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More handpicked essays just for you.
Social factors that are related to criminal behaviour
Crime as a social phenomenon
Harsh punishments for bullying
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There is a belief among parents and adults in general that if bullies are ignored they will stop bullying; others think that bullying is an inevitable phase of childhood that will pass (Betiniz, 2006). Some people think that all children must ‘learn to stand up for themselves ' since that’s what is expected in the ‘the real’ world (Betiniz, 2006). Bullying is not a new problem for schools, since it has been present for a long time; however, only in recent years is its importance being recognized (Betiniz, 2006).
Furthermore, bullying has been an indirect and direct caused of certain crimes. Retaliation against a bully is a perfect example to use to explain the social learning theory. Social leraning theory views that everyone
Estevez crime was the process of the social process theory. Estevez was not a bad person according to peers and family, he was labeled as weird and quiet, but no one thought he was capable of killing someone. He was a product of being shaped and influenced by his environment. His mother was a drug-addict and his brother had died from an overdose, which lead him into an even deeper depression (Mongelli et al., 2014). According to the social process theory breakdown, family relations is a major determent of behavior (Siegel, 2015). The information corresponds with the facts provided by Sigel in the book Crimnolgy: The Core; he lacked family relations, and was abused by fellow
Shortly after the 3 p.m. bell rang that faithful day, Timothy, who had been waiting with some friends, spotted Noel coming out of the school. (Mongelli, et al., 2014). The altercation lead to a fight, which ended with Estevez stabbing the victim in the chest and killing him.
Overall, my initial reaction to this crime was sympathy towards the young man being bullied. His family failed him, the school failed him, and even his peers fail him. He was crying out for help, and in the end committed a crime that will always haunt his memories. As outlined in chapter seven, the influences of friendship is very important. He didn’t have any peers who they named as friends, and some even called him a weird loner. A number of researchers argues that detached loners are more likely to commit crimes.
Although his crime maybe seen as self-defense, but maybe if had a stable support system things could have turn out differently. The chapter outlines the social process theory, which argues that crime is a learned behavior. Rather or not that’s true is and probably will always be up for debate. One thing can be said, and that’s sometimes a crime can be prevented if someone
Social behavior responds to a complicated network of rewards and punishments. The more a behavior is rewarded, the more likely it is to continue. On the flip side of this, the more a behavior is met with negative consequences, the more it is likely to stop. In any given social situation, whether someone commits a crime is largely dependent on his past behavior, or whether someone has received a positive reinforcement to a that crime. According to Social Learning Theory, crime is a direct response to this reinforcement. So in other words, if rewards are greater than punishments, the crime will be committed. Social Learning Theory is meant to operate as a general theory of crime.
Individuals who are victims of a crime are more likely to commit a crime or criminal act. The criminal act inflicted upon the individual can be physical, mental, emotional, or verbal attacks. Nevertheless, the individual has fallen victim of a crime, therefore they are more than likely to retaliate. This is known as victim retaliation. The four elements of Hirschi’s social bond contribute greatly to victim retaliation because the victim’s attachment to family and friends who he or she believed would help him has disintegrated. Moreover, the individual’s involvement and commitment in school activities may be the cause of him or her becoming a victim. Through this process of...
High crime rates are an ongoing issue through the United States, however the motivation and the cause of crime has yet to be entirely identified. Ronald Akers would say that criminality is a behavior that is learned based on what an individual sees and observes others doing. When an individual commits a crime, he or she is acting on impulse based on actions that they have seen others engage in. Initially during childhood, individuals learn actions and behavior by watching and listening to others, and out of impulse they mimic the behavior that is observed. Theorist Ronald Akers extended Sutherland’s differential association theory with a modern viewpoint known as the social learning theory. The social learning theory states that individuals commit crime through their association with or exposure to others. According to Akers, people learn how to be offenders based on their observations around them and their association with peers. Theorist Akers states that for one, “people can become involved in crime through imitation—that is by modeling criminal conduct. Second, and most significant, Akers contended that definition and imitation are most instrumental in determining initial forays into crime” (Lilly, Cullen, and Ball 2011:57). Although Akers’ theory has been linked to juvenile delinquency in the past, it has also been tested as a possible cause of crime overall. Individuals learn from observation that criminal behavior is justifiable in certain circumstances. In connection with juvenile delinquency and crime, peers and intimate groups have the most effect on individuals when associated with criminal behavior. One is more likely to mimic the behavior of someone who they have close ties with, whether the behavior is justifiable or...
There are many theories that can be applied to different cases that have occurs in Americas history. The two theories that are choses for this paper are the trait theory and under the trait theory is psychological which is “abnormal personality and psychological traits are the key to determinant of anti-social behavior. There is a link between mental illness, personality disorders and crime (Siegel, 2014). The second theory is the Choice theory which “criminals weigh the cost and benefits and make a conscious, rational choice to commit crime” (Siegel, 2014). This paper will show how a theory can be applied to a person and a crime. Some of the cases that are being presented some will not agree but up us all about the person perspective.
Introduction: Criminology is a scientific approach to the study of crime and why it occurs. Criminologists examine this both on the individual and on the societal level. Meaning, why do individuals commit crime, and how society reacts to those crimes. As we look at the root causes of crime, we begin to notice certain aspects of people’s lives that causes them to offend - like a poor social standing, or perhaps an individual’s peer group who may allow or even support negative influences. We can also try to understand why some individuals choose NOT to offend and live pro-social lives despite negative external influences. These concepts and ideas are known as crime theories. There are many and they are wide-ranging.
The social learning theory extends this by taking into account that we may see other people being rewarded or punished, and adapt our own behaviour accordingly. However, social learning theory and behaviorism does not take into account that people have thoughts. It assumes that we have no free will over what we do and only respond according to what we have previously been exposed to. It also concerns itself solely with observable behaviors. Social learning theory can therefore be improved by attempting to explain where our thoughts come from, and how they affect our
The topic presented is somewhat complex to analyze given the information provided, we can make a large amount of inferences as to what was the catalyst for the bully to react in such a way. I’m going to add that the bully did this because he was largely disliked because of his unpleasant personality, also he wanted the book bag because he comes from a poor, unloving family who did not have the financial means to purchase a book bag. With this information added it allows clarity when assigning sociological perspectives to the teacher, and the principal. The teacher would be approaching this situation from a structural functionalist perspective, while the principal is approaching the situation with a social conflict perspective. They both have unique experiences that have brought them to these perspectives, neither of them are wrong because their past interactions became the foundation of their personal belief system.
The approach theorizes that society is constructed of all of the everyday interactions between individuals (Macionis. 2015). Therefore, what an individual constantly learns from others, how they communicate with people, and respond to everything around them, is what makes up society. When studying crime and why it occurs, Symbolic Interaction states that criminal or deviant behavior is typically learned from the people and events around them (Macionis. 2015). It is important to note that this theory is mostly applied to less severe and moderate crimes such as drug use, theft, burglary, etc. rather than extreme violent crimes, such as
The social learning theory is known as the learning theory, which was advanced by Edwin Sutherland in 1939 he was the one who discovered criminality is learned through a process of differential association. Social learning theory is a behavior that is learned in much the same way and that such learning that people are not born criminals. Pattern and behavior of crime are learned from others who commit crimes or from the individual environment. The interactionist theory states each person has the power to break the law. No one person is born with criminal intent, criminal behaviors is through thought interactions and with socialization especially within a group.
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 a CNN study by Chuck Hadad he states “That bullying is pervasive even though the schools have anti-bullying programs from kindergarten through 12th grade, assemblies throughout the year, and a peer-to-peer program where older students talk to younger students about the dangers of bullying” (Hadad). Robert Faris, a sociologist found that bullies and victims are generally the same person. Whe...
Crime is an in inevitable occurrence in today 's culture. Despite the best efforts of our country 's criminal justice system, crime continues to be on the rise. In an effort to reverse this rising tide, efforts are being made to understand the underlying cause of crime and factors that can lead an individual into the life of crime. From the sociological perspective, there are three theories that are used to explain the cause of crime. They are the social structure theory, the bad neighborhood theory, and the social process theory.
The article, “Bullies and Their Victims”, by Berk (2010) gives an analysis of how bullies and their victims develop, what makes them persistent and how they and their victims can be assisted. Bullying is an activity that thrives mostly in a school setting because of peers and the various cultures and diversities among them. Interactions are inevitable among children, but bullying is destructive because it aims at peer victimisation. Both boys and girls have the ability to become bullies but the majority of them are boys who use physical and verbal attacks on their victims. In the more recent generations, the means of bullying is amplified in the adolescent stage by using electronic means like cyber bullying. Students will rarely like bullies but if they do, it is because of their leadership abilities or influential personalities. Their peers may join or stand by to watch as the victims are bullied.
In recent times bullying has become a national issue, notwithstanding the fact that it has been in existence for many years. Traditionally, bullying has been seen as horseplay, but with the increase of harassment in schools and suicides; parents and schools are now forced to take action to prevent bullying in schools. Bullying is an unwanted, aggressive behavior that involves a real or perceived power imbalance which has the potential to be repeated over time. Strategies to prevent bullying in schools are grouped into identifying the causes of bullying, creating policies and rules, building a safe environment and educating students and staff.
Bullying is something that is not something new and is actually something that society continues to face. Over the years, bullying has been looked at as being so ordinary in schools that it is continuously overlooked as an emanate threat to students and has been lowered to a belief that bullying is a part of the developmental stage that most young children will experience then overcome (Allebeck, 2005, p. 129). Not everyone gets over the extreme hurt that can come as an effect from bullying, for both the bully and the victim. Because of this, we now see bullying affecting places such as the workplace, social events and even the home. The issue of bullying is not only experienced in schools, but the school environment is one of the best places