour
-Having an antisocial personality

For example, antisocial attitudes or, more precisely, the existence of prosocial versus antisocial cognitions, are assumed to determine the direction of personally mediated control and whether personally mediated control favours criminal instead of non-criminal choices.

Question 72

Socio-Economic factors also play a role in the PIC-R theory, though not the same as in traditional criminological theories. How does it differ in PIC-R?

Answer 72

Specifically, in the PIC–R theory, these factors do not directly explain individual differences in criminal conduct, a view supported by numerous meta-analytic studies (Andrews and Bonta 2010). Instead, they act as background contextual conditions, believed to influence behaviour by establishing the fundamental reward and cost contingencies that are in effect within various social settings and communities.

Question 73

What are the supports for the PIC-R theory?

Answer 73

Indirect: Evaluations of offender treatment programs based on its principles – Research shows that programs based on PIC-R are most successful in reducing recidivism .

Because PIC–R theory is based largely on components of other theories, research evidence supporting the value of those theories can also be treated as evidence in support of PIC–R. Thus, consistent support for modern control (Gottfredson and Hirschi 1990) and social learning (Akers 2009) theories of crime clearly provide substantial backing for many aspects of PIC–R theory (e.g., the important roles of socialization, self-control, observational learning, etc.). The very limited role of socio-economic factors in PIC–R theory is also supported by empirical research, despite what many criminological texts say about their role in predicting crime

Question 74

What are some criticisms about the PIC-R theory?

Answer 74

Because PIC–R draws on components from other theories of crime, not only does evidence supporting those theories come into play when evaluating its validity, so do criticisms levelled against those theories. These criticisms have been discussed throughout the chapter and will not be reiterated here.

Criticisms that are more specific to the PIC–R theory of crime include the views that the link between the theory and its principles of effective correctional treatment is arguably weak; the relationship between the risk factors embedded in the theory, most notably antisocial attitudes, antisocial associates, a history of antisocial behaviour, and antisocial personality, is vague; and it is unclear how exactly these various risk factors operate and how they result in specific criminal actions (e.g., sex offences) being exhibited in specific settings