Explaining Crime

CRIME
• 1. Action or omission that constitutes an
offence that may be prosecuted by the
state and is punishable by law
• 2. An action that merits community
condemnation and punishment.
• 3. An action or negligence that is deemed
injurious to the public welfare or morals or
to the interest of the state and that is
legally prohibited.
Introduction to Criminological
Theory

Several theories attempt to explain criminal

behavior. Some theories assume:
Classical School-Crime is part of human
nature (free will).
Positivist School-Crime is based on
biological, psychological, sociological,
and/or economic aspects.
 Classical Theory

One of the earliest approaches to

explaining the causes of crime was
CLASSICAL THEORY.
 Classical Theory

A product of the Enlightenment, based on the

assumption that people exercise free will and are
completely responsible for their actions. In classical
theory, human behavior, is motivated by a
hedonistic rationality, in which actors weigh the
potential pleasure of an action against the possible
pain associated with it.
 utility
The principle that a policy should provide “the
greatest happiness shared by the greatest number.”
 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.

continued
…
 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.
 Classical Theory
In 1764, criminologist Cesare Beccaria wrote
An Essay on Crimes and Punishments, which
set forth classical criminological theory.
He argued that the only justified rationale for
laws and punishments was the principle of
UTILITY.
 Classical Theory
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.
Classical Criminology
Cesare Beccaria
⚫ Founding Father of Modern
Criminology
⚫ Wrote On Crimes and
Punishment
⚫ “… the crime problem could
be traced not to bad people
but to bad laws.”
 Beccaria’s principles
⚫ Beccaria assumed that crime is a rational choice
and individuals are responsible for the
consequences of their behavior
⚫ His plan included the following elements:
 Beccaria’s Principles
1. Laws should be used to maintain the social
contract
2. Only legislators should create laws
3. Judges should impose punishment only in
accordance with the law
4. Judges should not interpret the laws
5. Punishment should be based on the
pleasure/pain principle
6. Punishment should be based on the act, not on
the actor
Beccaria’s Principles Continued
7. The punishment should be determined by the crime
8. Punishment should be prompt and effective
9. All people should be treated equally
10. Capital punishment should be abolished
11. The use of torture to gain confessions should be
abolished
12. It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them
 Rational Choice Theory
⚫ Criminals make a conscious, rational choice to
commit crime

⚫ Cost-benefit analysis
⚫ Behavior result of personal choices made after
weighing costs and benefits
⚫ Crime will decrease when opportunities limited,
benefits reduced & costs increased
 Concepts of Rational Choice
⚫ Structuring Criminality
⚫ Personal factors condition people to choose criminality
such as significant financial rewards Criminals may
learn the limitations of their powers; when to take a
chance and when to be cautious
⚫ Criminals report learning techniques that help them
avoid detection
 Rational Choice Concepts
⚫ Is Theft Rational?
⚫ Common theft-related crimes seem to more likely random
acts of criminal opportunity
⚫ Professional thieves may be more likely to calculate their
crimes
⚫ Experienced burglars seem to use skill and knowledge
when choosing their targets
 Rational Choice Concepts
⚫ Is Drug Use Rational?
⚫ Research seems to indicate from it onset drug use is
controlled by rational decision making
⚫ Drug dealers show signs of rationality and cunning in
their daily activities (I.E. Women being drawn into
drug dealing)
 Rational Choice Concepts
⚫ Is Violence Rational?
⚫ Rational Robbers:
⚫ Street robbers are likely to choose victims who are
vulnerable
⚫ About three-fifths of robbers avoid victims who may be
armed and dangerous
⚫ Robbers tend to pick the time, day, and targets carefully

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Reserved.
 Rational Choice Concepts
⚫ Rational Killers:
⚫ People who carry guns do so for rational
reasons
⚫ Serial murderers are the most rational of all
offenders
⚫ Serial murderers choose defenseless victims
rather than potentially powerful people
⚫ Rational Rapists:
⚫ Serial rapists show rationality in their choice
of targets

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Reserved.
 Concepts of Rational Choice
⚫ Criminals carefully choose where they commit crime
⚫ Rational choice is based on:
⚫ The type of crime (professionals or generalists)
⚫ The time and place of crime (I.E. burglars)
⚫ The target of crime (I.E. corner homes)
⚫ Criminals are unlikely to travel long distances to
commit crimes and often consider the capabilities of
police before committing crime

Copyright © 2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights

Reserved.
 Deterrence
⚫ Types of deterrence
⚫ Specific – goal of sentencing seeking to prevent
a particular offender from engaging in repeat
criminality
⚫ General – seeks to prevent others from
committing similar crimes

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Reserved.
 Deterrence
⚫ For punishment to deter, it must be swift,
certain, and sufficiently severe

⚫ High recidivism rates suggest specific

deterrence does not prevent repeat crime

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Reserved.
 Routine Activity
⚫ Lifestyles that contribute to criminal
opportunities likely to result in crime because
increase risk of potential victimization

⚫ Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson

⚫ Lifestyle and changes in society contribute to
volume, type of crime

⚫ Elements needed for crime:

⚫ Motivated offender
⚫ Suitable target
⚫ Absence of capable guardians
Jeremy Bentham’s
Utilitarianism
⚫ Bentham’s work was
governed by the utilitarian
principles*

⚫ Utilitarianism assumes all

human actions are
calculated in accordance
with their likelihood of
bringing happiness
(pleasure) or unhappiness
(pain)
 Bentham’s Principles
⚫ Bentham proposed the “felicific calculus”*
⚫ According to this reasoning, individuals are
“human calculators” who put all the factors into
an equation in order to decide whether or not a
particular crime is worth committing.
⚫ Bentham hypothesized that the certainty of
punishment outweighs severity as a deterrent
against crime.
 Bentham’s Principles
⚫ If prevention was the purpose of
punishment and punishment
became too costly by creating more
harm than good, then penalties
needed to be set just a bit in excess
of the pleasure one might derive
from committing a crime, and no
higher.
Copyright © 2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights
Reserved.
 Bentham’s principles
⚫ The law exists in order to create happiness for the
community.

⚫ Since punishment creates unhappiness, it can be justified

only if it prevents greater evil than it produces.

⚫ Free will enables human beings to purposely and

deliberately choose to follow a calculated course of
action.

⚫ If crime is to be deterred, punishment (pain) must

exceed the pleasures gained from the fruits of crime.
Short Paragraph
Write a short paragraph of about 5-6
sentences explaining ONE advantage or
ONE disadvantage of using the Classical
school to explain the cause of crime.
Ensure that your paragraph has a topic
sentence and a concluding sentence and
three supporting details - facts or/and
examples.