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Within American communities with the highest crime rates, the dynamic relationship between motivated criminals and the myriad opportunities perpetually available in their communities contributes to a continuing cycle of multigenerational crime. Moreover, the simultaneous domination of criminal gang culture in conjunction with patterns of social and institutional responses to crime in poor communities on the part of the government also greatly exacerbated the problem.
The Role of Parents, Society, and Government Institutions
The emphasis on apprehending career criminals and prosecuting crimes after the fact instead of directing attention to the root causes of crime in society is likely responsible for the current inability of California (and authorities in many other states) to make substantial progress toward reducing the numbers of individuals who are criminally inclined in society. More than sufficient empirical research and anecdotal information have documented the fundamental importance of directing social services to single-parent families in need (Roback Morse, 2003) and to providing children with realistic alternatives to criminal deviance before their exposure to crime in general and the criminal gang mentality in particular (Pinizzotto, Anthony, Davis, et al., 2007: 3-4). Unfortunately, as long as California continues to fight crime primarily through emphasizing law enforcement attention to criminal activity instead of a comprehensive sociological prevention strategy, it is unlikely that those efforts will achieve their goal of reducing crime in society.
Retrospective Project Summary
Crime in society is not effectively reduced through a focus on apprehension, detection, and prosecution. Rather, genuinely effective crime reduction requires an entirely different approach that emphasizes the resolution of sociological causes of social deviance and the evolution of the criminal mindset in the individual. In...
One of the most valuable lessons of this project (substantively) is that even initiatives that enjoy substantial support from governmental authorities and legislators may not necessarily reflect the best conceptual analysis of social problems and their respective solutions.
The principal practical application of this project includes a much better understanding of the specific problems associated with crime in the U.S. And its underlying causes. It also provided me with increased confidence in my ability to synthesize relevant information to contribute productively to an intellectual discussion of the causes of crime and the essential requirements of an effective crime reduction strategy.
References
Macionis, John J.
2003
Sociology 9th Edition. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.
Pinizzotto, Anthony J., Davis, Edward F., and Miller, Charles E. III.
When the family fails, the state steps in. Electronic document, http://www.hoover.org/publications/policyreview/3448276.html, accessed November 16.
To the extent criminal behavior is actually a result of spontaneous choice, it might be perfectly appropriate as a societal response to crime. On the other hand, to the extent criminal behavior is only partially attributable to spontaneous choice, the classical approach to crime control is inherently ineffective and unlikely to achieve the larger objective of reducing crime in society. Furthermore, the classical approach to crime control is unlikely to
Crime Theories Psychological theories of criminal behavior focus on the individual, rather than on contextual factors (as sociological theories of crime do) or on biological factors (such as genetics). Personality, traits, and cognitions are all covered under the rubric of psychological theories of crime. One of the prevailing and most widely accepted psychological theory of crime is rational choice theory. Rational choice theory " is perhaps the most common reason why
Criminal Justice Take Home Exam Crime control and due process are two underlying philosophies of criminal justice that are often presented as competing philosophies by the American media. For instance, to control crime, police officers in popularly televised series such as "Law and Order" are shown as circumventing the letter of the law and occasionally violating due process, because of their natural eagerness to put criminals behind bars. Even in
Understanding why individuals or groups engage in deviant or criminal behavior helps better inform therapeutic interventions and public policy. No one theory of crime can explain all criminal behavior. However, each theory does offer the potential for better understanding individual criminal acts or patterns of criminal behavior that take place within specific cultural or historical contexts. Integrating multiple theories can be helpful, too, showing how biology, psychology, politics, culture, and
Biological models of criminal behavior typically look at such variables as heredity and genetic contributions to criminality (which are significant in many cases), the contribution of neurotransmitters to behavior, and abnormal or different brain structures and their association with behaviors. Biological models offer treatments such as chemical castration for sex offenders where psychological principles of rehabilitation are not especially effective (Raine, 2002). Sociological theories of criminal behavior are more
deviance and criminal behavior can result from people feeling disconnected from their school and home situation. This backs up the control theory, which posits that with less control -- or weak bonds -- behavior can and does become deviant and even criminal later in life. Control Theory -- Narrative Explanations In his narratives on delinquency, Travis Hirschi, one of the most prominent theorists when it comes to control theories, said there