To begin with, there are several theories and perspectives that can explain the causation of crime. Each perspective has its own opinion about why people commit crimes. It analyzes three different perspectives which are social, biological and classical. Let’s take a look at all three and determine which perspective would be best fitted with the two types of sentencing models which are called determinate and indeterminate. First, the indeterminate model is “a prison sentence that consists of a range of years” ("Indeterminate Sentence | Nolo 's Free Dictionary of Law Terms and Legal Definitions," n.d.). It can consist of a term of five to ten years, but the criminal may be eligible for parole. The purpose behind this model is to see if the criminal can be rehabilitated and let back out into the world. The determinate model is a prison sentence that is not subject to change. Once a criminal is sentenced to a determinate term, he or she will do every day determined by the judge without the possibility of getting out early or getting paroled. …show more content…
Some researchers feel that criminal trait stems from early childhood and if it can be detected early, then it may be possible to prevent someone from committing crimes as adults. As technology and medicine continues to grow, researchers feel criminals can be diagnosed and treated prior to ever becoming a criminal. The trait perspective focuses on detection through probes, psychosocial evaluations, and education intervention. One of the sentencing model I feel would be more effective for the trait perspective is the indeterminate
There are many views on crime and deviance and many theories to why they occur.
The central element of calculation involves a cost benefit analysis: Pleasure versus Pain, (5) Choice, with all other conditions equal, will be directed towards the maximization of individual pleasure, (6) Choice can be controlled through the perception and understanding of the potential pain or punishment that will follow an act judged to be in violation of the social good, the social contract, (7) The state is responsible for maintaining order and preserving the common good through a system of laws (this system is the embodiment of the social contract), (8) The Swiftness, Severity, and Certainty of punishment are the key elements in understanding a law's ability to control human behavior. Classical theory, however, dominated thinking about deviance for only a short time. Positivist research on the external (social, psychological, and biological) "causes" of crime focused attention on the factors that... ... middle of paper ... ...
For decades, judges in the United States have utilized indeterminate sentencing. Schmalleger defines indeterminate sentences as “a relatively unspecific term of incarceration stated as a minimum and maximum amount of tie to be served” (Schmalleger p. 467). Indeterminate sentences are given in ranges such as two to five years or twenty-five year maximum. The offender will serve no less than the minimum allotted time but will be released once they have reached the maximum time of their sentence. In this case, the offender will serve at least two years in prison but are to be released once they have reached after serving five years.
Crime causation is looking at why people commit crimes. There are many theories that have been developed to explain this. The theories can be grouped into eight general categories of which one is the Classical theory (Schmallegar, 2011, p. 79). A subset of this theory, rational choice theory, will be specifically looked at to explain the crime of burglary. Just as no one causation theory explains all crimes committed, the rational choice theory itself does not completely explain why all burglars commit their crimes. Therefore, the pros and cons of the rational choice theory will be discussed in relation to the crime topic of burglary.
People are uniquely different and because of this reason, they do have different behaviors. Crime is one kind of behavior that an individual can engage in. They are punishable by the law and may be prosecuted by the state (Helfgott, 2008). There are different theories existing that try to explain the actions of criminals. They deeply explain what causes an individual to commit a criminal activity. This paper discusses some examples of the biological theories, social theories and psychological theories of crime.
Trait theory views criminality as a product of abnormal biological or psychological traits. It is based on a mix between biological factors and environmental factors. Certain traits alone cannot determine criminality. We are born with certain traits and these traits along with certain environmental factors can cause criminality (Siegel, 2013). According to (Siegel, 2013), the study of sociobiology sparked interest in biological or genetic makeup as an explanation for crime and delinquency. The thought is that biological or genetic makeup controls human behavior, and if this is true, then it should also be responsible for determining whether a person chooses crime or conventional behavior. This theory is referred to as trait theory (Siegel, 2013). According to Siegel (2013), due to the fact that offenders are different, one cannot pinpoint causality to crime to just a single biological or psychological attribute. Trait theorist looks at personal traits like intelligence, personality, and chemical and genetic makeup; and environmental factors, such as family life, educational attainment, economic factors, and neighborhood conditions (Siegel, 2013). There are the Biosocial Trait theories an...
Multiple theories are competing with each other to solve the same puzzle of understanding why people commit crime. General strain theory states that crime is caused by individuals experiencing strain and coping with this by committing crimes (Agnew, 1992). Self-control theory argues that an individual 's level of self-control will stop a person from committing crime. These two theories are in conflict of explaining why people cause crime, self-control theory states that people are inherently capable of crime because people avoid pain and seek pleasure (Gottfredson, & Hirschi,
My theory of why people commit crimes stems from, personal choice, a poor low-income environment, and lack of education.
These laws limit the discretion of the judge in regards to the length of sentencing. Other changes that greatly affect the prison population are due to the shift to determinate sentencing versus indeterminate sentencing. Determinate sentencing and truth-in-sentencing laws drop the release rate in prisons were indeterminate sentencing allowed inmates to serve minimum sentences, minus jail time and “good time”, with the chance of parole. Many inmates, with the use of indeterminate sentencing, were even released at their first appearance before the parole board (American Corrections,
What are theories of crime? Why are they important? In this paper, will discuss two crime theories. Social learning theory and the labeling theory. We will compare both crime theories. It will also explain how these theories are related to specific crimes. The two theories discussed will also explain the policy implications. Finally, we will address what types of programs can be created to mitigate specific crimes related to the causation theories.
Indeterminate sentencing involves the judge handing down the sentence, specifying what the maximum and the minimum sentence is. However, the actual length of time served is determined by the parole board. Determinate sentencing involves prisoners being released early for good behavior. In other words, these inmates are given credits for good behavior or for participation in projects, experiments or educational programs (Schmalleger & Smykla, 2011). The credits, in turn, reduce the sentencing.
Deterrence theory of crime is a method in which punishment is used to dissuade people from committing crimes. There are two types of deterrence: general and specific. General deterrence is punishment to an individual to stop the society as a whole from committing crimes. In other word, it is using the punishment as an example to “scare” society from precipitating in criminal acts. Under general deterrence, publicity is a major part of deterrence. Crime and their punishments being showing in the media or being told person to person can be used to deter crime. Specific deterrence is punishment to the individual to stop that individual from committing other crimes in the future. This type of deterrence is used to teach the individual a lesson whatever action that participated in. Specific deterrence is founded on a principle called hedonistic calculus meaning, “an assumption that human nature leads people to pursue pleasure and avoid pain” (Brown, Esbensen, & Geis, 2010, p 155).
One sentence that is handed down is the indeterminate sentence. This sentence permits early release from a correctional institution after the offender has served a required minimum portion of his or her sentence ("Indeterminate vs Determinate Prison Sentences Explained | Criminal Law", n.d.). This may be a good type of sentence for someone that may be a first time offender or maybe one that the judge may feel has a good chance at being rehabilitated. One problem with...
Theory is an important part of discovering and understanding why people commit crime. It is difficult to understand how a prejudice or bias towards someone can be linked to criminal behavior. The general theory of crime coined by Travis Hirschi and Michael Gottfredson can be applied to hate crime. The general theory of crime explains that people are born pre-disposed to crime and that they have natural tendencies to commit crime (Tibbetts, 2015, p 161). The only difference between those who are criminals and non-criminals would be their self-control (Tibbetts, 2015, p 161). Self-control is a key component to the general theory of crime. Not everyone acts on his or her thoughts of someone criminally, or even at all. The difference between people who do not choose to commit crime, would be their difference in self-control. People who commit crime have low self-control, and people who are law-abiding citizens have high self-control.
Different schools of thought propose varying theoretical models of criminality. It is agreeable that criminal behaviour is deep rooted in societies and screams for attention. Biological, Social ecological and psychological model theories are key to helping researchers gain deeper comprehension of criminal behaviour and ways to avert them before they become a menace to society. All these theories put forward a multitude of factors on the outlooks on crime. All these theories have valid relevancy to continuous research on criminal behaviour.