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Essays about criminology
How theories inform criminological research
Nature and extent of criminology
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We can see from our reading and research for this week that integrated theory is an attempt to by researchers of criminology and criminal behavior of individuals in society (Schmalleger, 2012). This meaning that researchers evaluate groups of research theories to assess their connection between each of them and how these relationships can provide strong analysis to support the ideas of these theories (Jeffery, 1959). When looking at the holistic theory of crime, we see that the research is not integrated with other research and can stand on its own by the evidence that it has produced from the data collected within the theory.
For me, I think that holistic theory of crime is the stronger of the two types of methods because of its ability
Akers, R, & Sellers, C. (2009). Criminological theories: introduction, evaluation, and application. New York: Oxford University Press, USA.
The field of criminology has produced multiple theories, each that shaped the perception of how crimes occur in a neighborhood and by viewing these various impressions this can help explain why crimes occur. However, four criminological theories have developed the different perspectives of researchers and outlooks of the field. These approaches have enhanced society by allowing it to analyze crime by establishing an empirical foundation that way to assess which approach is most useful and regulate the difference between a good theory and a bad theory. Every method experiences level of criticisms from either researchers or public policies, however, the focus is only based on four principles that way there can be an assessment to decide which approach is viewed as right or wrong. In order, to determine which approach can be considered a good theory versus a bad theory there needs to be essential elements that give support for each theory. There needs to be criticism, however, with enough empirical evidence that can determine which
Winslow, R. W., & Zhang, S. (2008). Contemporary Theories of Crime. Criminology: a global perspective (). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
The UCR data, although it is useful in the sense that it provides a small picture of the large amounts of crime that go unreported in any given city, this crime is undetectable because of a reluctance from victims to report crime. The most important factors which limit our understanding of crime are the dark figure of crime and the crime funnel. The former being the numerical value that represents the discrepancy between crime, which is reported, and crime which is committed (actual crime). The latter is an actual diagram which represents that the total amount of crime may be quite high, but the amount of crime that is detected, reported, prosecuted and punished decreases in proportion respectively. The UCR does not include victimless crime, so even though prostitution is considered a crime, it isn 't reported in the UCR since there is a victim involved. Another limitation of the UCR is that when an offender commits multiple crimes, only the most severe crime is recorded, causing further discrepancies in the UCR data.
There are different studies of the causes of delinquency and crime, a good theory is to provide an opening lens through interpreting and understanding when a manifestation of behavior is present. Theoretical integration generally involves borrowing theoretical constructs from competing theories and combining them into a single theory. It is a well-established sociological fact that individuals behave differently in the presence of certain people than in the absence of these same people. For instance, a man behaves differently when his wife is in the room than when she is absent; a worker behaves differently in the presence of the boss, and so forth. The reason is obvious; certain behaviors are reinforced or punished in the presence of a given
Theories and research aspects are important aspects of life. Starting with research, research is an important aspect as it incorporates methodologies that one can use to study a topic and come up with profound findings on the study topic. Theories, on the other hand, explains some phenomena or mystical happenings in the environments. In the field of criminal justices, theories and research techniques are vital they help one to come up with findings on causes of crime and drive patterns from several behavioral sequences that help in crime management (Daly, 2011). The paper relates theory and research and shows their application from a criminal justice perspective.
In criminology, examining why people commit crime is critical in the ongoing debate of how crime should be handled and prevented. Biological, sociological and psychological theories of delinquency each have evidence to support their respective beliefs. Over the past century, the approach has tended to emphasize more the belief that offenders differ from non-offenders in some physiological way (Conklin, 1998, p. 146). This approach has offered a number of different explanations of delinquency, ranging from glandular malfunctions to learning disabilities, to racial heritage, to nutrition. Explanations for biological theories have gained credibility and there is a belief that biological and sociological theory may be partners in explaining crime
There are many different theories about different causes of criminal behavior. In the first section of my paper I will discuss the Behavioral Learning Theory (BLT), the Social Learning Theory (SLT), and the Differential Association Theory (DAT) which all support the idea that criminal behavior can in fact be learned. I will identify some of the people that have contributed to these theories and give examples of some of their work. Finally, I will give examples of how these theories are of use to criminologists and scholars in today’s society.
In order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the criminal behavior theories, the word theory needs to be defined. “A theory is an explanation. It tells why or how things are related to each other. A theory of crime explains why or how a certain thing or certain things are related to criminal behavior.” (Bohn and Vogel)
Form the research carried out, it is evident that there is no single theory which can adequately provide all the explanations in relation to crime since a crime patterns entail several phenomena. It is important to note that much as criminological theories attempt to explain the causes of criminal behavior, other measures that are not necessarily theoretical, can be employed in order to fight and reduce crime rates. On the same note, further research has to be carried out so that crime rates can be further reduced.
Criminology has evolved over history into becoming a discipline all its own, along the way it grew and developed from a multiple sources of disciplines to become an integration of various theories. Reasons that seek to explain crime and deviant behaviors has mirrored the time in which research was being conducted and as time continues to change it is to be expected more theories will arise to incorporate past theories to become ever more inclusive. It is important to understand this development from the formulation of theories, the evolution of, the determining factors in testing, particular process such as social learning that are upheld as strong empirically sound theories in order for scholars to continue to advance further studies. But it is unlikely crime will ever be solved completely, for in some instances it is a necessary evil, yet it can be hoped that with the knowledge obtained thus far and that to be discovered crime and deviance might be reduced, prevented and controlled in the future to come.
classical, sociological, socio-psychological, and psychological (Williams & McShane, 2010). The theory in which I believe is micro theories. I believe that individuals commit criminal acts mainly because of society and the environment in which the individual resides and/or spend most of their time. In my opinion, I believe that a quantitative approach to researching crimes and the causation of crimes is one of the best methods in finding facts about specific criminals and the crimes that they commit. The quantitative research method helps to gather information that is close to accurate with measurements, is reliable, and gives a closer look at the relationship of statistics (Williams & McShane, 2010). Criminological theory is becoming more important than ever due to the rise in new crimes, which calls for more research.
Lilly, Robert J, Francis T Cullen and Richard A Ball. Criminological Theory: Context and Consequences. SAGE, 2010.
Criminologists apply the scientific method, which entails that methods of research must be based on testable empirical evidence, to explaining criminal behaviour. Criminology emerged as a discipline in the mid-18th century, with classical theorists such as Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794), analysing criminality based on an assumption of human free will. The positivist school arose in the 19th century. Positivist theorists, such as Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909), presume that criminality is scientifically testable and is caused by internal or external factors out-with the control of the individual. The Chicago school aimed to apply sociological theories of crime to an urban laboratory (city environment). Criminologists aim to isolate and identify the causes of criminal behaviour, in order to explain human criminality and in turn develop measures of crime prevention. A problem lies in the central nature v. nurture question – is criminality biologically inherited or is it learned from the environment? Separating these nature-nurture factors is extremely difficult because children are a product of both. Instead, many criminological theorists offer conflicting theories which aim to investigate the influence of different factors on the development of criminality.
In the science of criminology there are an abundance of theories, or perspectives to make sense and achieve comprehension as to why criminals’ exhibit felonious behaviors. Two of these theories include: classical perspective and positivist perspective. Classical perspective ascertains that people think before they proceed with criminal actions. For example when one commits a crime, it is because the individual decided that it was advantageous to commit that crime. In contrast to the classical perspective, positivist perspective rejects the idea that each individual makes a conscious, rational choice to commit a crime; rather, some individuals are anomalous in intelligence, social acceptance, or some other way, and that causes them to commit crimes. There are several variables evident in discerning classical perspectives from positivist perspectives: the time period in which the theories were constructed, psychological motivations versus physiological motivations, and their ideas of lawful reprimand.