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Psychological causes of criminal behavior
Psychological causes of criminal behavior
Psychological causes of criminal behavior
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“Once a criminal, always a criminal.” This is a common saying and turn out to be true most of the times. Usually, the criminal attitude gets developed at early ages because of unfavourable social situations to which a youth gets exposed to, either intentionally or unintentionally. Later on negligence of law becomes personality attribute that leads to delinquent behaviours.
“Minor crime that is especially committed by youth is called delinquency. Sociologists, psychologists and philosophers have presented different theories while trying extensively to find out the deep-rooted reasons behind delinquent behaviours, which are becoming more serious and frequent with the passage of time.
Joe Smith Case Study in the light of Individual Level and Sociological Theories
Considering Joe’s Smith family, social circle and educational background, crimes committed by Joe did not seem to be accidental events as he had described them. Certainly he had led unusual life with so many troublesome social
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Joe spent a good part of his life in the eastern suburb of Austin, which is known for widespread criminal activities and a great deal of poverty. Drug dealing was common there and Joe, being ignored by his family and school fellows, found this as an easy escape. According to Social Disorganization theory, urban growth has created social disorganization that is usually evident in overcrowding, substandard residency, unemployment and so many family problems. Such factors led Joe to develop personality traits like toughness, street smartness and excitement, which are the focus of cultural deviance theory. Being raised in the environment of troubles and interacting with tough people, he wasn’t hesitant of getting involved in unlawful situations anymore. Joe actually found excitement in such activities and in showing off his physical strength through fighting
The study of Juvenile delinquency and the theories pertaining to it are vital for several reasons. In order to more effectively engage with youths and foster positive behavior and schemas, the individuals must first be understood. The study of theory provides a means of understanding adolescents and the factors that lead to or detract from delinquent behavior. In the case of juvenile delinquent, Jordan Brown, theory helps to provide insight into why an eleven-year-old boy murdered his stepmother.
Naiveté and lambs are two common symbolic representations of children. However, these ‘pure’ children can also be some of the most ruthless and disturbed beings on the planet. Juvenile delinquents are the small percent of children who act on their violent urges. Juvenile delinquents are minors that are “guilty of antisocial or criminal behavior” (Houghton Mifflin Company 951). All juveniles who commit these atrocious acts have some discrepant factor whether it is genetic or environmental, that has affected them, and in turn caused them to be psychologically disturbed. A wide variety of crimes can be committed by a juvenile. Anything an adult has the capability of doing, a child can also. However, reasons why they commit these crimes have a great variation, ranging from personal to economical reasonings. Hope of rehabilitation for the juvenile never ceases, because there are many treatment options that are available and can be utilized to help. Juveniles can be treated with different types of therapy, surgery, prescription medicine, and treatment programs. Despite the contributing factors of juvenile delinquency, family background and structure, along with the influence of peer pressure are the two most significant in determining the success of the juvenile.
This paper looks at the different theories of criminal behavior that explain why people commit crimes. It goes deeper to analyze the specific theories in a bid to determine why a person may commit a certain crime and another person under the same circumstances may not. The paper focuses on key factors that motivate unruly behavior among people and why such factors are present in some people and not in others. In doing so, the paper leans more on children in order to determine how delinquency behavior is progressively imparted on them as they undergo developmental trajectory.
“Our youths now love luxury, they have bad manners, they have disrespect for authority, disrespect for older people…” Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates acknowledges the escalation of delinquency among youth in the early age’s .The rise of young offenders furthers the Canadian government to record juvenile offenders, in addition, devise an act to better control the epidemic of young delinquents. The topic of proposal is the effectiveness of the youth justice system in its response to crime. Firstly, in order to determine the effectiveness of the youth justice system, one must grasp the premise that is a delinquency, in particular a young delinquents.
Thompson, W. E. and Bynum J. E. (2010). Juvenile Delinquency: A sociological Approach Eighth Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
A problem many communities are faced with is delinquency and gangs. Delinquency and gangs begin to pull in the similarities and focus more on the meaning connected to youth violence from the past to the present. Based on this context, individuals have an understanding the different ways delinquent juveniles are affected by certain policies. Delinquent youth come in many different age groups, sex, ethic group, and race, while society may look at delinquency as starting out as soon as children enter grade school delinquency starts when a child can fully comprehend there wrong doing.
The main aim of this essay is to describe two general theories of offending and then consider the extent to which they explain youth offending. This essay will firstly outline the context of the labelling theory then go on to discuss the way in which a label becomes a person’s master status in life. The essay will then compare the differences with primary and secondary deviance and define the term self fulfilling prophecy. The second stage of the essay will describe the learning theory, explaining the background including all the terms, classical conditioning, operant conditioning and social learning theory. Furthermore, it will then go on to explore the research and describe the extent to which both theories explain youth offending. Finally, the essay will compare and contrast the two theories and evaluate any of the assets or implications.
Onwediwe, I. (2004). “Theoretical Perspectives on Juvenile Delinquency: Root Causes and Control.” ProQuest Criminal Justice, 66, 153-156.
Some of the explanations of delinquency insinuates that education, politics, social factors, family issues among others are the main causes of delinquency (Rutter, 2013).Just as these were some of the factors in “There Are No Children Here”. In addition, criminal investigators formulated several theories which explain causes of delinquency. Among them are social factors which are explained through several theories which include Social Reaction Theory also referred to as Labeling theory and Power control
In today’s society, one will find that there are many different factors that go into the development of a criminal mind, and it is impossible to single out one particular cause of criminal behavior. Criminal behavior often stems from both biological and environmental factors. In many cases criminals share similar physical traits which the general population do not usually have. For example criminals have smaller brains than properly adjusted individuals. However biological reasons cannot solely be the cause of criminal behavior. Therefore, one must look to other sources as to how a criminal mind is developed. Social and environmental factors also are at fault for developing a person to the point at which they are lead to committing a criminal act. Often, someone who has committed a violent crime shows evidence of a poorly developed childhood, or the unsuitable current conditions in which the subject lives. In addition if one studies victimology which is the role that the victim plays in the crime, it is apparent that there are many different causes for criminal behavior. Through the examination of biological factors, in addition to the social and environmental factors which make up a criminal mind, one can conclude that a criminal often is born with traits common to those of criminals, it is the environment that exist around them that brings out the criminal within them to commit indecent acts of crime.
In the last century, juvenile delinquency has been on the rise, because of poverty and the poor conditions youth are forced to live in. These conditions have contributed to a feeling of hopelessness for them. Many of the schools in poor neighborhoods,
Moreover, Cesare Lombroso, an Italian criminologist rejected that crime was a characteristic of human nature; instead he believed that criminality is inherit. From this conviction, he developed a theory of deviance that a person’s bodily constitution reveals whether an individual is born criminal or not. Crucially, “these born criminals are a throwback to an earlier stage of human evolution with the physical makeup, mental capabilities, and instincts of primitive man” (Ashley Crossman, A.C., 2014, Biological Explanations Of Deviant Behavior).
Nobody is born to be criminals or to be repeat offenders. In fact, our society and our surroundings impact and shape our behavior. According to the US Legal (2016), “a repeat offender is a person who has already been convicted of a crime, and who has been caught again for committing the crime and breaking the law for which he had been prosecuted earlier.” The majority of the time the crime is the same, but there are some cases where repeat offenders, over time, pick up other types of crimes (Anderson, 2016). There are some theories that sociologist and criminologist use to explain why these type of behavior are seen in repeat offenders and what is it that triggers them to re-commit a crime for which they have been convicted for.
Criminals are born not made is the discussion of this essay, it will explore the theories that attempt to explain criminal behaviour. Psychologists have come up with various theories and reasons as to why individuals commit crimes. These theories represent part of the classic psychological debate, nature versus nurture. Are individuals predisposed to becoming a criminal or are they made through their environment.
Juvenile delinquency is one of the major social issues in the United States today. Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is when “a violation of the law committed by a juvenile and not punishable by death or life imprisonment” (Merriam-webster.com). Although we have one justice system in America, the juvenile system differs from the adult juvenile system. Most juvenile delinquents range from as low as the age of seven to the age of seventeen. Once the delinquent or anyone turns the age of eighteen, they are considered an adult. Therefore, they are tried as an adult, in the justice system. There are many different reasons why a child would commit crime, such as mental and physical factors, home conditions, neighborhood environment and school conditions. In addition, there are a variety of effects that juvenile justice systems can either bad effects or good effects. Finally there are many different solutions that can reduce juvenile delinquency. As a result, juvenile delinquency is a major issue and the likeliness of it can be reduced. In order to reduce juvenile delinquency there has to be an understanding of the causes and the effects.