III.

THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION

Introduction to Criminological Theory
Several theories attempt to explain criminal behavior. Some theories assume:
• Crime is part of human nature.
• Crime is based on biological, psychological, sociological, and/or economic
aspects.
Theories - is an assumption (or set of assumptions) that attempt to explain why or how things are
related to each other.
Criminological theory - is the explanation of criminal behavior, as well as the behavior of police,
attorneys, prosecutors, judges, correctional personnel, victims, and other actors in the criminal
justice system.

CRITICAL THINKING
What is a theory? Why is it important to understand the various theories of criminal behavior?

THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION

1. DEMONOLOGICAL THEORY
⮚ Individual were thought to be possessed by good or evil spirits which caused good
or evil behavior.
⮚ During these times, guilt or innocence depends upon the survival or non- survival to an ordeal.

2. CLASSICAL THEORY
⮚ Crime is caused by the individuals free will.
⮚ Human beings are rational and make decisions freely and with understanding of consequences of the
act.
⮚Crime is an immoral form of human behaviour, such behaviour weakens society.
⮚Punishment is a necessary evil sometimes intended to deter criminals and serve as an example
to those who would violate the law.
⮚Crime prevention is possible through swift and certain punishment that counters possible gains
from criminal behaviour.
⮚More prisons and stiffer criminal laws with greater penalties for offenders are the best solutions
to crime.
⮚A school of thought based upon utilitarian notions of free will and the greatest good for the
greatest number.
⮚The decision to commit a crime is a rational decision, and is best countered through a deterrence-
based system.

KNOWN PERSONALITY IN CLASSICAL THEORY

1. Cesare Beccaria wrote An Essay on Crimes and Punishments.
⮚He argued that the only justified rationale for laws and punishments was the principle of
utility.
⮚The principle that a policy should provide “the greatest happiness shared by the greatest
number.”
⮚Beccaria believed the basis of society, as well as the origin of punishments and the right to
punish, is the social contract.
⮚The only legitimate purpose of punishment is special deterrence and general deterrence.
 Social contract - an imaginary agreement to sacrifice the minimum amount of liberty
to prevent anarchy and chaos.
Special deterrence - the prevention of individuals from committing crime again by
punishing them.
General deterrence - the prevention of people in general or society at large from
engaging in crime by punishing specific individuals and making examples of them.

⮚Beccaria is remembered today as a father of the classical criminal theory.

⮚Beccaria believed the best way to prevent and deter crime was to:
⮚Enact laws that are clear, simple, and unbiased, and that reflect the consensus of the
population.
⮚Educate the public.
⮚Eliminate corruption from the administration of justice.
⮚Reward virtue.

The main real-world drawbacks of Beccaria’s theory are:

⮚Not all offenders are alike—juveniles are treated the same as adults.
⮚Similar crimes are not always as similar as they might appear—first-time offenders are
treated the same as repeat offenders.

2. Jeremy Bentham
⮚ Opposed and condemn to death penalty. Founder of modern utilitarianism.
⮚ Bentham described “utility” as the sum of all pleasure that results from an action.

Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that states that the best action is the one that
maximizes utility in various ways.
⮚ He advocate economic freedom, separation of church and state, freedom of
expression, equal rights for women and divorce.

3. NEO-CLASSICAL THEORY
⮚ A modification of classical theory in which it was conceded that certain factors, such as insanity,
might inhibit the exercise of free will.

Neoclassical theory introduced the idea of:

⮚ Premeditation as a measure of the degree of free will.
⮚ Mitigating circumstances is a legitimate grounds for diminished responsibility.
⮚ Minors and lunatics should be exempt from liability.
⮚ Innocence must be presumed until proved guilty.
⮚ People have a right to reasonable bail and trial by jury.
⮚ People must be protected from actions that would kill them, take their liberty and violate
their privacy. In short rights of the accused must be recognized.

4. POSITIVIST SCHOOL OF THOUGHT

⮚ “Positivism” refers to a method of analysis based on the collection of observable scientific facts.
⮚ Is also called the Italian School of Thought because of its composition which are most likely
Italians.
⮚ These theorists focused on biological, psychological and sociological causation of crime.
⮚ Crimes committed due to uncontrollable internal or external factors that can be measured
and observed.
⮚ Positivism is the search for other multiple factors as the causes of criminal behaviour.
⮚ They agreed that in the study of crimesemphasis should be on scientific treatment of
criminal rather than penalties after conviction.
⮚ To them crime is a natural phenomenon which cannot be treated by punishment but by
rehabilitation of criminals.
⮚ Physical or mental defects has something to do with crimes.

KNOWN POSITIVIST
1. CESARE LOMBROSO
⮚ Considered the FATHER OF MODERN CRIMINOLOGY due to his application of modern
scientific methods to trace criminal behavior, however, most of his ideas are now discredited.
⮚ He studied “Characterology” or the relation between mental and physical characteristic of
person.
⮚ He claimed that criminals are distinguishable from non-criminals due to atavistic
stigmata (Atavistic anomalies) the physical features of creatures at an earlier stage of
development.
⮚ According to his theory, criminals are usually in possession of huge jaws and strong canine
teeth, the arm span of criminals is often greater than their height, just like that of apes who
use their forearms to push themselves along the ground.

CLASSIFICATION OFCRIMINALS BY LOMBROSO

1. Born Criminals – Those that have distinctive physical characteristics.
2. Insane Criminal – Refer to those that has abnormal mental state.
3. Criminaloid – One who commits crime due to less self control.
4. The Occasional Criminal – those who commit crime due to insignificant reasons that
pushed them to do on a given situation.
5. Pseudo-criminal – one who kill in self defense.
6. Criminal by Passion – Individuals who are easily influenced by great emotions.

KNOWN POSITIVIST
2. ENRICO FERRI – He worked on the social and economic factors to crimes.
⮚ He advocates crime prevention method rather than punishment.
⮚ He formulates the concept of “social defense” as justification of punishment.

CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMINALS BY FERRI

1. Born/Instinctive Criminals – Those who carries from birth by unfortunate heredity
a reduced resistance to criminal stimuli.
2. Insane Criminal – Refer to those that has abnormal mental state.
3. Passionate criminal who in two varieties, the criminal through passion (a prolonged
and chronic mental state) or through emotion (explosive and unexpected mental state)
due to congenital tendencies.
4. Occasional who constitutes majority of the law breaker and is the product of family
and social milieu.

3. RAFAELE GAROFALO – He traced the roots of criminal behaviour to psychological

equivalents which he called “moral anomalies”.
 ⮚ He believed that the true criminal is abnormal and lacks proper developmentof the altruistic
sensibilities.
⮚ He believed that this moral anomaly was heriditarily transmissible and established by
unimpeachable evidence.
⮚ He stress the importance of sound family environment and religious instruction for children
as crime prevention measure.

CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMINALS BY GAROFALO

1. Murderers – those who are satisfied from vengeance/revenge.
2. Violent – those who commit very serious crimes.
3. Deficient – those who commit crimes against property.
4. Lascivious – who commit crimes against chastity.

4. MODERN CLINICAL SCHOOL

⮚ It studies the criminal rather than the crime.
⮚ It studied the conditioning circumstances that explains his criminality and in order to obtain light
upon problem of how he should be handled.

PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION

PSYCHOANALYTIC/PSYCHO- DYNAMIC THEORIES
⮚ Psychoanalytic theories of crime causation are associated with the work of Sigmund
Freud who believed that people who had unresolved deep-seated problems were psychopaths.
⮚ Psychopaths are characterized by no sense of guilt, no subjective conscience,and no sense
of right and wrong.
⮚ They cannot empathize with other people. They are also called sociopaths or antisocial
personalities.
⮚ Crime is caused by symptomatic deepseated problems and psychotherapy or psychoanalysis
is necessary in order to resolve the symptoms associated with the problems.
⮚ Freud believed that mind is divided in two parts, the conscious and the unconscious one.
⮚ The conscious mind includes everything that we are aware of where we can talk and
think about rationally.
⮚ The unconscious mind is a reservoir of unacceptable, unpleasant or undesirable experiences.
⮚ Freud believed that unconscious continues to influence our behavior though we are
unaware.

ELEMENTS OF PERSONALITY ACCORDING TO FREUD

1. The ID – Is the only component of personality that is present from birth. It is unconscious,
instinctive and primitive behaviour. It is driven by pleasure principle.
2. Ego – Is responsible in dealing with reality to satisfy the need of the ID in acceptable manner.
3. Super Ego – This holds our internalized moral standards. It acts to perfect and civilized our
behavior.
⮚ It works to suppress all unacceptable urges of the ID and struggles to make the ego act upon
idealistic standards rather than realistic principle.

BEHAVIORAL THEORIES
⮚ Focus on behavioral modeling and sociallearning which were advocated much to the work of Gabriel
Tarde.
⮚ Gabriel Tarde believed on the three distinctive, yet interrelated process which characterized
human society.
⮚ These process includes invention, imitation and opposition.
⮚ Tarde advocates the three laws of imitation which includes the following:
a. The laws of close contact
b. The law of imitation of superiors by inferiors.
c. The law of insertion
⮚ Gabriel Tarde believed that the laws of immitation explains why people commit crime. His work is
known the theory of imitation and suggestion.

COGNITIVE THEORIES
⮚ This focuses on how individuals perception of the world influences his/her behavior.
⮚ It explains criminal behavior as a defect in moral thinking, thought process and mental
development.
⮚ This also help us understand how personality and intelligence is linked to criminal behavior.
⮚ Related to the cognitive theory is the work of Charles Goring entitled “The English convict”
⮚ He discovered a relationship between crime and flawed intelligence.
⮚ He opposed Lombroso’s findings however he did find that criminals are more likely to be insane,
unintelligent and exhibit poor social behaviour as well as inferiorphysical make up.

MENTAL ILLNESS AND CRIME

⮚ This explains criminal behaviour in relation to mental disease suffered by the offender.
⮚ Dominant among these mental diseases are, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, paranoia, and psychotic
disorders.
Schizophrenia refers to group of psychotic disorder characterized by gross distortions of
reality, withdrawal of social interaction, disorganization and fragmentation of perception, also
referred as “mental deterioration” “demetia praecox” or “split mind.”
Psychotic behavior are groups of disorders involving gross structural defects in brain tissue
resulting to loss of contact with reality.
Bipolar disorder the person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression
and the overexcited, hyperactive, wildly optimistic state of mania.
Paranoid Personality Disorder - The essential feature for this type of personality disorder is
interpreting the actions of others as deliberately threatening or demeaning.

INTELLIGENCE AND CRIME

⮚ This explains criminal behaviour in relation the IQ level of a person.
⮚ Most criminals were accordingly of low intelligence quotient.
⮚ Earnest Albert Hooton works in his Physical Inferiority Theory, supporting the findings of
Lombroso with low mentality grade common to criminal.
⮚ Hooton also re-examined the works of Goring and found out that “ Tall thin men tend to commit
forgery and fraud, undersized men are thieves and burglars, short heavy person commit assault, rape
and other sex crimes; whereas average physique flounder around among other crimes.”

Description Of Hooton Findings

⮚ Criminals are less often married, more often widowed, and more often divorce.
⮚ Criminals are excessive in extractive, laborer and personal service occupation but deficient in
trade, professional clerical occupations.
⮚ Criminals are greatly inferior in educational attainment.
⮚ Tatooing are common among criminals.
⮚ Robbers are mostly unmarried and factory workers.
⮚ Rapists are largely divorced men and widowers.
⮚ Arsonist are deficient in single men and typically have blonde hair.

PSYCHOPATHIC PERSONALITY AND CRIME

⮚ Psychopathic Behavior also called personality or character disorder.
⮚ This pertains to an abnormal behaviors, which typically stemmed from immature and distorted
personality development, resulting in persistent maladaptive ways of perceiving and thinking.
⮚ People with antisocial personality disorder characteristically act out their conflicts and ignore
normal rules of social behavior.
⮚ These individuals are impulsive, irresponsible, and callous. Typically, the antisocial personality
has a history of legal difficulties, belligerent and irresponsible behavior, aggressive and even
violent relationships.

BIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION

I. PHYSIOGNOMY
This refers to the evaluation of a persons personality or character through an examination of
the person’s outward appearance.

Known Personality
1. Giambattista della Porta – Concluded that appearance and character were related,
if one resembles a donkey, such person is lazy and stupid.
2. Johann Kaspar Lavater – Concluded that one could determine criminal behaviour
through an examination of eyes, ears, nose, chin and facial shape.
3. Franz Joseph Gall – he pioneered cranioscopy or the external study of the skull in
relation to behaviour. Phrenology The study of the conformation of the skull based on
the belief that it is indicative of mental faculties and character.
4. Cesare Lombroso – assume that some people are ‘born criminals’, who are
physiologically distinct from non-criminals.
5. Richard Dugdale – made a study on the jukes family and believed on the hereditary
traits of criminal behaviour.
6. Henry H. Goddard –made a study on the Kalikak family (legitimate and illegitimate
descendants) and believed on the hereditary traits of criminal behaviour.
7. Francis Galton develop the concept of eugenics or the encouragement of “able”
couples to reproduce and for those who are not to stop reproducing as a solution to
poverty, disease, genetic deformities and crime.
8. Ernest Kretchmer
9. William Sheldon

II. PHYSIOLOGY OR SOMATOTYPE

This refers to the study of the body build of a person in relation to his temperament and
personality and the type of offense he is most prone to commit. It became popular in the 1st
half of the 20th century.
 Proponents of the somatotype school of criminology:
1. ERNEST KRETCHMER
⮚ He correlated body build and constitution with characters or temperamental reactions and
mentality.
⮚ He distinguished three (3) principal types of physiques:
a) Asthenic – lean, slightly built, narrow shoulders; their crimes are petty thievery and
fraud.
b) Athletic – medium to tall, strong, muscular, coarse bones; they are usually connected
with crimes of violence.
c) Pyknic – medium height, rounded figures, massive neck, broad face; they tend to
commit deception, fraud and violence.
⮚Three Categories of Behavior by Kretchmer
1. CYCLOTHEMES – Were manic depressive (pyknic) who tended to commit less
serious offenses that were more intellectual in nature.
2. SCHIZOTHEMES – Were anti social and apathetic, committing the more serious
violent offenses. Either (asthenic or athletic).
3. DISPLASTICS – Could be any body type but were characterized by highly charged
emotional states and unable to control their emotions. It is related to sexual offense.

2. WILLIAM SHELDON
⮚ Formulated his own group of somatotype:

TYPE OF PHYSIQUE and TEMPERAMENT

a. Endomorphic equivalent to pyknik type.
Viscerotonic ⮚ Generally relax and comfortable small person, loves luxury and
essentially extrovert.
b. Mesomorphic equivalent to athletic type ⮚ With relative predominance of muscles,
bones and motor organs of the body with large wrist and hands.
Romotonic ⮚ active, dynamic; walks, talks and gestures assertively and behaves
aggressively.
c. Ectomorphic equivalent to asthenic ⮚ Relative pre- dominance of skin and its
appendages which includes the nervous system; it has fragile and delicate bones;
with droopy shoulders, small face and sharp nose, fine hair
Cerebrotonic ⮚ Introvert prone to allergies, skin troubles, chronic fatigue, insomnia,
sensitive skin and sensitive to noise and with relatively small body.
HEREDITY AS A FACTOR IN CRIMINALITY
1. RICHARD DUGDALE ∙
⮚He studied the lives of the members of the JUKES FAMILY and referred to ADA JUKES as
the MOTHER OF CRIMINALS.
∙⮚He discovered that from among the descendants of Ada Jukes, there were 280 paupers, 60
thieves, 7 murderers, 40 other criminals, 40 persons with venereal diseases and 50
prostitutes. ∙
⮚ He claimed that since families produce generations of criminals, they must have been
transmitting degenerate traits down the line.

2. HENRY GODDARD ∙
⮚Studied KALLIKAK FAMILY (legitimate and illegitimate descendants) and believed on the
hereditary traits of criminal behavior

Brain Neurotransmitters Theory

Some criminal behaviours are believed to be influenced by low levels of brain neurotransmitters (the
substances brain cells use to communicate)
⮚ Low levels of serotonin have been found in impulsive murderers and arsonists.
⮚ Norepinephrine may be associated with compulsive gambling.

XYY chromosome theory

⮚ Normal males have an XY chromosome.
⮚ The XYY Chromosome theory suggests that males with the XYY chromosome pattern are more
violent.
⮚ In a study of prisoners who had committed violent crimes a correlation was found between violent
offenders and the XYY chromosome. 1 in 1000 males have the XYY chromosome.

HORMONE THEORY
Hormones Criminal behaviors have also been associated with hormone abnormalities,
especially those involving:
• Testosterone (a male sex hormone)
• Progesterone and estrogen (female sex hormones)
Administering estrogen to male sex offenders has been found to reduce their sexual drives.

Modern Bio Criminology

Ongoing research has revealed numerous biological factors associated either directly or indirectly
with criminal or delinquent behavior:
⮚ chemical, mineral, and vitamin deficiencies in the diet
⮚ diets high in sugar and carbohydrates
⮚ hypoglycemia
⮚ ingestion of food dyes and lead
⮚ exposure to radiation
⮚ brain dysfunctions
⮚ Introduction of alcohol and drugs

Temperamental Theory
A theory suggesting four fundamental personality type related to body fluids or secretions.
 1. Sanguine – (blood) seated in the liver and associated with courage and love.
2. Choleric – (yellow bile) seated in the gall bladder and associated with anger and bad temper.
3. Melancholic – (black bile) seated in the spleen and associated depression, sadness and
irritability.
4. Phlegm – seated in the brain and lungs and associated with calmness and lack of excitability.

This theory is popularized by Hippocrates.

THEORY OF EVOLUTION
Charles Darwin – advocator of the theory.
⮚ He claimed that humans, like other animals, are parasite.
⮚ Human is an organism having an animalistic behaviour and is dependent on other animals for
survival. Thus man steals to live.

FIVE BASIC RESPONSE TO PREVENT CRIME CAUSED BY BIOLOGICAL FACTORS

1. Individual treatment. This may be accomplished through medication, treatment, or
therapy. 2. Isolation. Done by locking the offender up and keep him or her physically
separated from larger society.
3. Sterilization. This would keep individuals from passing along defective genes to future
generations.
4. Deportation/Banishment. Sending the offender away from the community.
5. Kill the offender. If crime is truly biologically determined, these options, or close
derivatives of these options, would prove more useful than any punishment designed to remove
the pleasure from a criminal act.

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION

Sociological theories suggest that crime is shaped by factors external to the individual: their
experiences within the neighborhood, the peer group, and the family.

I. The Chicago School/Social Disorganisation Theory

Shaw and McKay found that patterns of delinquency were higher in areas
characterised by poor housing, poor health, socio-economic disadvantage and
transient populations.
⮚ This led them to suggest that crime was a function of neighbourhood dynamics
and not due to individual actors and their actions.
⮚ They claimed that areas settled by newly arrived immigrants experienced a
breakdown of social norms due to ethnic diversity and competing cultural
traditions.
⮚ Burgess is also an advocate of the theory, according to him place matters in
shaping a persons likelihood to commit crime. He also develop concentric zone
theory.
II. Concentric zone theory
Predicted that cities will take the form of five concentric rings with areas of
social and physical deterioration concentrated near city centre and more
prosperous areas located near the city’s edge.
⮚ Burgess argued that neighbourhood conditions, be that wealth or poverty had
a much greater determinant effect on criminal behaviour than ethnicity, race or
religion.
Social Disorganization
⮚ Is the condition in which the usual controls over delinquents are largely absent, delinquent
behavior is often approved by parents and neighbours, there are many opportunities for
delinquent behavior, and there is little encouragement, training, or opportunity for legitimate
employment.
⮚ It is a theory based on the assumption that social conditions such as poverty,
unemployment, poor schools, and substandard housing are significant factors contributing to
delinquency and crime.
Contemporary theories of crime, place and space include:
❖ Defensible space theory, which examines how the design of physical space is related
to crime;
❖ Broken windows theory, which looks the relationship between low level disorder and
crime; and
❖ Routine activities theory, which considers how opportunities to commit crime are
shaped by between people’s everyday movements through space and time.

III. Anomie/Strain Theory Anomie

is a concept developed by one of the founding fathers of sociology, Emile
Durkheim. It is described as the lack of social regulation in modern societies or
the dissociation of the individual from collective conscience.
⮚ His theory focused on the absence of norms in society which provides setting
conducive to crimes.
⮚ He believed that crime was not only normal but also functional.
Durkheim Proposed the following principle:
1. Crime is a natural thing in the society
2. The concept of wrong is necessary to give meaning to right.
3. Crime help society for changes it is functional.
Merton also supports Durkheim theory, Anomie for Merton is the contradiction
between the cultural goal of achieving wealth and the social structure’s inability
to provide legitimate institutional means for achieving the goal.
⮚ Merton argued that people are naturally law- abiding but resort to crime when
frustrated in finding legitimate means to economic success.
TWO CATEGORIES OF ANOMIE
1. Macroside – caused when society fails to established clear limits on
goals and is unable to regulate the conduct of society.
2. Microside – referred as strain, it is the breakdown of society and
increases deviance which produces pressure for people to commit crimes.
⮚ He also identified two kinds of strain, the structural caused by society
creating ideals where people struggles and individual which is an ideals made by
person himself for which he struggles to meet them.

IV. GENERAL STRAIN THEORY

Robert Agnew – the proponents of the theory influenced by Durkheim and
Merton.
⮚ His theory is based on the general idea that when people are treated badly
they may get upset and engage in crime.
⮚ He categorized strain into two;
 (1) Prevention of goal
(2) Deprivation of valued things. ⮚ Agnew gave three goals that are commonly
not achieve; money, status/respect and autonomy.

V. Differential Opportunity Theory

Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin argued that the type of adaptation made by
juvenile gang members depends on the illegitimate opportunity available to them.
The gist of this theory is the lack of legitimate opportunity for a person to
pursue his necessities, for this reason, they engage in crime. Criminality stems
from blocked opportunities based on where one lives, who one knows, and what
skills, talents, and resources one has.
They identified three gang subcultures:
❑ Criminal subculture — formed to make money.
❑ Conflict subculture —formed to vent anger if they can’t make money
and to show frustration by committing violent offenses.
❑ Re-treatist — formed by those who can’t join gangs and at the same
time cannot succeed in legitimate way, and become alcoholics, drug
addicts, and prostitutes as a last resort.
VI. Sub-cultural theory
Albert K. Cohen adapted Merton’s anomie or strain theory to explain gang
delinquency. For Cohen, Anomie is caused by the inability of juveniles to achieve
status among peers by socially acceptable means.
Juveniles unable to achieve status through socially acceptable means
either:
• conform to middle-class values and resign themselves to their inferior
status, or
• rebel and establish their own value structures, then find others like
themselves and form groups to validate and reinforce the new values.
Cohen called this process reaction formation.
Subculture is a group that has values that are different to the mainstream
culture.
This theory explains criminal behaviour as a result of peer pressure.

VII. Social Control Theory

Strictly speaking control theory does not address the causes of crime, but
rather focuses on why people obey the law. In other words, it explains
conformity rather than deviance. Travis Hirschi One who proposed control
theory according to him, people conform to social norms due to strong social
bonds. Conversely, they engage in delinquent acts when these bonds are broken
or weak. Strong social and emotional ties to social values and norms lessen the
likelihood of deviant behavior
The key components of social bonds are:
1. Attachment: How strong or weak is an individual’s relationship with
others? Do these others expect certain kinds of behaviour (such as
obeying the law) from this individual? The stronger the attachment and
the stronger the expectations, the more likely it is that the individual will
conform.
 2. Commitment: The more an individual commits his/herself to a
particular lifestyle (for example, being married, being a parent, having a
job), the more he/she has to lose if he/she becomes involved in crime
(and so deviate from the lifestyle).
3. Involvement: This component comes down to time – the more time the
individual spends engaging in law abiding behaviour, the less time he/she
has to engage in law breaking behaviour.
4. Belief: This relates to upbringing. If an individual has been brought up
to be law abiding, they are less likely to become involved in crime.

VIII. Right Realism/Rational Choice Theory

This branch of criminology sees individuals as rational actors: individuals are
capable of making their own choices, which includes choosing to commit crime. In
any course of action, individuals weigh up the likely benefits and disadvantages
of each action. Associated with the work of Cornish and Clarke (1986).
According to this theory, individuals not only decide to commit crime, but decide
when and where to commit crime.

IX. Left Realism/Relative Deprivation Theory

Left realism is a branch of critical criminology . It suggests that crime happens
when individuals or groups see themselves as being unfairly disadvantaged
compared to other individuals or groups who they see as being similar to
themselves. Since the disadvantage is perceived and determined by an individual,
it is a subjective assessment.

X. Feminist Criminology
⮚ Gender inequality lies at the heart of crime in which women are the victims or
the perpetrators.
⮚ Messerschmidt argues that some men express their masculinity through the
commission of crime. Elizabeth Stanko have paid particular attention to male
violence against women.
⮚ Hegemonic masculinity: the set of ideas, values, representations and practices
associated with ‘being male’ as the dominant position in gender relations.
⮚ The principal goal of most feminist theory is to abolish patriarchy by ensuring
women equal opportunity and equal rights.
⮚ The essence of patriarchy is men’s control over women’s labor and sexuality.

XI. Labeling theory

⮚ The theory that the formal and informal application of stigmatizing and
deviant “labels” or tags applied to an individual by society will not deter, but
rather instigate future deviant or criminal acts.
Frank Tannenbaum and Howard Becker two stages of deviance: 1.
Primary deviance is the commission of criminal acts before the individual
is caught and punished.
2. Secondary deviance crimes committed due to the label society has
placed upon an offender.
XII. Containment Theory
⮚ Advocates by Walter Reckless, he argued that there are inner and outer
forces of containment that restrain a person from committing crime.
⮚ Inner forces stems from moral and religious belief or from personal sense of
right and wrong while outer forces came from family, teachers and others. ⮚
People are deterred from deviant behaviour because of the influence on
individuals of both internal and external social control factors.

XIII. Neutralization theory

⮚ Advocates by Gresham Sykes and David Matza
⮚ According to this theory criminals learn techniques that allow them to
rationalize their behaviour, deny responsibility for harm, and avoid being guilt
ridden.
⮚ Criminal feel bad for what they did, but have learned to cope with it.

XIV. Social learning theory

⮚ Proposes that both criminal and conforming behaviours are acquired,
maintained, or changed by the same process of interaction with others.
Therefore crime is the product of learning.
⮚ Bandura, Albert: Psychologist and child development expert, examined stages
of development and concluded that conduct develops at particular stages when
certain interaction stimuli are present.

XV. Differential Association Theory

⮚ By Edwin Sutherland (famous as the Dean of Modern Criminology) he said
that criminal behaviour is learned through association with a peer group that
engages in criminal behaviour
⮚ His theory is almost the same with social learning theory only that he focus
more on knowing the causes of criminal behaviour from learning rather than on a
broad approach of moulding behaviour through learning.
⮚ Sutherland’s theory was modified by several researchers and became
generally known as learning theory.
⮚ Learning theory explains criminal behavior and its prevention with the
concepts of positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement,
punishment, and modeling or imitation.
⮚ Learning theory argues that people commit crimes because they get
positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement.
⮚ Positive reinforcement is the presentation of a stimulus that increases or
maintains a response.
⮚ Negative reinforcement is the removal or reduction of a stimulus whose
removal or reduction increases or maintains a response
⮚ According to learning theory, criminal behavior is reduced, but not eliminated,
through extinction or punishment.

XVI. Conflict Theory

⮚ Criminal behaviour is based on the assumption that the sources of criminal
behaviour are class conflict and social inequality.
 ⮚ Thus, street crimes, even minor monetary ones are routinely punished quite
severely, while large scale financial and business crimes are treated much more
leniently. Theft of a television might receive a longer sentence than stealing
millions through illegal business practices.
⮚ The criminal justice system and criminal law are thought to be operating on
behalf of rich and powerful social elites, with resulting policies aimed at
controlling the poor.
⮚ Conflict theory holds that crime results from the conflicts in society among
the different social classes, and that laws actually arise from necessity as a
result of conflict, rather than a general consensus. The fundamental causes of
crime are the social and economic forces operating within society.

XVII. Life Course Theory

⮚ As a concept, a life course is defined as “a sequence of socially defined events
and roles that the individual enacts over time.”
⮚ Consequentially, the events in one’s life ultimately shapes their disposition
towards or against a life of crime.
⮚ The life course approach examines an individual’s life history and how early
events influence future decisions and events such as marriage, divorce,
engagement in crime, or disease incidence.

XVII. Radical Theory

⮚ Radical theories argue that capitalism requires people to compete against each
other in the pursuit of material wealth.
⮚ The more unevenly wealth is distributed, the more likely people are to find
persons weaker than themselves that they can take advantage of in their pursuit
of wealth.
⮚ Radical theory defines crime as a violation of human rights

XVIII. Instrumentalist Theory

⮚ Advocated by Earl Richard Quinney
⮚ He argued that the state exist as a device for controlling the exploited class.
⮚ Upper class creates law for their own interest.

XIX. Social class conflict and capitalism theory

⮚ Advocated by Karl H. Marx
⮚ Ruling class is responsible for the creation of criminal law, its
interpretation and enforcement.
⮚ All are reflected in the ruling class thus crime and delinquency are reflected
in the demoralized surplus of the population.

XX. Cartographical school of criminology

⮚ Pionereed by Adolphe J. Quetelet
⮚ Placed emphasis on social statistics in relation to crime. Example are age, sex
and social status.
⮚ Crime is also related to season.

XXI. Human Ecology theory

 ⮚ Pionereed by Robert Ezra Park
⮚ This theory is a study of the interrelationship of people and their
environment.
⮚ The theory maintains that crime is a function of social change that occurs
along with environmental change.
⮚ It also maintains that competition, conflict, social contract and social
hierarchy of people are major influences of criminal behavior and crime.

XXII. Self-Control theory

⮚ Develop by Hirschi and Gottfredson
⮚ Is a criminological theory about the lack of individual self control as the main
factor behind criminal behavior.

CRIME CAUSATION PIONEER AND PERSONAL PROFILE

⮚ Cesare, Marquis de Beccaria - Was an Italian philosopher and economist best known for his
treaties crime and punishment. He was born on March 15, 1738 in Milan Italy.
⮚ Enrico Ferri - He was an Italian criminologist and socialist born on 1856 and died on 1929. He was
best known as Lombroso’s associate.
⮚ Jeremy Bentham - Was an English philosopher and lawyer best known for the theory of
Utilitarianism. He was born in London on February 15, 1748 and live in Westminster.
⮚ Cesare Lombroso - An Italian university professor and criminologist, born on November 6, 1835 in
Verona, who became popular for his studies characterology.
⮚ Emile Durkheim - Was a French sociologist born in France in 1858. He studied in Paris and taught
sociology at the University of Bordeaux and Sorbonne in Paris, France.
⮚ Ezra Park - Was an American sociologist born on February 14, 1864 in Pennsylvania. He is best
known for his human ecology theory.
⮚ Sigmund Freud - An Australian neurologist and psychiatrist who founded Psychoanalytic School of
Psychology. He was born on May 6, 1856 and died on September 23, 1939.
⮚ Raffaele Garofalo - Born of Italy nobility in Naples in 1852. He was magistrate and professor of
law and was Lombroso’s student.
⮚ Earnest Hooton - Was a physical anthropologist, born on November 20, 1887 in Wisconsin,
United States. He began his tenure in Harvard University and became a highly respected professor.
⮚ Edwin Sutherland - Was an American sociologist, born on August 13, 1883 in Nebraska, United
States and died in 1950.
⮚ Ernest Kretschmer - Was a German psychiatrist, born on October 8, 1888 in West Germany. He
served as director of the neurological clinic of the university of Marburg.
⮚ Ernest Burgess - Was an American sociologist, born on May 16, 1886 in Tilbury, Ontario and died
December 27, 1966.
⮚ Walter Reckless - An American sociologist born on January 19, 1899 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
US and died on September 20, 1988.
⮚ Robert Merton - Was an American sociologist, born on July 4, 1910 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as
Meyer Schkolnick and later changed his name to his present and popular name.
⮚ William Sheldon - Was an American psychologist, born on November 19, 1898 in Rhode Island
United States. He associates physique to crime.
⮚ Karl Marx - Was a German philosopher, economist, socialist and historian. Born on 1818 and in the
year 1940.
⮚ Adolphe Quetelet - Born on 1796 in France and Andre Michel Guerry of Belgium and died in the
year 1874.
⮚ Lloyd Ohlin - An American sociologist and criminologist who taught at Harvard Law school, Columbia
University and University of Chicago. Born on August 27, 1918 and died on December 6, 2008.
⮚ Robert Agnew - He is a professor of sociology at Emorg University and past President of American
society of criminology. Born on December 1, 1953 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
⮚ Travis Hirschi - Was an American sociologist and an emeritus professor of sociology at the
University of Arizona.
⮚ Charles Goring - Was a pioneer in criminology and author of the influential work “The Engligh
convict: a statistical study” Born in the year 1870 and died on May 1919 in the aged of 49.
⮚ Howard Becker - Is an American sociologist born on April 18, 1928. He made major contribution in
sociology of deviance. He is a graduate of University of Chicago.
⮚ Albert Cohen - Was a prominent American criminologist. He served as Vice-President of the
American Society of Criminology from 1984-1985. Born June 15,1918 and died November 25, 2014. ⮚
Gresham Sykes - Born May 26,1922 and died October 29, 2010. Was an American sociologist and
Criminologist.