Life Course Crime: Two Theories, Contradictory Approaches
This paper examines two influential but contradictory criminological theories explaining criminal behavior over the life course. Gottfredson and Hirschi's General Theory of Crime argues that low self-control, established by early childhood, is the primary driver of criminal behavior throughout life, rendering later social factors largely irrelevant. Sampson and Laub, by contrast, demonstrate that adult social bonds — including marriage and occupational achievement — significantly influence criminal behavior regardless of childhood patterns. The paper compares these competing frameworks, identifies points of genuine contradiction, and argues that their findings are not as mutually exclusive as initially appears. A synthesis incorporating both psychological and sociological factors may offer a more complete understanding of criminal development across the life course.
- Introduction: Framing contradictory criminological research perspectives
- Gottfredson and Hirschi's General Theory of Crime: Self-control as childhood-determined driver of crime
- Sampson and Laub on Crime and Deviance Over the Life Course: Adult social bonds shape ongoing criminal behavior
- Comparing the Two Contradictory Perspectives: Points of conflict and unexpected convergence analyzed
- Conclusion: Call for a unified criminological theory
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper frames a genuine theoretical tension in criminology clearly and early, giving readers an immediate sense of purpose and stakes.
- It handles two contradictory bodies of research fairly, presenting each on its own terms before drawing comparisons — avoiding the common student error of dismissing one theory too quickly.
- The comparative analysis section goes beyond simple contrast to suggest a plausible synthesis, demonstrating higher-order critical thinking.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates theoretical reconciliation — a technique where apparently incompatible frameworks are examined for overlooked common ground. Rather than declaring one theory correct, the author identifies how findings from Gottfredson and Hirschi's psychological model and Sampson and Laub's sociological model could be integrated. This approach is especially valuable in social science writing, where competing grand theories often capture partial truths rather than complete ones.
Structure breakdown
The paper follows a classic compare-and-contrast structure: an introductory framing of the problem; two sequential summaries of the competing theories (one psychological, one sociological); a comparative analysis that identifies both contradictions and points of convergence; and a brief conclusion calling for a new synthetic theory. Each section builds logically on the last, and the analytical payoff arrives in the comparison section rather than being deferred to the conclusion.
Introduction
Studies of criminal behavior have necessarily been required to define the terms of their investigation, limiting the scope of observations and establishing a concrete perspective from which to conduct inquiries. This is a necessity in all areas of social research; there are very few (if, indeed, any) agreed-upon constants and absolutes when it comes to human or social development and behavior, and each researcher or research team must choose which assumptions it will rest its investigation upon. This makes for research that is necessarily somewhat subjective, and often these subjectivities are never explicitly acknowledged. All responsible research is grounded in the background and theories of researchers who came before, of course, but this does not mean that all responsible research into a specific subject area — or even a detailed research question — is consistent.
When it comes to criminology, many factors must be defined, and often they can be defined in contradictory ways. The different perspectives held by researchers are not necessarily exclusive of each other, nor is one necessarily more correct than another. The very mutability of research perspectives and methodologies in the social sciences is a consistent problem that must be accounted for in order for research findings to be meaningful. This paper examines two different perspectives on a highly specific issue in social research as a means of analyzing the contradictions that can be found in research perspectives, even when those contradictions do not necessarily appear in the research results themselves.
Specifically, two different theories regarding the factors influencing criminal behavior over the life course will be analyzed. Two very different overarching theories of criminality are examined, and though they are contradictory in their approaches — and even in some of their conclusions — both have sets of facts that appear to uphold those conclusions. The basic difference between these two bodies of research lies in the primary object of inquiry: one theory looks inward to the individual criminal, while the other looks outward to the society in which crime occurs. Despite the highly contradictory methodologies employed by the two sets of authors, and even some of the contradictory conclusions at which they arrive, there are similarities in their research findings that suggest these perspectives could eventually be unified through more extensive research.
Gottfredson and Hirschi's General Theory of Crime
Michael R. Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi developed a theory of criminal behavior and its development over the life course that is detailed in their 1990 book, A General Theory of Crime. The simplicity of the book's title is not misleading, as the argument contained within is also immensely direct — though no less scientifically valid for this simplicity, as exhaustive empirical and secondary research clearly informed the effort. This theory of crime remains highly controversial, especially in sociological circles, and has not been widely adopted in policy contexts, since there is very little that policy can do to affect long-term crime rates under this framework (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990).
Essentially, Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990) assert that criminal behavior — like most other "risky" and often illegal behaviors such as drug and alcohol abuse and unprotected sexual promiscuity — is simply the result of low levels of self-control. The lack of an individual's ability to control their immediate impulse for gratification is, in their view, the factor responsible for criminal behavior (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990). Furthermore, the authors assert that self-control abilities and patterns are learned elements of personality that are essentially set by age seven or eight. It is therefore the learning (or non-learning) of self-control and restraint that limits — or fails to limit — criminal behavior throughout the rest of an individual's life (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990). Those who develop the ability to appreciate future consequences and delay immediate gratification are less likely to engage in crime, while those who do not develop this same level of self-control are far more likely to engage in criminal behaviors as adults (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990).
This theory is highly controversial not only for its simplicity, but also because it negates a substantial body of existing research. Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990) specifically argue that longitudinal research into crime rates over the life course is no longer justified — if indeed it ever was — because criminal behaviors are wholly dependent on factors measurable during childhood. There is compelling evidence provided by the authors in support of their claims, but there is also abundant research by other scholars demonstrating a clear correlation between later-life circumstances and events not accounted for by this theory.
Sampson and Laub on Crime and Deviance Over the Life Course
Two of the many studies that Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990) claim to have rendered obsolete are the 1990 and 1992 studies by Sampson and Laub, which identified a multitude of personal and sociological factors correlated with individuals' criminal behaviors over the life course. Robert J. Sampson and John H. Laub have long been prominent researchers in the study of criminal behavior and its persistence across many individuals' lives, and they have been prolific authors on the topic. Their findings do not necessarily negate the importance of self-control levels in leading to criminal acts, but there are definite parts of Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) theory that are contradicted by this concurrent research.
Sampson and Laub (1992) found that there does appear to be an early onset of criminal delinquency in many individuals, and they concur with much prior research in finding that criminal behaviors often remain quite stable over the life course from childhood onward. They also find, however, that crime rates spike in adolescence and then tend to decline, suggesting that factors during and after adolescence have a major impact on individual criminality (Sampson & Laub, 1992). These same researchers also found that adult relationships and social networks can exert a major influence on adult rates of criminality, regardless of childhood and adolescent factors (Sampson & Laub, 1990; Sampson & Laub, 1992). Many of their findings clearly contradict those of Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990).
Most salient in this regard is the continued influence of a variety of social factors on ongoing criminal behaviors well into adulthood. This appears to indicate that such patterns are not merely rooted in self-control as learned in early childhood, as Gottfredson and Hirschi had suggested (Sampson & Laub, 1990; Sampson & Laub, 1992; Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990). Many individual factors — including marital status and occupational achievement — have a major impact on criminal behaviors engaged in by adults. Individuals in strong marriages and those who have achieved meaningful occupational success with clear and accessible opportunity structures are far less likely to continue patterns of criminal behavior, even if those patterns were established in childhood and persisted throughout adolescence (Sampson & Laub, 1990; Sampson & Laub, 1992). In short, according to these two researchers, many different social factors influence ongoing criminality over the life course.
Conclusion
Ultimately, there appear to be factors in both childhood and adulthood that influence criminality. If a new perspective that incorporates the findings of the various researchers in this area can be developed and solidified through further research, this assertion could be made more concrete, more objective, and more assertive. This is how research progresses, especially in the social sciences — disparate methods and findings are coalesced by the development of new theories. A new integrative theory in criminology is needed, and through such a theory the development of criminal patterns over the life course can be better understood.
References
Gottfredson, M. & Hirschi, T. (1986). The true value of lambda would appear to be zero. Criminology, 24(2), pp. 213–234.
Gottfredson, M. & Hirschi, T. (1990). A General Theory of Crime. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Laub, J., Nagin, D., & Sampson, R. (1998). Trajectories of change in criminal offending. American Sociological Review, 63, pp. 225–238.
Sampson, R. & Laub, J. (1990). Crime and deviance over the life course: The salience of adult social bonds. American Sociological Review, 55(5), pp. 609–627.
Sampson, R. & Laub, J. (1992). Crime and deviance in the life course. Annual Review of Sociology, 18, pp. 63–84.
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