The differential association is a theory developed by Edwin Sutherland in the 20th century. The Differential Association Theory is described as interaction with others; individuals learn the values, attitudes, techniques, and motives for criminal behavior. The differential association theory is the most talked about of the learning theories of deviance. Deviance is the fact or state of departing from usual or accepted standards, especially in social or sexual behavior. According to, Boundless, “The theory explains 51% of the variance of criminal behavior, even considering that no criminal population is used for the test and only minor offenses are measured” (Boundless). The differential association theory is involved with the frequency and intensity of interaction. The longer
This theory explains how individuals learn to become criminals, and doesn’t focus on why they become criminals in the end. Sutherland 's theory of differential association has 9 key points that he focused on: “Criminal behavior is learned. Criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other persons in a process of communication. The principal part of the learning of criminal behavior occurs within intimate personal groups. When criminal behavior is learned, the learning includes (a) techniques of committing the crime, which are sometimes very complicated, sometimes simple; (b) the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes. The specific direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal codes as favorable or unfavorable. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of the
Differential Association Theory The film “Blow” covers many different topics of differential association theories. The attitudes, the values, and the motives for criminal behavior as learned behavior. The film Blow, goes into the start of a young kid name George Jung, his parents want him to have values and live a wonderful life for himself. George is raised with father owning his own business, a stay home mother.
“Animal Kingdom” is a movie about the criminal story of a 17 years old boy call Josh. His mother was died due to heroin overdose, he had no choice but to live with his grandma and the three uncles. The story is about how Josh was influenced by this crime family and to step in an uncontrollable situation. In the movie “Animal Kingdom”, the main character Josh has committed in crime, for example he stole a car, provided false declaration, and shoot dead. The differential association theory and self-control theory will be used to explain Josh criminal behaviors. The differential association theory suggested that criminal behaviors is a process of learning through interaction and communication with others (Sutherland, 1947). The self-control theory
Sutherland’s theory that the conditions which are said to cause crime should be present when crime is present, and they should be absent when crime is absent. Sutherland identified that some types of crime are more dominant in minority communities, many individuals in those communities are law-abiding. Similarly, among the powerful and privileged, some are lawbreakers; some are not. His theory is intended to discriminate at the individual level between those who become lawbreakers and those who do not, whatever their race, class, or ethnic background (Adler, Mueller & Laufer, 2013, p. 124). This theory is depicted in the film, the two brothers, Darrin(Doughboy) and Ricky, are an example of how differential association theory can help to clarify why two boys in the same environments from a social structural perspective can still turn out very differently from a social process perspective. It was shown how Darrin only knew how to “gangbang”, unlike Ricky who got a scholarship for playing football really good and the family support of his mom to pursue it. An example of this is when Ricky opens up to his best friend " I want to be somebody" (Nicolaides & Singleton
Social learning theory was first developed by Robert L. Burgess and Ronald L Akers in 1966 (Social Learning theory, 2016). In 1973, Akers wrote a book entitled Deviant Behaviour: A Social Learning Approach, which discussed Aker’s conception of the social learning theory. He developed social learning theory by extending Sutherland’s theory of differential association (Cochran & Sellers, 2017). Social learning theory is based on the principles of Pavlov’s operant and classical conditioning. Akers believes that crime is like any other social behavior because it is learned through social interaction (Social Learning theory, 2016). Social learning theory states that the probability of an individual committing a crime or engaging in criminal behaviour is increased when they differentially associate with others who commit criminal behavior (Cochran & Sellers, 2017). Social learning theory is classified as a general theory of crime, and has been used to explain many types of criminal behaviour (Social Learning theory, 2016). Furthermore, social learning theory is one of the most tested contemporary theories of crime. There are four fundamental components of social learning theory; differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement and imitation (Social Learning theory,
Sutherland’s theory suggests that people learn to commit crime and deviant behaviors from others. His theory is similar to what is mentioned in the book. An example of this would be how Billy’s friends, who most of them were much older than he, would take him out on Saturdays to Dorchester and they would teach him “the art of snatching items” from convenience stores (155) Laub and Sampson agree with this theory of learning by association. It is important to see the correlation between peers and self and the values they share. Rather than be independent, the “learning offender” adopts the values of his
Secondly, differential association varies based on the intensity, duration, frequency, priority, and timing of one’s process of learning. Through this notion, the individual’s self is disregarded and more emphasis is placed on the extrinsic factors. Furthermore, “it is an individual’s experiences and the ways in which the individual defines those experiences which constitute to the learning of criminality”. (Gongenvare & Dotter, 2007,
In this paper, I am going to going to examine the criminological theory of Differential Association theory by Edwin H. Sutherland. Also I am going to examine Kirk White from the film The Wild and Wonderful World of the Whites of West Virginia. Furthermore, I am going to apply Edwin H. Sutherland’s Differential Association theory to explain and understand the deviant actions of this character. I conclude that Differential association theory will explain why this character act in a deviant why.
Differential association theory best explains the burglary deviance. There are many principles associated with this type of learning theory. Edwin Sutherland’s theory discusses how crime is a learned behavior where one’s family, peers, and environment are of great influence. Differential association theory seeks to prove that criminal behavior is learned and this paper will evaluate the connection between the two.
The study of criminology involves many different theories in which people attempt to explain reasoning behind criminal behavior. Although there are many different theories the focus of this paper is the comparison and contrasting sides of The Differential Association Theory (DAT) of Edwin Sutherland and the Neoclassicism Rational Choice Theory. The Differential Theory falls under Social Process Theories which focuses on sociological perspective of crime. The Rational Choice Theory falls under Neoclassicism which believes that criminal behavior is ultimately a choice.
How to research or ideas fit in with the assigned reading. The study was able to illustrate the dynamics of Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory and Aker’s Social Learning Theory through the simple fact that the study focuses on social behaviors, particularly deviant behaviors that can be the result of society or interactions. These deviant behaviors are typically learned actions as a survival mechanism due to a deteriorating community. Allen and Lo constructed their study from Anderson’s (1999) study of black male behavior within poor neig...
Differential associations vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity. Referring to the contact an individual must have with proponents of criminal behavior; this principle suggests that there is a varying, but direct, relationship that affects how often, for what length of time, how important, and how intense deviant behavior
Sociological pathology uses medical terms to offer explanations for deviant behavior. Terms, such as, biological, psychiatric models, psychoanalytical, and psychological presents deviant behavior as a “social sickness” which needs to treated and through medicine and psychiatric counseling. Biological explanations, usually, views deviant behavior as being an inherited trait. Cesare Lombroso was highly criticized for his studies of atavism, his theory of identifying criminal behavior as a biological degenerate. William Sheldon established an idea of a certain body build would be more prone to deviant or criminal acts. The psychiatric model view deviance as a product of some character flaw within the individual such as personal disorganization or a maladjusted personality. Under the psychiatric model, deviance is a symptom of some psychological sickness that effect individuals unless it is, effectively, detected and treated. Childhood experiences produce effects that transcend s those of all other social and cultural experiences. When these experiences are troubling to the individual it will also manifest itself as deviant behavior. The psychoanalytic explanation of deviance is best explained by Sigmund Freud’s basic conflict between the conscious and unconscious self. Psychoanalytic theory supporters say that deviance occur when the superego cannot effectively balance the id, unconscious and instinctual drives, and the ego, the conscious self. Psychological explanations attribute certain personality traits and behavioral patterns cause deviant acts. Psychologist attempt to explain deviance as products of abnormalities in psychological structures of individual deviants. They believe that inadequacies in personality traits interfere with an individual’s adjustment to society.
...t deviance is a learned behavior like all other social behavior. When there is an excess of definitions favorable to deviance or law violation deviance (or in our case, corporate tax evasion) occurs. Differential Association states that criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other persons in a process of communication and that the principal part of the learning of criminal behavior occurs within intimate personal groups. Undoubtedly there can be a connection drawn from the intimate settings where the decisions to commit tax evasion are made and the above state definition. When a people are in small group setting the person inevitably assimilates into the surrounding culture, in this case tax evasion.
An integrated theory is a combination of 2 or 3 theories that offers many explanations on why crime is occurring, compared to a traditional criminal theory that just focus on one type of aspect (Lilly et al.2010). The purpose of integrated theories is to help explain many aspects into what causes criminal behavior and why one becomes delinquent. From this an argument arises can integrated theories be used to explain all criminal behavior. Integrated theories are successful in explaining certain aspects of crime on what causes one to become deviant; however one theory alone cannot explain why an individual engages in crime. This paper will examine three integrated theories and look in-depth how these theories can explain different aspects on why criminal behavior occurs and the weakness of each theory. The three integrated theories that will be discussed in this paper are Cloward and Ohlin Differential Opportunity theory, Robert Agnew General Strain theory, and lastly Travis Hirschi’s Social Bond theory.
Sociologist Edwin Sutherland first advanced the idea that an individual undergoes the same basic socialization process in learning conforming and deviant acts (Schaefer 2015). Through cultural transmission, criminal or deviant behavior is learned by interacting with others. This learned behavior also includes motives and rationale for explaining the deviant acts. Sutherland used the term differential association to describe the process through which an individual develops an attitude of favorability to deviant acts that leads to violations of rules, through interactions with social groups. These acts can also include noncriminal deviant acts, such as