Criminology Chapter 7 and 8

Other Conflict Thinkers

Although Marx is the best-known conflict thinker, other theorists have significantly contributed to this line of criminological reasoning. The following brief review of these scholars' ideas will demonstrate how the conflict perspective is grounded in social structure and economic conditions.

FIGURE 7.2b Moffitt's Pathways to Crime: Adolescence-Limited Delinquency

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Developmental Perspective on Antisocial Behavior

According to Gerald Patterson, Barbara DeBaryshe, and Elizabeth Ramsey's developmental perspective on antisocial behavior, antisocial behavior is a developmental trait that begins early and often continues through adolescence and adulthood. These researchers consider a series of predictable steps that lead to chronic delinquency. - Poor parental discipline and monitoring. The first step in chronic delinquency is poor parenting. Parents who are inconsistent and harsh in their discipline, provide poor role models, and do not adequately supervise their children's activities are more likely to develop offspring who engage in antisocial behavior. Part of this process can be related to Hirschi's control theory, which states that the bond between parent and child is insufficient to promote strong societal values of conformity at work. In addition, a social-interactional perspective suggests that the child learns ineffective self-control techniques from parents who are inept at controlling their own emotions or teaching their children positive ways of responding to stress. - School failure and social rejection. The problems of poor parenting and bad conduct in early childhood can lead to more serious concerns in middle childhood. Several studies have shown that antisocial children perform poorly in school. They spend less time on individual tasks and lack academic survival skills, such as regular attendance and class participation. They may disrupt the classroom and fail to do their homework. Academic failure, as demonstrated by these behaviors, is considered to result directly from antisocial behavior learned in early childhood. Another problem that antisocial children experience is rejection by the normal peer group. Aggressive children are not readily accepted and lack many social cognitive skills. It can be argued that school failure can cause antisocial behavior as much as antisocial behavior can cause school failure. It is a traditional chicken-and-egg problem. However, Patterson and colleagues argue that a stronger case can be made that children demonstrating early antisocial behavior consistently have problems with academic achievement and making friends. - Commitment to antisocial peer groups. The next step in the developmental process is the formation of an antisocial peer group. Taken from the "birds of a feather flock together" concept, this idea suggests that the developmental process places antisocial youths in groups that reinforce delinquency. The youths provide one another with attitudes and motivations that supply a training ground for antisocial behavior. Because they are placed in the same classrooms, training schools, and treatment programs, they find opportunities to engage in delinquency with one another. Rather than adopting the middle-class values and attitudes of a normal peer group, they continually reinforce and reward their commitment to delinquency and antisocial behavior. - Delinquency. The preceding developmental processes almost inevitably lead to delinquency. Poor parenting results in early childhood conduct problems that lead to school failure and the inability to develop positive social relationships with peers. These problems in turn lead to a commitment to antisocial peer groups that reinforce delinquency. Commitment to an antisocial peer group consequently results in dropping out of school, unemployment, and substance abuse, which are factors that continue the decline toward delinquency.

gender

The social concept of how males and females should behave.

proletariat

A social class composed of people who work for wages.

Within this context of social support, Cullen lays out 10 propositions that detail how social support is related to crime and delinquency.

1. The United States has higher rates of serious crime than other industrialized countries because it is a less supportive society. Although this proposition offends some people, it is difficult to argue with Cullen's explanation. Individualism is a core American value. Americans are encouraged to distinguish themselves by accomplishments and behavior, but such individual acts come at the cost of everyone working for the common good. Individuals in more highly integrated countries, such as Japan, are not only subject to more social control, but are also supported by the culture in social and economic ways. Because of the American ideals of individual rights and freedom of action, the United States does not institutionalize social support in the form of health care, welfare, or subsidized schooling to the extent seen in some other countries, such as Canada and Japan. Without this support, Americans all too often decide to turn to crime and delinquency to meet their needs and accomplish their goals. At the informal level, Americans do not feel the social obligation to their fellow citizens that is found in other countries with higher levels of social support. 2. The less social support in a community, the higher the crime rate. Cullen considers several ways that social support in the community reduces crime rates. In these communities, welfare and job programs help buffer the effects of poverty. Cullen contends that although some conservative commentators argue that these types of programs make individuals dependent on government handouts, research demonstrates that this type of social support has a beneficial effect on crime rates. Lack of social support works in other ways to increase crime rates. Communities with a high degree of family dysfunction, weak friendship networks, and low participation and voluntary organizations have more crime. 3. The more support a person's family provides, the less likely that person will break the law. Parents provide expressive support by sharing activities, helping with homework, supervising recreational activities with friends, and demonstrating affection. Expressive support is positively related to getting children to conform. Parents provide instrumental support by helping adolescents find jobs and ensuring that they are engaged in healthy after-school programs and are not left to fend for themselves on the street or in front of a television. Cullen points out, however, that family support is subject to broad social forces that can undermine parental attention. One prime example is the changing nature of the evening meal. Today, many families do not share any meals in which all family members are present. Parents who are involved with work and children who are caught up in a range of activities often find it hard to find the time to eat together. Fast-food restaurants and long commutes from work have greatly undermined the traditional evening meal in which families reconnect. Poverty, drugs, and alcohol have further weakened family support. According to Cullen, there is evidence that support given to families in the form of parenting programs, food stamps, and help with day care can significantly supplement the support children need to avoid delinquency. 4. The more social support in a person's social network, the less crime will occur. This proposition draws on strain theory. Social support can help overcome the negative consequences brought on by excessive strain. Adolescents who have friends, family members, and community programs to help them adjust to the challenges and difficulties of their adolescent years are more likely to resist delinquency. 5. Social support lessens the effect of exposure to strains that tend to produce crime. When individuals are enmeshed in support systems, such as a good marriage, loving family, or satisfying job, they are buffered against the strains of temptation to engage in crime or delinquency. The soothing effect of supportive relationships on emotional strains allows people to transform their circumstances so that they become more integrated into conventional society and have less time and fewer opportunities for antisocial behavior. 6. Social support increases the likelihood that offenders will turn away from an antisocial path. People who have positive social support can find ways to desist from crime. When people believe that the "deck is stacked against them," they stop looking for ways to enter conventional society and they experience a sense of isolation and hopelessness. 7. Anticipation of a lack of social support increases criminal involvement. Adolescents who have learned not to expect social support because they have been mistreated, neglected, or abused in the past are more likely to engage in antisocial behavior because they see no reason not to. 8. Social support lessens involvement in crime. Social support is a two-way street. Individuals who receive expressive and instrumental support are likely to behave well. The opportunity to provide that support to others increases their sense of self-esteem, being needed, and having a mission or goal in life. By having socially approved and appropriate roles to perform, individuals reduce the strain in their lives and learn the benefits of supporting others. With the reduction of strain and the opportunity to engage in legitimate behavior, people redefine their identities in more positive ways. 9. Crime is less likely to occur when social support for conformity exceeds social support for crime. Social support can be destructive when it comes from those who view crime and delinquency as desirable and productive. Social support provided by positive peers, law-abiding spouses, or legitimate employment can counteract the support that comes from negative sources. Cullen points out that it is not sufficient to have social support from a spouse if that spouse is also engaged in antisocial activities. The quality of the support is as crucial as its quantity. 10. Social support is often a pre-condition for social control. There are many ways to control antisocial behavior, but several of them can produce negative effects. Cullen cites the work of John Braithwaite on the negative effect of disintegrative shaming, or forms of punishment that do not repair the harm done by the offender and offense and exclude the offender from society. In effect, disintegrative shaming permanently stigmatizes offenders. Individuals who are sanctioned in the juvenile or criminal justice systems often come away with the negative labels of "delinquent," "convict," or "criminal." According to labeling theory—the idea that society defines an individual, treating him or her differently, and the individual internalizes this definition and acts it out (we will cover this concept in detail in Chapter 8)—disintegrative shaming can have destructive effects and produce negative self-concepts. Braithwaite, who introduced a more positive way for shaming to be used in social control, uses the term reintegrative shaming—or punishment that seeks to repair the harm done by the offender and offense and draw the offender into society—to describe procedures and ceremonies that allow antisocial individuals to express remorse and seek forgiveness. Reintegrative shaming has two important implications for the relationship between social support and crime. First, it helps individuals take responsibility for their behavior, express their regret, and acknowledge their accountability. Second, it provides better opportunities for harm to be repaired. Cullen draws on the theoretical principles of peacemaking criminology and restorative justice to suggest that this form of social control can be directly linked to the advantages of providing social support for those who break the law.

class

A group defined by a particular social, economic, and educational status.

longitudinal

A type of survey that follows respondents throughout their lives or a significant proportion of their lives.

disintegrative shaming

Braithwaite's term to describe punishment that does not repair the harm done by the offender and offense and excludes the offender from society.

CRITIQUES

Conflict theory has spurred many criminal justice system reforms since the 1960s. However, some scholars resist conflict theory because it approaches the problems of crime and delinquency in such a different manner. Some critics of conflict theory consider it to be anti-government because it critiques those who enforce the law. Recall that rather than assuming that offenders are inherently antisocial or that they learn to break the law, conflict criminology examines how societies control their citizens and how this control can sometimes lead to crime. This idea can be uncomfortable for some who want to justify how the criminal justice system operates. Here are some of the critiques of conflict criminology. · It is more political than scientific. Positivist criminologists emphasize observable facts. They try to use the scientific method to show a relationship between offenses and offenders. Conflict theory, however, does not try to be objective; rather, it advocates its position. According to conflict theory, there is no such thing as value-free science, and even the selection of a research topic shows political influence. Conflict theorists believe that explicitly stating a position is desirable; many mainstream criminologists contend that conflict theory studies are unreliable because of political bias · It is not measurable. Research in conflict theory is often not subject to measurement. However, conflict theory is largely still in the theoretical stage and is not yet ready to be measured. This does not mean that studies have not looked at the conflict perspective; indeed, many have. However, conflict theory has not advanced as far as differential association theory or strain theory, both of which have been the subjects of numerous sophisticated studies. Therefore, conflict theory is not as theoretically developed as some other criminological theories. · It critiques the status quo. Conflict theory requires close observation of how capitalism distributes and maintains wealth. By considering disparities in wealth and income between those who control the means of production and those who do the work, the conflict perspective may be considered to intrude into the affairs of government and business. · Solutions are financially and politically expensive. Critique of the capitalist system is inherent in conflict theory. This is less of an issue in socialist countries where governments provide such basic needs as food, housing, and health care. Although it can be argued that the United States is becoming increasingly socialist, this journey is incomplete. True socialism would require expensive and politically difficult changes. The United States is deeply committed to capitalism and the idea of the free market. Although communism was popular among some American intellectuals in the 1930s, and some aspects of socialism were introduced during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration, both quickly and drastically fell out of favor after World War II. Much of the American public remains deeply skeptical of any movement toward socialist policies. · Solutions are culturally unattractive. American culture values creativity and risk-taking, and our capitalist economic system presumably rewards the industrious and visionary. Some critics of conflict theory believe that a socialist economic system discourages people from working hard and creating new services and products. Because the value of products or services does not go directly to the individual but rather to society, it is thought people will do as little as possible and simply collect their government checks.

bourgeoisie

In Marxism, the owners of the means of production.

integrated theories

Perspectives that attempt to combine several different criminological theories in order to expand the focus on crime.

political

Referring to the relationships of people in groups and their activities.

Life-Course Theories

Review Laub and Sampson's focus on the quality of social bonds in persistent offending or desisting from crime. In this chapter, we consider two types of theories that are of great concern to contemporary criminologists: life-course theories and integrated theories. Both types represent greater sophistication in the level of detail used to explain crime, and both also attempt to expand the range of analysis to include more types of crime. Life-course and integrated theories build on many of the theories covered in preceding chapters as theorists fine-tune some of the concepts and ideas of other scholars. As new data become available and research techniques more refined, theorists also search for explanations that better reflect the conditions both within society and within individuals that might contribute to crime. Understanding the complexities of life-course and integrated theories is important because, in many ways, contemporary criminological theory increasingly concentrates on these theories. Table 7.1 sets forth the basics of each of the theories discussed in this chapter.

Interactional Theory of Delinquency

Terence Thornberry's interactional theory of delinquency incorporates three prominent delinquency perspectives: social learning (particularly from delinquent peers), social bonds (especially as parental bonds weaken), and the life-course perspective. The most important point of Thornberry's theory is the reciprocal nature of these influences, which suggests that once a person is on the path to delinquency, the development of delinquent peers is likely to follow, or vice versa. Interactional theory considers the social bonds that individuals develop early in life, particularly bonds with parents, as an important influence on delinquency. Youths who bond strongly to parents are less likely to break the law, whereas those with weak bonds are more likely to break the law. Thornberry adds, however, that as individuals progress through their life course, their bonds to parents generally weaken. As youths look to their peers rather than their parents for clues about how to behave, those who become involved with delinquent peers are more likely to break the law.

labeling theory

The idea that society defines an individual, treating him or her differently, and that the individual internalizes this definition and acts it out.

labeling theory

The idea that society defines an individual, treating him or her differently, and the individual internalizes this definition and acts it out.

Moffitt's theory has both strengths and weaknesses. Its primary weakness is that it divides delinquents into only two groups. Certainly, anti-social behavior has more variations, and presumably youths flow from one group to the other. The question is, at what point does a youth move from the adolescence-limited category to the life-course-persistent category? If the only way to answer this question is to study individuals after a life of crime, then the theory has limited policy implications.

The theory's strength is that it considers biological, psychological, and sociological explanations for juvenile delinquency. By looking at how these factors influence youths over their life-course, Moffitt presents a broad range of explanations that more closely reflect the influences on crime.

race

The use of certain biological characteristics, such as skin color, to classify human beings into categories.

learning theories of crime

These theories focus on where and how adult offenders and delinquents find the tools, techniques, and expertise to break the law.

Conflict theory,

a set of criminological concepts based on the philosophy of Karl Marx, holds that antisocial behavior stems from class conflict and social and economic inequality. It considers social class to primarily determine both the type and quality of justice an individual receives and how entangled he or she becomes in the criminal justice system.

The question of why some people behave this way has no easy answers. According to Moffitt, the answers lie in a complex set of factors that begins with biological considerations. Among these biological influences, Moffitt includes neuropsychological risk factors that contribute to a child's temperament and behavioral problems. Even before a child is born, brain function may be affected by maternal drug abuse, poor prenatal nutrition, or exposure to toxic agents before and after birth

(We should remember, however, that these are merely risk factors and not biological determinants of antisocial behavior.) Along with biological factors, Moffitt adds psychological deficiencies that have also been linked to juvenile delinquency and antisocial behavior. Children who are reared by parents who provide inconsistent discipline tend to develop behavioral problems and have a difficult time distinguishing between appropriate and inappropriate reactions to negative stimuli. Moffitt argues that the transmission of antisocial behavior from parent to child is as much a psychological as a biological factor.

The antisocial and delinquency pattern of adolescence-limited delinquents peaks during late adolescence. As these youths find more opportunities in society and become more bonded to conventional behavior, they begin to desist from breaking the law. They may give up their antisocial behavior as quickly as they began it. In contrast to life-course-persistent offenders, they are not defined by delinquency and easily cast such behavior aside. Moffitt identifies four changes in the life circumstances of adolescence-limited delinquents that inspire desistance from crime.

- Joining the military. Entering the armed forces is a life-altering event for many young people. The military, especially basic training, is similar to a total institution, a place in which rigid rules and regulations, such as dress and communication, are clearly defined and strictly enforced (a prison is the best example of a total institution). Those who join the military quickly learn that there is a very particular way of interacting with superiors that is reinforced with punishment for lapses. For many new recruits, the military lifestyle provides a clearly articulated way of being accepted into a restricted society in which success is achieved by doing what one is told. Basic training can shock young people out of bad habits and into a conventional lifestyle. Stripped of their ability to interact with family and friends, new recruits are provided new goals, new skills for achieving those goals, and rewards and punishments that reinforce the goals. A period of three to four years in the military can shelter young people from the difficulties of life in the unhealthy environment from which they came. Consequently, they return to civilian life with a positive self-concept, an avenue to escape the dysfunctional community they grew up in, and a vision of the middle-class life to which they aspire. These changes, according to Moffitt, enable adolescence-limited delinquents to desist from antisocial behavior. - Getting a full-time job. Young people who enter the labor market become invested in society. Much like the military, a full-time job requires performance, attendance, and punctuality. Antisocial behavior can jeopardize a person's chances of moving up in the organization or can cause termination. As young people become more invested in their careers, they are more likely to adopt healthier lifestyles in which they are home at a reasonable hour and spend less time in places where antisocial behavior is prevalent. Employment can change the self-concept of marginal youths and give them the confidence to adopt a pro-social lifestyle. - Moving away from the old neighborhood. The physical and social environment of a disorganized neighborhood is responsible for many of the antisocial motivations of adolescence-limited delinquents. Once removed from this neighborhood, they find it possible to adopt a more positive lifestyle. Separating from other marginal youths, whose response to limited resources is breaking the law, enables many youths to make new friends who have more positive views on life. If the neighborhood is economically distressed, moving to a new neighborhood or new city may also provide a broader array of resources and opportunities to change one's behavior.

These theories are known by several terms, but the most common appellations are "conflict" and "critical." In this chapter, we will study several types of conflict and critical theories that consider the following:

- how the government defines acts as criminal; - how personal or group power shapes the criminal law and guides the criminal justice system; and - how an economic system, such as capitalism or communism, can determine what is defined as crime and how punishment is determined and meted out. Conflict and critical theories may seem much like sociological theories at first, but they are quite different. Sociological theories consider crime to originate with the individual, whereas conflict and critical theories consider crime to be rooted in society itself. Before we move on to traditional conflict and critical theories, however, we should review the theory that bridges the gap between sociological theory and conflict and critical theories. Labeling theory does this by shifting the focus on the genesis of crime from individuals—those who are labeled—to those who do the labeling: governments and social institutions such as schools and the family.

According to Farrington, antisocial potential lies along an age-related continuum. Most people engage in minor antisocial behavior during youth, then cease as they age. Delinquents engage in high antisocial behavior during youth but cease upon adulthood, although a few continue (see arrows). Some pro-social adults break the law but only under certain conditions, such as inebriation or anger. Career and minor offenders are antisocial their entire lives; it is just a matter of degree.

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At its broadest level, full implementation of feminist theory would require fundamental changes in the allocation of power and privilege in a patriarchal society. It would require that women receive broader educational opportunities, better enforcement of child-support laws, improved support for child care and dealing with workplace sexual harassment, and stronger measures to alleviate the violence against women that appears to be inherent in patriarchal cultures. As men and women become more aware of the role of gender in culture and crime, improvements will likely be made in the socialization of males and females and in the ways that institutions deal with gender-based prejudice, discrimination, and violence.

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Life-course-persistent offenders are unable to break the cycle of crime and continue to break the law well into adulthood and perhaps for the rest of their lives.

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Moffitt states that adolescent-limited delinquents engage in antisocial behavior as they age into adolescence due to social mimicry (their friends break the law, so they do, too) and low maturity. As these delinquents age out of adolescence, they are eventually deterred from antisocial behavior by positive influences.

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Cultural criminology

A concept that examines how social ideas, values, and media reflect and produce antisocial behavior. • Gang apparel and gang signs. Like sports teams, gang members must identify themselves to each other and to rivals, typically with distinctive clothing, special hand gestures, and graffiti. Cultural criminologists consider how these markers symbolize authenticity and power. By understanding how these symbolic behaviors define what is important to gang members, cultural criminologists can better explain why gang conflicts are often more about identity, status, and respect than about disputes over territory or illegal markets. To the broader society, gang activity looks negative, non-utilitarian, and wasteful. However, gang members understand their behavior to be rational and protective of the symbolic meaning of being in a specific gang. • Media representation of the war on drugs. Cultural criminologists consider how the war on drugs attempts to change not only behavior, but also opinions about certain drugs. In an attempt to decrease the demand for drugs, the government has used the media to demonize some drugs and marginalize the people who sell and buy them. Cultural criminologists study how the government and other social institutions wage this war, as well as how drug sellers and users respond to media influence. The media's role in the war on drugs is important because it has set the political agenda so that politicians cannot afford to be seen as soft on drugs and crime. Therefore, despite conflicting information about the actual harm some drugs cause, drugs such as marijuana are represented as uniformly bad. Nicotine is a good example of the media manipulation of the public perception of drugs. Until the 1970s, the media portrayed the smoking of cigarettes and cigars as sexy and sophisticated. Now that tobacco smoking is considered to be harmful to the health of smokers and those around them, only the "bad guys" smoke in movies and on television. • Cultural space and crime control. Cultural criminologists study how subcultures and the authorities contest public space. An obvious example of this study is how homeless people are treated throughout the United States. Although homeless people present a significant social problem, in many places they are treated as a public nuisance and embarrassment. Prior to the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, for example, authorities made a concerted effort to encourage homeless people to leave the city. Similarly, skateboarders are problematic for municipal authorities. Although skateboarding is not illegal, some people consider skateboarders who gather in parking garages, public parks, and malls to be a nuisance. Cultural criminologists look at how authorities attempt to discourage the congregation of skateboarders, as well as how they define their behavior, communicate their culture, and resist social control. • Images of authorities. Criminal justice system administrators work hard to manage the impression they give to politicians and the public. One interesting example is the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams that have become a fixture in large police agencies. These teams' duties often put them in dangerous situations, and they have structured their image to resemble that of the military. According to criminologist Peter Kraska, SWAT teams' special paramilitary weapons and clothing have gained a unique and highly valued identity within the police organization. The mere presence of SWAT teams can sometimes be enough to resolve a potentially violent situation. However, SWAT weapons and clothing can also be problematic as citizens sometimes think they are under attack. Sometimes SWAT teams make a mistake by entering the wrong residence, frightening and assaulting innocent citizens. One aspect of cultural criminology that is particularly ripe for research is how some television news programs focus on one particular case and burn it deeply into the public consciousness. Often, these cases involve celebrities or individuals who evoke deep public sympathy or scorn. For example, although the O. J. Simpson murder trial took place in the mid-1990s, it still stands as a landmark case because it set a new standard for crime as cultural spectacle. The case featured a celebrity football star and television personality accused of slaying his attractive white, blonde wife, as well her handsome, young male visitor; an automobile chase; and a televised public trial. The case, however, provided a distorted image of how the criminal justice system operates. Few people can afford Simpson's legal representation or command the constant media coverage and speculation that provided a level of examination virtually no other case has received before or since. Cultural criminologists point out that people who are less interesting to the media because of their minority status or physical appearance are murdered all the time with little coverage of their cases. Still, the effect of such intense media attention is that criminal justice administrators may feel pressured to allocate more resources to a case at the expense of others. Cultural criminology makes an important contribution to the study of crime and delinquency because it reminds us that we do not know everything about crime and antisocial behavior or about how images of lawbreaking are produced and transmitted to the public. By understanding how the criminal justice system, victims, and offenders attempt to manage their images in the media, cultural criminology reveals that the quality of justice often reflects social standing. Cultural criminology considers issues far beyond the criminal justice system as it attempts to explain why people break the law and how society reacts. For instance, the use of symbols by street gangs may be interesting to scholars and useful to police, but little can be done to suppress this behavior without violating gang members' rights of free speech. Similarly, although gang graffiti is a problem, law enforcement does not typically handle clearing it from public spaces. Although graffiti may have implications for criminology, it is the responsibility of other social institutions to deal with it. In another example, although cultural criminology considers the linkage between video games and crime, the criminal justice system can do little to respond to such speculation. Therefore, many of the concerns of cultural criminology, though theoretically interesting, are beyond the purview of the criminal justice system. The policy implications of cultural criminology include evaluating and examining how the news media report and often sensationalize crime. Cultural criminology examines the role of violence in the media and how it affects its most avid consumers, children and teenagers, as well as society as a whole. Responsible coverage is encouraged rather than the sensationalizing of cases with particularly sexual or emotional aspects. Cultural criminology also proposes finding more positive outlets for the energies and creativity of young people by, for example, supporting sports or music programs in urban areas that have few opportunities for positive or legitimate expression.

Conflict theory spawned critical theory, which eventually became the larger body of theories. Conflict theory is now a part of critical theory, along with several other theories of crime. Note that each theory has a specific means by which it performs its critique. Labeling theory uses social expectations, peacemaking criminology uses social justice, and so on around the circle.

A final key to understanding critical and conflict theories is the proper definition of the word political. Although we most often use "political" in relation to government, it also refers to the relationships of people in groups and their activities. The definition and prosecution of crime have political dimensions. That is, people working in groups decide what constitutes crime and how society deals with offenses and offenders. The social identity of these groups affects their decisions about crime. Groups typically tasked with defining crime and how it is dealt with are often wealthy, male, white, and well into adulthood. According to critical and conflict theorists, the political identity of this group affects what it decides to do about crime and whom it classifies as criminals.

Discuss why conflict theory asserts that social institutions contribute more to crime than individual behavior.

A good example is the offense of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. A wealthy or even middle-class person arrested for this offense can pay the bail amount and get out of jail before going to court. An impoverished person who cannot pay bail will sit in jail until the court date. The wealthy person can hire the best legal representation, which may seriously affect the sentence. The impoverished person will have to make do with the attorney the state provides, who might not be the best available. According to the Texas Defender Service, death row inmates—who tend to be impoverished and of low social class—have a one-in-three chance of being executed without having claims of innocence or unfairness heard and without a competent attorney investigating their cases Social institutions and the resources and ideas for solving problems are largely handed down from the past, especially in the case of criminal justice and criminological theory. To understand our laws and methods of criminal justice and its theoretical critiques, we must first understand where they came from and how they have changed

postmodern criminology

A perspective that focuses on how language and traditional ideas affect how we define and perceive crime, the law, and society.

life-course theory

A perspective that focuses on the development of antisocial behavior, risk factors at different ages, and the effect of life events on individual development.

total institution

A place in which rigid rules and regulations, such as dress and communication, are clearly defined and strictly enforced.

scientific method

A process of investigation in which phenomena are observed, ideas are tested, and conclusions are drawn.

conflict theory

A set of criminological propositions based on the philosophy of Karl Marx holding that antisocial behavior stems from class conflict and social and economic inequality.

Critical race theory

A set of legalistic perspectives holding that racial inequity is so ingrained in society that it is propagated through legal and social discourse.

feminist criminology

A set of theories holding that gender inequality is at the root of offenses in which women are the victims or offenders.

master status

A social standing that takes precedence over all others.

secondary deviance

A stage that occurs when labeled individuals internalize the label and see themselves as devalued members of society.

primary deviance

A stage that occurs when society reacts to an individual's actions, successfully labels that individual, and acts upon that label.

intersectionality

A term referring to the intersections of two or more social categorizations such as race, class, color, gender, age, and sex and the added challenges of discrimination faced by individuals at those intersections.

List and briefly describe at least three critical theories.

According to critical theory, the definitions of crime and justice are located within a social system that is based on and perpetuates social inequality. Although based on conflict theory, critical theories not only describe and critique the social structure, but they also actively seek solutions to the problems of crime and criminal justice. A historical example of what critical theory would critique is the practice of slavery in the United States prior to the 20th century and the legal apparatus surrounding it. Slave owners were often wealthy and powerful, and, as a result, were often considered to be the backbone of their communities. Today, it is easy to see the paradox of law-abiding, often religious, people perpetuating a deep moral wrong. However, prior to the U.S. Civil War, many people considered slavery to be normal and just. To perpetuate this social order, slave laws defined the rights of the owners and the role of the enslaved, and those who broke these laws often faced criminal penalties. These laws were written by powerful and wealthy slave owners to benefit themselves and control the powerless slaves. If a slave broke a law, the problem was considered to be not with the law but with the slave. Thus, society's idea of justice was deeply rooted in social inequality. Although laws are generally regarded as desirable and necessary for a working society, slave laws existed to uphold an unjust order that benefited a wealthy few. Slavery was so entrenched in the United States that it was dislodged only by civil war. This is evidence of how difficult it is to alter social paradigms and change individuals' cherished beliefs about their societies. The critical theories we will consider in the rest of this chapter seek to change social paradigms they consider to contribute to social injustice and crime.

Individuals' experiences in these five life domains influence whether they choose to conform to conventional society or turn to a delinquent or criminal lifestyle. Good experiences can constrain people against crime by encouraging a high level of self-control and a stake in conformity, as well as by exposing them to interactions with others who share a commitment to law-abiding behavior. Conversely, negative experiences in these life domains can expose individuals to antisocial role models, strain, a belief that crime is beneficial, and a conviction that crime and delinquency can be profitable on a financial or social level. These negative experiences can draw an individual deeper into antisocial behavior.

As noted earlier, Agnew emphasizes the interdependent nature of the five life domains. For instance, a person who is performing poorly in school is likely to seek out peers who share his or her frustration with the educational system. Those already engaged in delinquency might be labeled by teachers as troublemakers, and such labeling can have a negative effect on their performance in school. Negative experiences in several of these life domains increase the chances of an individual turning to criminal and delinquent activities. Agnew brings life-course theory into his perspective by pointing out that the influences of each of the five life domains vary as one ages. These influences are stronger for adolescents than for adults, and the opportunity for commitment to conventional society increases as the individual ages and has opportunities to get well-paying work or enter a satisfying relationship.

Social Location

Before we get into individual theories, you should become familiar with several terms related to social location, or the position of an individual within society according to race, sex, class, gender, and, to a lesser extent, age. Sometimes people are identified with antisocial behavior, even if they have broken no laws, because of social location. Social location influences status, opportunities, and obligations. Only by understanding our social location can we appreciate how broad social forces, primarily through social institutions, influence our lives.

reintegrative shaming

Braithwaite's term to describe punishment that seeks to repair the harm done by the offender and offense and draw the offender into society.

Control Balance Theory

Charles Tittle developed control balance theory to explain a broad range of antisocial acts. His ambitious theory integrates several perspectives in an effort to provide a comprehensive understanding of why people break the law. This necessarily brief overview of Tittle's complicated theory will demonstrate not only the encompassing range of this theory, but also the degree to which it integrates several other sociological explanations. Control balance theory rests on the concepts of "control deficit" and "control surplus" (see Figure 7.3). Individuals are constantly seeking to control their lives. All persons experience a control ratio that reflects their status in society, the roles they play, their physical and personal characteristics, their integration with organizations, and the quality of their interpersonal relationships. Tittle's theory states that this control ratio is the starting point for understanding crime and delinquency. Those who have more control exerted on them than they exert are likely to break the law. Those who have a surplus of control are also likely to engage in antisocial behavior.

The longitudinal approach has its drawbacks, however. The longer the period under consideration, the greater the likelihood of attrition, or loss, of subjects. That is, as the study continues over a period of years, some subjects might decline to continue to participate in the study, the researchers might be unable to find some of the subjects, or some subjects may die. Thus, there are many more subjects early in the research than in the later stages. The loss of subjects would not be a big problem if we could assume there was no systematic bias between the groups at various stages of the study. However, it is possible that subjects who cannot be found are incarcerated, were killed while breaking the law, or ultimately abandoned the criminal lifestyle and left the jurisdiction. There is no way to be sure that the remaining group of subjects accurately represents the original group. Nevertheless, the longitudinal data used by life-course theorists are useful in developing a more detailed picture of an individual's commitment to a criminal career or the factors that enable a delinquent to adopt a conventional lifestyle. Many social programs that address child development and delinquency focus on the life course.

Child psychologists have long been interested in children's developmental processes and have developed several perspectives that account for many variables. We covered some of these perspectives in Chapter 5. Criminologists are now studying developmental processes to see if this perspective better explains antisocial behavior. Let's turn now to three types of developmental theories of crime and examine how they employ the life-course perspective to better explain antisocial behavior. https://prnt.sc/dWX5E1VvMwYe The number of arrests peaks at age 24. In 2016, individuals 18 years of age and over accounted for 91 percent of all arrests.

Shifting the Focus

Conflict and critical theories of crime suggest that there is more to deviant behavior than simply an offender's bad decisions. These theories suggest that some of the broad social policies that are the foundation of American society may be partially at fault. This is a sensitive and sometimes uncomfortable issue because it can challenge some of our most deeply held beliefs about human nature, the role of power in society, and the culpability of individuals for the harm they do to others. Nevertheless, by examining some of the policy implications suggested by conflict and critical theories, we can better understand not only how some groups of people are overrepresented in the criminal justice system, but also how inequities might be addressed. The following is a brief list of policy implications that may stem from these theories. • Conflict theory. This theory addresses how capitalism might be reformed so that individuals are fully compensated for their labor. By looking at the dynamics of capitalism, it is possible to suggest ways that wealth can be spread more evenly across the population rather than having it accrue to only a few. This type of analysis challenges people to think about concerns such as power, entrepreneurship, risk-taking, and economic rewards for creativity. • Peacemaking criminology. This theory suggests that the "war on crime" is often counterproductive to the goals of the criminal justice system. It argues against making a criminal class out of offenders and suggests that redemption is possible if the criminal justice system is not so focused on deterrence and punishment. Peacemaking criminology observes that most people change their behavior and that policies that accelerate positive change can be developed. • Feminist theory. This theory suggests that by challenging the patriarchal structure of society, justice can be achieved for everyone, not just the males who have historically had power. By ensuring that everyone is treated equally regardless of their sex, feminist criminology seeks to ensure that females have equal employment opportunities in the criminal justice system; that female offenders are provided with adequate resources for their rehabilitation; and that female crime victims, especially those of domestic assault, are treated with justice and respect. • Critical race theory. This theory is concerned with developing policies that highlight how race is an important factor in determining who is arrested, sentenced, and punished. Critical race theory looks at issues such as racial profiling and the overrepresentation of minorities in correctional institutions. The strength of these theories lies in their challenge of the status quo. They require that legislators consider the effect of the laws they enact on disadvantaged groups. An efficient criminal justice system is not necessarily an effective one. To gain the trust of society, the criminal justice system must dispense justice in an even-handed manner. Conflict and critical theories of crime help to analyze the quality of justice. The solutions that conflict criminology suggests are so sweeping and fundamental that it is unlikely they will be uniformly adopted in the United States in the near future. Still, conflict theory has much to contribute to the examination of crime. The economic gulf between the wealthiest Americans and the most impoverished is so great that many scholars continue to question the legitimacy of the capitalist system when viewed in the light of social justice

Peacemaking criminology

Criminological perspective that considers the social and personal effects of crime as a whole.

critical theory

Criminological perspectives that describe and critique the social structure and seek solutions to the problems of crime and criminal justice.

The Politics of Theory

Criminological theory informs public policy, so it is useful to look behind the scenes of academia to see how professional rivalries, research strategies, and even the selection of what to study become important factors in how new theories influence the field. John Laub and Robert Sampson analyzed the decade-long debate between Edwin Sutherland, who developed the differential association theory of delinquency, and Sheldon and Eleanor Glueck, who championed the more interdisciplinary approach that informs life-course criminological theory today. Sutherland was a well-known and highly respected sociologist who contended that delinquency should be studied by sociologists. The more interdisciplinary Gluecks, on the other hand, published in leading journals in criminology, social work, psychology, sociology, education, law, and psychiatry. The debate between Sutherland and the Gluecks can be simplified by looking at the differences in how they conducted their research. Sutherland's differential association is essentially a learning theory of crime; consequently, there was little room for the multiple explanations the Gluecks offered. Sutherland's attack on the Gluecks' work marginalized them even as his own fame in the discipline grew. The Gluecks were at a disadvantage because they did not hold traditional academic posts. Sheldon Glueck, who had a background in the humanities and law, taught at Harvard Law School. Eleanor Glueck, who never secured a teaching position at Harvard, worked as a research assistant and, according to Laub and Sampson, was somewhat of an outcast at Harvard. Furthermore, the Gluecks did not train PhD students, unlike Sutherland, whose students advanced and popularized his differential association theory. Sampson and Laub credit the Gluecks with developing the study of crime and delinquency in ways that were ahead of their time and contend that the Gluecks' ideas are central to the development of integrated and life-course theories. They identify four areas in which the Gluecks' work has been especially influential. · Age and crime. The relationship between age and crime is now well established. Laub and Sampson are building on the Gluecks' data, which remains some of the most important evidence for life-course theory. · Career criminals and longitudinal research. The Gluecks pioneered the use of longitudinal research to study crime and delinquency. Although some academics dismiss the "career criminal" concept and do not see the utility of longitudinal research, much current research is based on the Gluecks' work. · Stability of crime and deviance. The Gluecks argued that antisocial behavior and deviance remain remarkably stable across the life course. According to Laub and Sampson, later research has substantiated this idea. · Social control, family, and delinquency. The Gluecks studied the role of the family, schools, and informal sanctions in an effort to determine the cause of delinquency. Today, many criminologists who consider how the family and other institutions affect juveniles agree that these are significant social relationships.

Pathways to Crime

Criminologist Terrie Moffitt offers another influential developmental theory of crime. According to Moffitt, young offenders fall into one of two categories: delinquents who are adolescence-limited—that is, their antisocial behavior is restricted to the teenage years—and life-course-persistent offenders, whose antisocial behavior continues throughout adulthood (see Figures 7.2a and 7.2b on pages 182 and 184). The adolescence-limited delinquent breaks the law only during youth. Life-course-persistent offenders are youths who are unable to break the cycle of crime and maintain that lifestyle into adulthood. Life-course-persistent offenders are what we would call "career criminals" and are never fully integrated into conventional society.

A major criticism of critical race theory is that by looking at crime and delinquency through the prism of race, the contributions of other social institutions, such as family, schools, and the media, might be devalued. Sexism, ageism, and social-class bias, in addition to race, provide a more holistic view of inequality. By privileging race as an explanatory factor, critical race theory might discount other equally important factors. Further, the reliance on personal narrative, while purposefully getting away from the scientific method, might disregard other important empirical evidence. Social scientists who depend on sophisticated measuring techniques and statistics are especially suspicious of the narrative form because it is difficult to verify independently.

Critical race theory has some policy implications in the criminal justice system. The first important area to consider is how laws are made. When people are systematically excluded from the lawmaking process, it is almost certain their concerns will be excluded, too. Groups who are able to put their members in positions of power are best able to ensure their value system is encoded into the law. In addition, the wealthy can hire lobbyists and develop educational materials to ensure that their viewpoints are considered in the making of laws. The challenge, then, is for minorities to see that their values are encoded in the law. This is not as simple as it seems.95 Take, for instance, the earlier example of crack cocaine. People of color are no more likely than whites to advocate the legalization of crack cocaine. However, they are concerned about the severity of the sentences allocated to crack users and sellers when compared to other substances, especially powder cocaine. When such disparities exist, critical race theorists argue that the law is aimed not at public safety but rather at the social control of marginal groups. Therefore, critical race theorists advocate examining the underlying assumptions behind the law to determine whether a race-related agenda is being implemented throughout the criminal justice system. Critical race theory recognizes that gains have been made in the legal system regarding racism, but it still considers the task to be incomplete. Structural and sometimes subtle disadvantages based on race are encoded in the law and must be closely examined to see how the criminal justice system can operate more fairly. At one level, this means including minority groups in the criminal justice system at all levels. More important, it means bringing a new awareness to the role of race in the criminal justice system

Critical Race Theory

Critical race theory is a set of propositions holding that racial inequity is so ingrained in society that it is propagated through legal and social discourse. The development of a theoretical perspective of race is not as advanced as those of class and gender. However, significant scholarship outside criminology details how race is related to many important issues in health care, education, crime, and the criminal justice system. Critical race theory is the most extensive theoretical development of race as a social category that influences power. Critical race theory proposes three basic principles. • The normality of racism in American culture. The purpose of critical race theory is to eliminate racism by revealing how deeply ingrained it is within American culture. • The value of story-telling. Critical race theory uses personal narrative or story-telling to allow oppressed groups to speak from their own experiences and describe their realities. • The critique of liberalism. Traditional liberal perspectives in terms of historical and current racial reforms are not radical enough to bring about the fundamental changes necessary for equality and justice Critical race theory presents important alternative perspectives for looking at how laws are written. Institutional racism has afflicted the United States throughout its history. Even after slavery was abolished, racial minorities continued to be oppressed because of laws that supported the dominant white majority and prohibited minorities from participating in much of society. In the second half of the 20th century, the civil rights movement challenged the status quo and successfully eliminated overt institutional discrimination in state and federal law. Despite the successes in challenging institutional discrimination, critical race theorists still see disadvantages for people of color. The disadvantages are not as overt as they were in the past, but they can be significant in the lives and careers of those who are subject to even indirect racial discrimination.75 For example, although affirmative-action policies have brought opportunity and hope to many people of color, critical race theorists have criticized them as limiting rather than emancipating. Sometimes people attribute the success of a person of color to affirmative action rather than to personal ability. Critical race theorists assert that governments have singled out race as an identifying factor in dispensing justice. Examples of how race has been a deciding factor in the dispensation of justice include the resettlement of U.S. citizens of Japanese descent in the United States during World War II, the Jim Crow laws of the South in the early 20th century, and the treatment of American Indians by the U.S. government. Critical race theorists also call attention to subtle uses of race to assert control. One example is that the media tend to give more extensive coverage to criminal offenses that affect white people than those that affect people of color. (See Doubletake for a discussion of what has been called "missing white woman syndrome.") Another example, according to law professor Dorothy E. Roberts, is that some drug laws are aimed primarily at people of color and are used to influence reproductive rights. She cites the example of how the state of Florida used a mother's drug addiction as a way to discourage impoverished, black women addicts from caring for their babies. In the case Roberts described, the two babies of a woman who admitted she had smoked crack cocaine shortly before the delivery of both tested positive for traces of cocaine. In Florida, mothers cannot be charged with passing substances to their children while in the womb. So, the prosecutor argued that the mother passed the drug to her children after they were born but before they were detached from the umbilical cord. The mother was then found guilty of giving her children cocaine. Because the effect of this legal precedent fell most heavily on black persons, critical race theorists argue that it was race-based. Critical race theorists have also scrutinized racial profiling, the disproportionate selection by law enforcement of minority suspects. Critics of the criminal justice system have long suspected that people of color are incarcerated at a higher rate because of racism. Studies have shown that when a white person and a person of color are engaged in the same type of behavior, the police are more likely to confront the person of color. Law enforcement officials contend that race is not at issue, but rather the perceptions of experienced police officers that certain people in certain circumstances are more likely to break the law than others.

Cultural Criminology

Cultural criminology examines how social ideas, values, and media reflect and produce antisocial behavior. Some of the concerns of cultural criminology are the modeling of police agencies after the military, such as the use of uniforms and ranks, and depictions of crime on television and in film. The images and symbols used by graffiti writers, gang members, and the tattoo and body modification industry are all concerns of the cultural criminologist.53 Cultural criminology borrows much from media studies and cultural sociology. These disciplines look at how individuals, small groups, and deviant subcultures construct meaning and transmit it to a wider audience.54 Cultural criminology adopts this perspective to better comprehend how crime is either culturally supported or culturally discouraged by everyday social structures. Here are a few examples.

Integrated Cognitive Antisocial Potential Theory

David Farrington's integrated cognitive antisocial potential theory (ICAP) integrates ideas from many classic criminological theories, including strain, control, learning, labeling, routine activities, rational choice, and biological theories. The theory is complicated, but the simplified explanation provided here gives a general idea of how ICAP works. According to ICAP, elements from these theories affect what Farrington calls antisocial potential, or an individual's likelihood of breaking the law by engaging in antisocial behavior. A person's antisocial potential is unique, like a fingerprint. Imagine the amount of antisocial potential among all individuals in society as running along a continuum from low to high. At the low end of the continuum are some people who are highly unlikely to engage in antisocial behavior; at the high end are some people who are very likely to do so. The antisocial potential of most people lies between the two extremes, with clustering toward the low end of the continuum. Another continuum describing antisocial potential represents age. The prime antisocial years fall between adolescence and young adulthood, with antisocial potential (and behavior) peaking during the late teens. Most people stop antisocial activities not long after this period; however, some people continue until later into adulthood and others continue throughout their lifetimes (see Figure 7.5). After peaking during adolescence, the amount of antisocial potential remains fairly consistent over the life course.

antisocial potential

Farrington's term to describe an individual's likelihood of breaking the law by engaging in antisocial behavior.

Feminist Criminology

Feminist criminology is a set of theories maintaining that gender inequality is at the root of offenses in which female persons are the victims or offenders. It deals with the many issues and problems related to females, crime, and the criminal justice system, including incarcerated females, women in the criminal justice workplace, and gender aspects of victimization. Crime has traditionally been the province of men. Male persons are arrested more often than female persons, and most crime victims are male (see Figure 8.3). More males are incarcerated, and most criminal justice system workers, especially those in prisons, are male. In a patriarchal society—that is, a society that is controlled by men—crime is one of the most patriarchal institutions. However, because of the strides that feminism has made in gender equality, women can now be found at virtually every level of the criminal justice system, from judges to offenders. A substantial body of literature applies the feminist perspective to issues of crime and justice. Feminist criminology not only critiques male-centric theories, but also creates hypotheses about crime and gender. For example, in the 1970s, Freda Adler and Rita Simons proposed the "liberation hypothesis," which states that the social equalization of females and males means that females will begin committing the same types and numbers of offenses as males. More recent theories also consider the ways in which the criminal justice system manages female persons. The "evil woman" hypothesis, for example, proposes that the criminal justice system treats women and girls who do not meet gender expectations (for example, those who do not act "feminine") differently than it does those who do.

List some of Moffitt's personal and environmental influences on life-course-persistent offending.

Finally, sociological variables contribute to delinquents' immersion into a life course of crime. Impoverished neighborhoods, antisocial peers, and faulty family structure all contribute to antisocial behavior. This complex of biological, psychological, and sociological factors is persuasive but difficult to measure. Moffitt states that all these factors must be considered when studying the life-course-persistent offender. The life-course-persistent offender theory may be viewed as a process rather than as a static point. As individuals with negative behavioral traits interact with their negative environment, their negative traits are reinforced, which in turn, leads to antisocial behavior. As Figure 7.2a shows, this process accelerates the youth's immersion into antisocial behavior and a life of crime. A person with a long history of negative behaviors will likely have difficulty breaking the cycle and entering conventional society. Some individuals have very little experience at behaving in socially approved ways and so develop alternative mechanisms such as lying, cheating, and stealing to achieve their goals. Repeated exposure to negative systems exacerbates their antisocial behavior, and the process starts all over again.

Control balance theory considers how such situational provocations can motivate a person to break the law but can be counterbalanced by external constraints. These constraints can be a situational risk, such as store security cameras or police officers patrolling a neighborhood. Another constraint on involvement in delinquency and crime is the seriousness of breaking the law and the punishments associated with it. With this constraint, Tittle integrates the principles of the deterrence perspective into control balance theory.

Finally, the opportunity to break the law and the motivation to take risks are weighed against both external and internal constraints to produce either a control balance surplus or a control balance deficit. Those who have either an extreme surplus or an extreme deficit are much more likely to break the law than those who exhibit a more balanced ratio between the freedom they have to affect their behavior versus the constraints exerted on them by the community, schools, and parents. The crux of control balance theory is the perception of the amount of control individuals have over their lives. Some people bounce like pinballs from one situational provocation to another and are never able to exert agency or direction on their behaviors. Other people have a surplus of control and see this power as an opportunity to take advantage of situations by engaging in antisocial behavior. Although Tittle's theory is complicated, it is useful in encouraging scholars to think about the connections among many of the traditional psychological and sociological theories of crime and deviance. Tittle's integration of theoretical perspectives is difficult to test because it includes so many factors whose relationships to crime are unclear and also because it is hard to construct research designed to investigate how they are related.

antisocial

Following standards of behavior intended to harm society and individuals.

This review of conflict and critical theories requires us to consider how the effects of gender, sex, race, color, ethnicity, and sexuality produce offender motivations, as well as reactions by the criminal justice system. The term intersectionality encompasses the vulnerabilities of multiple statuses of citizens caught up in the legal system.

For example, a woman may be exposed to discrimination within the criminal justice system, but that problem can become more complicated when she is also a racial or ethnic minority, pursues an alternative sexual lifestyle, is impoverished, and/or is considered to be a juvenile.

Life-course theory focuses on three issues: the development of antisocial behavior, risk factors at different ages, and the effect of life events on individual development.7 Life-course theories are constructed using longitudinal data, which means the same individuals are examined at different points in their life course. This dynamic type of theory is significantly different from the static theories that look at the subject at one point in time and do not consider the full context of the person's environment. These "snapshot" theories can neither measure nor explain subsequent changes in behavior.

For example, young people account for a large number of arrests. As you can see in Figure 7.1, the number of arrests peaks at age 24. After that, the number of arrests drops off regularly by age group. The major advantage of the longitudinal study methodology used in life-course theories is that it can examine the stability or variability of an individual's behavior as the person ages and matures. The opening scenario depicts Blane Nordahl, who is a life-course offender. Although it is not known if Nordahl ever broke the law during childhood and adolescence, once he started breaking the law as a young adult, he did not stop. Was he simply an antisocial late bloomer? Or were there warning signs early on that went unnoticed? Longitudinal studies allow researchers to observe the behaviors of offenders like Nordahl that are part of the normal maturation process and to determine which factors or conditions contribute to antisocial behavior and crime.

Social Support Theory

Francis Cullen has developed a different sort of integrated theory of crime and delinquency. Social support theory shows the advantages of integrating different criminological perspectives into a coherent paradigm that addresses a broad range of crime as well as several motivations and policy implications. Rather than selecting components from other theories, Cullen concentrates on the theme of social support that is implicit in many of the other theories, and he uses 10 propositions to construct an integrated theory around this theme. This unique way of integrating concepts from other theories develops a convincing case for social support at both micro and macro levels (see Figure 7.4). Social support influences not only individuals' decisions (micro level) but also how social institutions (macro level) contribute to the United States' relatively high crime rate. Cullen's concept of social support has four important constructs. · Social support not only is an objective factor, but is also subject to individual perception. Cullen means that the influence of social support might vary according to how it is perceived. Perception of the influence of social support has important implications for how rehabilitation programs might address the psychological barriers offenders encounter in trying to bond with society. For instance, rehabilitation programs can do a better job of explaining to the offender the importance of the social support system, such as parents, school counselors, and clergy. · Social support is both instrumental and expressive. Instrumental support can be conceived of as situations in which offenders receive concrete aid in the form of finding a job, being granted a scholarship, or getting a loan. Instrumental support is necessary at a variety of levels for individuals to advance their social situation and integrate into society. Expressive social support deals with the relationships that offenders have with significant others. In interactions with friends and family, frustrations are vented, needs for love and affection are met, and feelings of companionship and belonging are developed. · Social support at the macro level is the influence of social networks and communities that connect individuals to society. Everyone is attached to larger groups in different ways, and the extent of the connections and commitments to these groups directly influences the propensity to engage in antisocial behavior. · Social support encompasses both informal and formal relations with others but distinguishes between them. Informal relationships include interactions with friends who have no official role in institutions of social control. Formal relations include interactions with authority figures, such as teachers and police officers, whose job is to encourage good behavior and sanction bad behavior.

RALF DAHRENDORF

German sociologist Ralf Dahrendorf (1929-2009) considered social class to be defined by power rather than property.17 In his view, groups that desired domination opposed groups that attempted to avoid subjugation, and he considered the interactions of these two groups to be the source of constant social conflict. As each group seeks to legitimize its power over other groups, the political process causes infighting, political maneuvering, and coercion. A contemporary example of these ideas is the controversy over drug laws. Some groups are comfortable with the "war on drugs," whereas others see this policy as contributing more problems than it solves. For example, some organizations are attempting to influence public policy through legitimate ways to decriminalize marijuana, while other groups are pressing hard to not only keep marijuana illegal, but also to maintain severe punishments for users and dealers.

lumpenproletariat

In Marxism, the lowest social class, which was characterized by lack of skill, disorganization, and impoverishment.

Like life-course-persistent offenders, adolescence-limited delinquents are affected by biological factors related to puberty. Adolescent males are especially affected. Increases in testosterone compel males to engage in riskier behavior and activities aimed at attracting or impressing the opposite sex.

In addition to the biological effects of puberty, teenagers' changing status as they enter high school also affects the development of adolescence-limited delinquency. Moffitt uses the term "social mimicry" to describe young teenagers' attempt to control their environment and make a place for themselves in their social hierarchy by copying the behavior of their supposedly more mature older peers. Moffitt suggests that youngsters envy older peers whom they see as having a more mature status that is associated with power and privilege. By attempting to control their own lives, even though doing so might mean engaging in delinquent behavior, these youths seek to develop an independent self-concept that demonstrates to themselves and the rest of the world that they have the power and resources to do what they want. They seek autonomy and self-reliance through delinquency because other, more conventional adaptations require harder work, demand higher social status, or are nonexistent.

Define social location and discuss its relationship to antisocial behavior.

In the preceding theory chapters, we studied how criminologists look to biological, psychological, and social factors to account for antisocial behavior. Theories that consider offenders to be defective, different, or culpable suggest that the remedy for crime is to punish or treat lawbreakers and to deter potential lawbreakers. However, other ways of considering crime and delinquency shift the focus away from the individual offender and toward the role of social institutions and political dynamics. For example, in the case of Jarrett Adams, Dimitri Henley, and Rovaughn Hill, the institution and political dynamics of the court, the ability or inability to afford a private attorney, and each man's understanding (or misunderstanding) of how courts work all played a major role in how they were treated by the court.

Crime Is Complicated

In this chapter, life-course theories of crime present some interesting concerns regarding the development of criminal justice policy. One observation we can take away from these theories is that people break the law for complicated reasons. Dealing with offenders may require more than fixing their diet (biological theories), monitoring their peers (differential association), or providing them with an education so they can compete economically (classical strain theory). It may require most or all of these things. By understanding the pathways and turning points in a criminal career, it is possible to design programs that take advantage of these observations and intervene in the lives of those who break the law. Sometimes timing is everything. Providing educational opportunities or employment training at critical times can mean the difference in offenders becoming invested in society or turning their back on it. For instance, Cullen's social support theory suggests that families and communities can do much to provide everyone (not just offenders) with the institutional support to prevent potential delinquents and offenders from breaking the law. The key is to provide individuals with enough support to overcome negative peer and neighborhood influences. This integrated theory takes advantage of the principles of numerous sociological and psychological theories and combines them to envision a more comprehensive social support system. The tough part of selling life-course and integrated theories of crime to criminal justice decision-makers is that the solutions these theories suggest encompass comprehensive programs that are indirectly concerned with crime and delinquency. Therefore, funding for such programs may be difficult to obtain or may require policymakers to have a more expansive view of how to intervene in deviant behavior. For instance, although a great deal of money is spent on education, less is spent on the education of those caught up in the juvenile and criminal justice systems. It is difficult to get policymakers to allocate additional funds for inmate populations. Similarly, recreational programs designed to keep kids off the street are not considered to be crime-prevention programs and so are not eligible for criminal justice funding. Without adequate funds, the criminal justice and juvenile justice systems cannot always take up the slack. When major institutions such as the family, the schools, and the community fail to integrate youths into conventional society, the justice system must deal with their failures. Life-course and integrated theories argue for greater coordination and cooperation between all institutions.

Much of the same manipulation and corruption are happening in Russia today. Unbridled capitalism has allowed former Communist Party members to amass monopolies on key industries and products. The old Soviet Union's relatively stable, albeit somewhat impoverished, economic system has given way to Russia's incredible inflation, shortages of goods and services, and a dangerous economic system in which power politics and physical force allow some in business to become billionaires while many people starve.

It is probably not fair to compare the emerging Russian economy during the 1990s to other forms of capitalism because it was a time of rapid and overwhelming social change. The discussion we present here simply shows that those who advocate unbridled capitalism may find that its actual practice is devastating in terms of social equality. For example, China has moved toward capitalism more slowly, adopting some capitalist ideas, thus merging aspects of capitalism and communism.14 The ultimate effect these countries' new policies will have on their crime rates remains to be seen.

Moffitt identifies four changes in the life circumstances of adolescence-limited delinquents that inspire desistance from crime.

Joining the military Marrying a pro-social spouse Getting a full time job Moving away from the old neighborhood Each of these factors can have a positive effect on an individual's decision to stop breaking the law. They are not mutually exclusive events, however, as a youth could marry, get a new job, and move to a new city, changes that would produce a cumulative effect. The point is that most adolescence-limited delinquents become motivated to engage in more conventional behavior because of these fundamental changes in their lives.

LIFE-COURSE-PERSISTENT OFFENDERS

Juvenile delinquents can be responsible for a lot of crime. Some youths are never fully integrated into conventional society, are always at the margins of social institutions, and eventually land in the juvenile justice system. According to Moffitt, the life-course-persistent offender is constantly breaking the law. Moffitt describes life-course-persistent offenders as: individuals [who] exhibit changing manifestations of antisocial behavior: biting and hitting at age 4, shoplifting and truancy at age 10, selling drugs and stealing cars at age 16, robbery and rape at age 22, and fraud and child abuse at age 30; the underlying disposition remains the same, but its expression changes form as new social opportunities arise at different points in development. This pattern of continuity across age is matched also by cross-situational consistency: life-course-persistent antisocial persons lie at home, steal from shops, cheat at school, fight in bars, and embezzle at work.

Labeling Theory

Labeling theory became a popular explanation for crime during the 1960s, although it was created decades earlier. In 1938, criminologist Frank Tannenbaum coined the term "tagging" in his book Crime and Community for how individuals are labeled in a negative way that identifies them as deviant.5 Labels can be positive (good student, star athlete) or negative (delinquent, ex-convict) and eventually become what sociologist Howard Becker called a master status—a social standing that takes precedence over all others.6 Although individuals have many social statuses, a master status overwhelms them all. A negative master status can have a detrimental effect on how a person is treated by parents, teachers, society, and the criminal justice system. Labeling theory is primarily a theory of delinquency, but it can apply to adult offenders. Basically, labeling theory describes two processes, which sociologist Edwin Lemert identified as primary deviance and secondary deviance.

Describing Leon's change of behavior, Laub and Sampson note:

Laub and Sampson's studies showed that as young men aged, those with close ties to the community were more invested in good behavior. Why are those who are involved in families, schools, and the community less likely to engage in risky behavior? Why does having peers that engage in the same harmful behavior as you prevent you from adopting a more appropriate lifestyle? Along with the social support and love that came from this successful marriage, additional factors help explain why Leon was able to desist from crime. First, perhaps a response to his wife's investment in him and vice versa, Leon took his marital responsibilities very seriously. He often worked overtime to support his family. Moreover, later in his career, he turned down a promotion because it would have taken more time away from his wife and children. Second, as a direct result of his marriage, Leon was cut off from his former peer group. These peers were replaced by his wife's friends. At his age 25 interview, Leon disclosed that one of his delinquent friends "went away" for murder. Leon continued, "On the very night of the murder, I had a date with my wife and we went to a dance. If it weren't for my wife, I'd probably be up for murder." Third, Leon spent more time with his wife's family than he did with his own. In fact, the couple moved to get away from his family. They relocated to another part of Boston and his in-laws moved in on the first floor of their two-family home. This action solidified his new family bonds, both practically and symbolically. Criminologist Mark Warr supports the idea of marriage as a turning point, stating that marriage is associated with desisting from antisocial behavior because it terminates the antisocial spouse's friendships with antisocial peers.43 Ronald Simons and colleagues add, however, that an antisocial spouse's behavior can be expected to change only if he or she marries a pro-social person. If two antisocial people marry, then both spouses' antisocial behavior can be expected to continue because neither will discourage friendships with antisocial peers.

TABLE 7.1 Life-Course and Integrated Theories

Life-Course Theories Focus on the development of antisocial behavior, risk factors at different ages, and the effect of life events on individual development Strength: The behavior of individuals can be examined with respect to aging. Challenges: Long periods of study mean that some subjects will be lost. There are more subjects early in the research than in later stages.

Postmodern Criminology

Like cultural criminology, postmodern criminology focuses on how language and traditional ideas affect how we define and perceive crime, the law, and society. It offers a unique way of looking at the problems of negotiating the legal world and the criminal justice system. To understand postmodern criminology, we must first briefly explain postmodern thought. Postmodernism explores how language affects the way we construct our perceptions about the world. Language communicates ideas in many ways, not only by words with meanings, but by context, syntax, and even grammar. Language can be used to include group members and alienate outsiders, or it can be used to explain difficult concepts simply. Depending on context, one word can have many different meanings, and the correct use of that word in the correct context can mean inclusion or exclusion from a group. In environments such as a prison or a gang, correct language can mean life or death. Take, for example, the word "punk." A century ago, you might use a punk, which was another word for kindling, to start a fire. Later, a low-level offender or even a lazy person came to be described as a punk. In the late 1970s, a social movement that was related to a form of popular music was called punk rock. Today, punk is no longer necessarily a pejorative term but rather can be a compliment describing a willingness to be different. However, in prison, a punk is a male inmate who has sex with, and even acts as spouse to, another male inmate. So four contexts involving a simple word emerge: (1) asking someone to start a fire with a punk will probably get you a funny look; (2) calling an elderly person a punk may result in a lecture about respect; (3) calling a youth with a purple mohawk hairstyle a punk will earn you a satisfied sneer; and (4) if you are a prison inmate, carelessly calling another inmate a punk may get you killed. Of these four contexts, one, the prison, involves a strict and guarded terminology that excludes outsiders and draws insiders closer together by helping them define and understand their context. This, in a nutshell, is the concern of postmodernism: the role of language and ideas in constructing reality. Postmodern criminology goes beyond that basic example to consider how language and ideas in all aspects of crime and the criminal justice system include and exclude groups of people and how they define the realities of those groups. Postmodern criminology is a critical theory because it examines the status quo and finds it wanting on several fronts. Criminologist Bruce Arrigo identifies three areas of focus in postmodern criminology. • Language in the criminal justice system. Individuals must negotiate multiple language environments in the criminal justice system, which is crucial to understanding what is happening. Prison can be especially scary for those who are uninitiated and unaware of prison terminology, and the workings of a courtroom often seem foreign to a defendant with little education or experience. When attorneys speak in "legalese," the unsophisticated defendant often cannot understand what is happening and how these proceedings will affect his or her freedom. The legal terminology includes courtroom insiders and excludes just about everyone else, including two of the most important participants: the offender and the victim. • Partial knowledge. The postmodern perspective calls our attention to the fact that in many encounters between police and citizens, each party is acting on partial knowledge. In this case, misunderstandings can have tragic effects on the police, suspects, and victims. When the police stop a person, they require a certain etiquette that shows the detained person is not violent. When a detained person violates this expected behavior and appears defiant or agitated, the officer might interpret this behavior as aggressive and use inappropriate force. The suspect may have a different idea of what the encounter is about—for example, if the detained person is a victim—and challenge the officer's authority. According to postmodernism, this difference in defining the situation causes many detained people to find themselves subdued, arrested, and hauled before a judge. • Deconstruction. Deconstruction is the examination of rules and regulations by questioning traditional assumptions about certainty, meaning, and truth. Arrigo uses the example of mental treatment for those facing execution. The law states that people who are mentally ill cannot be executed, but it stipulates that once they successfully receive treatment and are healthy, they can be put to death. At issue is the word "treatment" because the term, according to Arrigo, connotes the conferring of a gift or a reward. Postmodernists contend that such terminology does not accurately reflect the situation. In another example, it is the job of medical and legal officials to ascertain whether formerly violent mental patients and inmates can be released. Consequently, many subjects have learned to provide the expected answers to questions and to modify their behavior within the institution. Once released, however, successful institutional adaptation does not necessarily ensure that the subject will successfully adjust to free society. Learning to follow institutional rules does not guarantee that an inmate or patient has been successfully rehabilitated. Life inside and outside the institution is very different, and forcing individuals to adhere to a strict routine, though useful for maintaining control in an institution, leaves them unprepared for life on the outside where the temptations are many and the punishments for not following the rules are extreme. Through its examination of language, postmodern criminology forces observers to step outside the conventional wisdom and generally accepted assumptions about crime and justice and consider how power is exercised at the expense of marginal groups of people. For critical criminologists, postmodern criminology represents a fresh way of understanding the workings of the criminal justice system and an opportunity to ensure that justice is fully examined for its unintended consequences. Postmodern criminology suffers from several limitations that have restricted its popularity. The first is language. Critics point to the jargon or parlance of those who engage in postmodern critique and suggest that rather than clarifying things, postmodernists further muddy the waters by providing analyses that are as difficult to understand as the system they critique. Another criticism is the use of models from other disciplines. The models that postmodern theorists use, especially the chaos theorists, require a high level of knowledge of fields that are far removed from criminology, such as physics and mathematics. Although some consider the use of sophisticated language and complicated models as reflecting the severe limitations of postmodern criminology, these models can also be guides for developing policy. By appreciating how language is used to privilege the wealthy and educated or to confuse those who lack the vocabulary and knowledge of legal procedures, the postmodern critique can show how the criminal justice system can be unfair to those who are at the greatest social disadvantage. Postmodern critique can illustrate how the knowledge of experts may be used to deny victims and offenders full access to the criminal justice system. For instance, in plea bargaining, the prosecutor must move cases through the system and does not always fully explain to victims why pleas are negotiated. Like many of the critical theories we have discussed in this chapter, postmodern criminology speaks only indirectly to the problems of crime. It is more broadly aimed at cultural influences rather than directly at criminology or the criminal justice system. Nevertheless, it provides a fresh look at how issues of crime and delinquency are resolved in the United States.

Interactional theory particularly emphasizes the reciprocal effects between delinquent behavior and antisocial peers. Specifically, delinquent youths are more likely to associate with antisocial peers, and those whose friends are antisocial are also more likely to break the law. Thornberry sidesteps the chicken-and-egg question of whether delinquent peers cause delinquency or whether initial delinquency brings youths into contact with delinquent peers. Rather, he focuses on how the two interact to produce an "amplifying causal structure" that leads to increasing involvement in delinquency. The reciprocal effects between peers in delinquency can be difficult to unravel, but it is important to understand how the two are intertwined

Like life-course theory as expounded by Terrie Moffitt, John Laub, and Robert Sampson, interactional theory considers how some people become committed to conventional society and desist from antisocial behavior. Getting married, securing a good job, or joining the military are ways that individuals become invested in conventional behavior and find breaking the law to be no longer beneficial. Thornberry's perspective is not limited to the micro level. Interactional theory also considers structural variables such as sex and class to be important determinants of an individual's initial involvement with delinquency and their ability to control behavior. According to Thornberry, values and behaviors are often part of the structural conditions in which one grows up, and these are determined to a great extent by one's gender socialization and social class.

A person's movement from antisocial potential to antisocial behavior is related to cognitive processes, that is, thinking. Short-term antisocial potential is related to concrete motivations and situations, such as inebriation or anger. In adolescents, these motivations include boredom, peer pressure, or frustration. Routine activities theory also plays a part. For example, a good opportunity—say, a busy café, combined with an available victim, such as a woman who is not paying attention and leaves her expensive cell phone on the table to go order coffee—may also inspire short-term high antisocial potential.

Long-term antisocial potential is more complicated; in this area, other criminological theories come into play. In adolescence, the motivations that move a person from potential to action are the desire for excitement and consumer goods. In adulthood, the motivations are more practical, such as the need for money or drugs. Long-term antisocial potential is related to the following.

According to Marx, the proletariat's lack of power caused them to sink into despair, withdraw from society, and depend on fellow workers or turn to crime. Marx called this type of citizen the lumpenproletariat, the lowest social class, which was characterized by its disorganization, lack of skill, and impoverishment. Marx's critiques were a wake-up call for industrialized countries as workers around the world began to organize and demand better conditions and wages.

Many of Marx's ideas have been incorporated into modern societies, including the United States. The provision of social security, welfare, aid to families, and other safety-net programs can be partly attributed to Marx's concern for the working class. Still, most members of the working class in the United States today, although they can pay their bills, cannot achieve financial independence. Marx's ideas about property and wealth advocate a more even distribution of these privileges throughout society.

Some countries heavily subsidize education, health care, housing, and child care services, which reduces the need for individuals to have a lot of personal income or inherited wealth. Conceivably, countries with this type of socialist system would have less crime because people would not live in dire need. Friedrich Engels, a 19th-century social philosopher and one of the founders of communism and socialism, speculated on such a society being crime-free. According to Engels, "Crimes against property cease of their own accord where everyone receives what he needs to satisfy his natural and spiritual urges, where social gradations and distinctions cease to exist."

Many people in the United States have a hard time appreciating Marx's ideas. They believe that his ideas are economically naive and that those who espouse Marxism, socialism, or communism are unpatriotic. However, even the U.S. economic system is not purely capitalist. For example, legislation controls how companies conduct business and pursue profit, and regulatory agencies enforce workplace laws. Regardless, conflict theorists still believe that workers are exploited, a condition they assert leads to crime.

MAX WEBER

Max Weber (1864-1930) was a German sociologist who laid the groundwork for analyzing conflict according to three measures of inequality: power, wealth, and prestige. According to Weber, conflict is most likely to occur when an individual or a group possesses all three measures. When this happens, others, who have less or none of the three, feel tension and resentment and are likely to conflict with the privileged.15 Although Weber did not specifically address crime, his ideas of conflict have been used to explain why economic inequality and imbalances in social power influence individuals and groups to break the law. For example, crime rates are high in Brazil and South Africa, both of which have large impoverished and wealthy populations, deep racial divides, and a relatively small middle class. The gulf between the powerful, prestigious "haves" and the powerless, disrespected "have nots" is striking, and from a Weberian point of view, this gulf is at the root of both countries' crime rates.

Give other examples of positive commitments to society.

Moffitt maintains that a maturity gap is at work in the development of adolescence-limited delinquents. As these youngsters enter high school, they find themselves in the grip of a social institution that greatly limits their freedoms and constrains their choices. In our age-graded society, a person can get a driver's license at 16, vote at 18, and buy alcohol at 21. Young people are encouraged to delay marriage until they are financially stable and often do not start careers until they have completed college. Consequently, between the ages of 12 and 22, these youths experience a decade of dependence in which their bodies are mature, but their parents control many of their decisions. Adolescence-limited delinquents often combat this dependence in several ways: For teens who become adolescence-limited delinquents, antisocial behavior is an effective means of knifing-off childhood apron strings and of proving that they can act independently to conquer new challenges. Hypothetical reinforcers for delinquency include damaging the quality of intimacy and communication with parents, provoking responses from adults in positions of authority, finding ways to look older (such as by smoking cigarettes, being tattooed, playing the big spender with ill-gotten gains), and tempting fate (risking pregnancy, driving while intoxicated, or shoplifting under the noses of clerks). None of these putative reinforcers may seem very pleasurable to the middle-aged academic, but each of the aforementioned consequences is a precious resource to the teenager and can serve to reinforce delinquency.

ADOLESCENCE-LIMITED DELINQUENTS

Moffitt reports that the second category of juvenile delinquents, adolescence-limited delinquents is much larger than the life-course-persistent group. In fact, according to many self-report studies, most youngsters at one time or another are adolescence-limited delinquents. Young people faced with temptations and opportunities will often engage in antisocial behavior or delinquency to meet specific needs and goals. The most curious aspect of these delinquents is that they will participate in antisocial behavior in some contexts while behaving in pro-social ways in other situations. For example, these youths may fight, shoplift, or periodically use drugs while maintaining good grades in school and obeying their parents. Their periods of sporadic lawbreaking punctuate otherwise conforming lifestyles. In addition, most of the delinquents and offenders in this group eventually desist from crime once they age out of their adolescent years and early 20s (see Figure 7.2b). Moffitt finds that the motivations and rewards for adolescence-limited delinquents differ significantly from those of life-course-persistent offenders.

life-course-persistent

Moffitt's term to describe antisocial behavior that continues throughout adulthood.

adolescence-limited

Moffitt's term to describe antisocial behavior that is restricted to the teenage years.

There is considerable overlap among the types of theories and heated discussion among criminologists about how they should be categorized. Chronologically, conflict theory came first, and critical theory grew out of conflict theory. However, critical theory is now the larger body of theory and has subsumed conflict theory (see Figure 8.1).

Most of the theories in this chapter are critical theories. For the sake of clarity, we will use the following typology which, although not universally accepted, will allow us to differentiate between types of theories.

Feminist criminology is also useful for critiquing other theories. Almost all criminological theories have been fashioned to describe and explain the activities of males in the male-dominated world of crime and criminal justice, which, in turn, exists within a male-dominated society. The activities of women and girls as delinquents, offenders, victims, or criminal justice workers have been explained by applying male-centric theories to females and not by doing any in-depth research on female persons. Feminist theory effectively ended this practice by pointing out that female persons are different from male persons.

Not only are females different biologically and psychologically, but they live their lives differently and have different reasons for the things they do because they occupy a different place in society. Feminist theory states that women and girls require their own criminological research and theories to accurately explain their roles in crime and the criminal justice system. In this section, we will review the feminist perspective and consider some of the theories that seek to explain the importance of gender in crime and the criminal justice system. We will also assess the effect of those theories on how crime is addressed, and we will look at their critiques. To understand the effect of feminism on the criminal justice system, we must briefly review the women's movement. The 1960s saw the beginning of a major feminist initiative in the United States, preceded by a first wave of feminism that came during the late 19th and early 20th centuries as women lobbied for the right to vote. At that time, it was thought (mostly by men) that women were not capable of appreciating the political process and would simply vote as their husbands told them to. Women rejected this perspective and advocated reforms that would allow women to become fully participating citizens. Feminists also fought restrictions that prevented women from owning property in their own name, retaining custody of children after a divorce, and working in many occupations. Although the feminist revolution is largely complete today, women are still treated differently from men in many areas, two of which are crime and criminal justice. Feminist scholars consider women's participation in crime and the criminal justice system in many ways. Protesters call for an end to the statutes of limitation on rape and sexual assault. How has the "Me Too" movement changed the way victims of crime respond to their accusers? • As offenders. Women and men break the law in different patterns and at different rates. Although women do break the law on their own, they are often ancillaries to male offending. Women are also significantly less violent than men. Feminist scholars consider the experience of women as convicted offenders by comparing their sentencing, rehabilitation, treatment, and incarceration to that of male offenders. Women's issues as inmates include health care (gynecological issues, pregnancy), children, and sexual harassment by other inmates and correctional officers. • As crime victims. Feminist scholars have made great advances in identifying the special circumstances of female victims.35 In the case of domestic assault, they have found that the criminal justice system has failed to protect women from violent husbands and boyfriends.36 In the case of rape, the feminist perspective has helped change some social attitudes, and it is now understood that a rape victim can be further victimized by the criminal justice system's bureaucratic processes. • As workers. Although more women are working within the criminal justice system than ever, many issues remain, most of which are within law enforcement and corrections. The criticism of women as police officers mirrors that of women serving in the military as soldiers: women cannot do the job because they are not physically strong enough and are too emotional. In corrections, the issues are more focused on females working in all-male environments, especially environments filled with antisocial lawbreakers, many of whom are in prison for violence against women. In this case, federal law that ensures the rights of women to be considered for jobs regardless of their sex runs up against legitimate concerns for their safety in prison environments and for the rights of male inmates, attenuated as they are, to be dealt with in sensitive procedures (like strip searches) by members of their own sex. Some states still restrict the duties of female correctional officers in situations involving personal searches and the transportation of male inmates. Regardless of these concerns, women are serving successfully as correctional officers and as police officers. According to feminist theory, the criminal justice system's treatment of females mirrors that of the rest of society. Basically, the feminist perspective advocates equal treatment of women and, at its most extreme, advocates a complete reorientation of the power structure of American society. Additionally, feminist criminology is concerned with not only the interactions between males and females, but also the process of constructing masculinity. The socialization of masculinity in many cultures often includes overt messages of support for the exploitation or victimization of women. The way men are socialized into masculine roles that emphasize dominance and toughness has consequences for their involvement in crime Feminist theories of crime and delinquency offer an alternative look at how women are motivated to break the law and how the criminal justice system responds to them differently from men. However, they risk minimizing other important factors. For instance, in the victimization of impoverished women, race and social class can be just as important as sex. Although feminist theory may do a good job of explaining female antisocial behavior and victimization, it cannot speak to the antisocial behavior and victimization of men. This is an important point because males commit the most crime, and most crime victims are male. Feminist theories also tend to consider females who break the law as victims of a patriarchal system and do not give credit to the choices that women make. For example, some women who engage in prostitution might not do so because they are oppressed and have few legitimate opportunities, but rather because they enjoy the power it gives them over men, they prefer the lifestyle, or they want the chance to make a great deal of money quickly. From the classical criminology standpoint (see Chapter 4), women who break the law make a rational choice that is not necessarily dictated by economic circumstances or male oppression.

First-offender programs in which individuals are diverted from the juvenile or criminal justice systems to rehabilitative programs and/or probation are a good example of the use of labeling theory in criminal justice policy. Many such programs offer to drop the charges—along with the application of the negative label—in exchange for successful completion of the program. The idea is that by limiting an offender's exposure to the criminal justice system and avoiding the labels of "delinquent" or "criminal," society will not treat the individual according to the negative master status, and the individual will not act it out.

Now that we understand how labeling theory locates the origins of crime within social institutions and their definitions of offenders and offenses rather than within offenders' reactions to society (as do sociological theories) or within the offenders themselves (as do biological/psychological and classical theories), we are ready to delve into conflict and critical theory. Conflict and critical theories consider crime to originate within the inequities they consider to be inherent in social institutions.

For example, in March 2018, Cleveland, Ohio, city councilman Kevin Conwell, 58, was walking in his neighborhood. As he cut through the campus of Case Western University, he was stopped by university police officers who asked for his identification.80 The officers were responding to a call from a student who said that she had seen a black man with missing teeth who was mumbling incoherently and approaching students. This woman did not say that the man had broken any laws but that he was "kind of weird and acting funny." She said the man had a blue hat and a tan coat, which matched what Conwell was wearing. The police did not stop or question anyone else. Conwell suggests that he was stopped for "walking while black." The university later issued an apology.

One concern of critical race theorists in the recent past was the disparity in sentencing for possessing crack cocaine as opposed to powder cocaine.82 The difference between these substances lies in how they are prepared and consumed: crack cocaine is smoked, whereas powder cocaine is inhaled. These differences led to the creation of the 100-to-1 sentencing disparity for possession of crack versus powder cocaine, which meant that possessing 5 grams of crack cocaine triggered a minimum sentence of five years, although it took 500 grams of powder cocaine to warrant the same sentence. Until 2007, when the sentencing structure was changed to reduce the sentences for crack cocaine possession, black drug users went to prison for minor drug dealing while white drug users escaped incarceration altogether. In 2010, the U.S. House and Senate approved a measure under the Fair Sentencing Act that reduces the disparity in penalties between the use of crack cocaine and powder cocaine from 100-to-1 to 18-1. The new law drops the five-year minimum sentence for both first-time offenders and repeat offenders who possess less than 28 grams of crack.

THEORY TO PRACTICE Peacemaking and Uncommon Sense

One of the most consistent complaints about the peacemaking perspective is that it is unrealistic and soft on crime. But what does "soft on crime" mean? Those who believe in being "tough on crime" use deterrence theory as one of their underlying theoretical perspectives. Briefly, deterrence theory holds that if penalties are certain, swift, and severe, potential lawbreakers will choose not to break the law. The perspective of peacemaking criminology, however, is that deterrence is a fundamentally flawed concept. Instant Recall from Chapter 3 deterrence —The idea that punishment for an offense will prevent that offender and others from further breaking the law Deterrence theory assumes that individuals will weigh the cost of breaking the law against the likelihood of getting caught and punished. However, most people who break the law do not believe they will be caught. Often, they plan the offense and take precautions to escape detection. Even if penalties are substantially increased, potential lawbreakers might not be deterred because they sincerely believe they will not be caught and punished. Deterrence theory also assumes that lawbreakers can accurately weigh the risk of getting caught against the benefits of succeeding. If this were the case, we would not see so many serious offenses that offer so little reward, such as using a gun to rob a convenience store, which often has little cash. In this scenario, the offender risks an armed-robbery conviction, which carries a hefty penalty that dwarfs the reward for getting away with robbing the store. This is especially true if the store clerk is killed, and capital punishment becomes a possibility. Rather than attempting to force the offender into lawful behavior, peacemaking criminology seeks to prevent crime by ensuring social justice and providing treatment options for offenders so they can learn the skills to achieve their needs without breaking the law. Peacemaking would address the robber's impoverished neighborhood, disintegrated family, and lack of adequate employment. Sociologist Robert Agnew suggests how we can correct the causes of crime: . . . traits like impulsivity and low verbal IQ, child abuse, family conflict, poor parenting practices, poor school performance, low commitment to school, association with delinquent peers and gang members, and growing up in poor, disorganized communities. A number of prevention and treatment programs have been developed to address these causes, like pre- and postnatal health care programs, preschool enrichment programs, parent-training programs, and a variety of school-based interventions. Instead of relying on deterrence to convince potential lawbreakers to obey the law, peacemaking criminology seeks to protect the community by addressing the problems that give rise to antisocial behavior

Peacemaking Criminology

Peacemaking criminology considers the social and personal effects of crime as a whole, accounting not only for the offender and victim, but also for the social structures that accept, enable, and encourage crime. Criminologist John Randolph Fuller argues that peacemaking criminology should be considered a perspective because it does not yet rise to the level of specificity that theory requires. However, the peacemaking perspective can be applied to problems of crime at the personal, interpersonal, institutional/societal, and global levels (see Figure 8.4). • The personal level. At the personal level, peacemaking criminology suggests that each of us be gentler on ourselves. Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." With this observation in mind, peacemaking criminology advocates solving personal, individual problems before developing external solutions to crime. Only when individuals are aware of their own motivations can they effectively deal with their relationships with others. • The interpersonal level. At the interpersonal level, peacemaking criminology recognizes that manners, politeness, and civility should be used to accomplish goals rather than force, intimidation, and power. Peacemaking criminology guides behavior not only for individuals working within, or caught up in the workings of, the criminal justice system, but also for those who wish for a guide to managing their affairs in all aspects of life, such as education, family life, and the environment, as well as criminal justice. You might think that the peacemaking perspective risks being so broad that it does not speak specifically to a single issue; however, this would be inaccurate. Peacemaking provides an outline for the conduct of human affairs, and this generalizability makes it an attractive and potentially powerful perspective. • The institutional/societal level. Peacemaking criminology looks at how the institutions that people develop shape their interactions. For instance, structural issues within American society may contribute to crime and delinquency. Consider, for example, gun control laws. If the legal system interpreted the Second Amendment differently and more tightly restricted the sale and possession of firearms, the United States might have a lower homicide rate. Another example concerns capital punishment. Peacemaking criminology advocates the elimination of the death penalty because it models the very behavior it is supposed to deter. • The global level. The peacemaking perspective would deal with transnational offenses such as human trafficking, international drug smuggling, and terrorism by trying to solve these problems without violence and in a way that would ensure social justice. For example, when dealing with human trafficking, especially trafficking of young women and children for sexual purposes, peacemaking criminology would not be content to simply catch the smugglers and throw them in prison. Peacemaking criminology would look at the broader social conditions that enable or encourage the practice of human smuggling and advocate improving the economies of developing countries so that selling people for sexual purposes would be unnecessary. Although peacemaking criminology has been around for years, it was not until 1991 when scholars Harold Pepinsky and Richard Quinney published Criminology as Peacemaking that the perspective's foundations were defined.45 Peacemaking criminology derives its ideas and philosophy from the religious and humanist, feminist, and critical traditions. Let's discuss each briefly. • Religious and humanist traditions. The religious and humanist traditions are responsible for much of what is considered peacemaking criminology. Religious traditions include the world's major religions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism.Each tradition has elements that promote the idea of peace. Although it can be said that religious wars have been responsible for much of the world's sorrow, it can also be contended that sincerely following these religions would lead to a peaceful life rather than one filled with conflict. Several scholars, such as criminologist Michael C. Braswell, have expanded on the idea of religion as a peaceful influence in society, identifying how religion can be applied to the criminal justice system in beneficial ways. Like the religious tradition, the humanist tradition specifies peaceful ways for people to live but asserts that it is possible to be moral without adhering to a specific religion or belief in a supreme being. Humanism contends that people are basically good and will strive toward responsible and ethical behavior if the systems they live in allow it. Religious and humanist traditions, then, give the peacemaking perspective substance and direction in promoting responsible, moral, and healthy behavior. Pepinsky and Quinney do not advocate any specific tradition, but rather assert that any of them can contribute to human moral development. • Feminist traditions. As explained in the earlier section on feminist criminology, feminism advocates gender equality and the dismantling of patriarchal systems. Gender inequality within the criminal justice system and within crime itself reflects the gender inequality in society.51 Feminist theorists believe that reforming the criminal justice system will demonstrate how to deal with people who lack power in society and help them to become functioning members of society. • Critical traditions. The critical traditions include conflict theory, especially a Marxian analysis of the relationship between social structure and crime, as well as some of the newer critical ideas such as postmodern criminology and cultural criminology. All are covered in detail later in this chapter.

A major criticism of peacemaking criminology is that it is naive and utopian (see Theory to Practice for more discussion of that view). Critics contend that peacemaking does not adequately appreciate the danger in the world and takes a simplistic view of human nature. Another criticism is that much of what peacemaking advocates is already part of the criminal justice system and society. For instance, programs for rehabilitating offenders, though limited, have been around for several decades. Finally, peacemaking criminology would require fundamental changes in the way people relate to each other that are beyond the ability of the criminal justice system to effect.

Peacemaking criminology has policy implications for all four levels of analysis. For example, peacemaking can be applied in several ways to reduce crime. At the personal level, many religions and schools of spiritual thought require their adherents to shun violence. At the interpersonal level, methods of conflict resolution are taught in some schools so that children learn how to settle disputes without verbal or physical violence. At the institutional/societal level, the death penalty could be eliminated and the availability of guns greatly curtailed. At the global level, the work of the United Nations in providing a forum for countries to work out their differences without resorting to war is a particularly useful example of the broader implications of peacemaking criminology.

According to Gerald Patterson, Barbara DeBaryshe, and Elizabeth Ramsey's developmental perspective on antisocial behavior, antisocial behavior is a developmental trait that begins early and often continues through adolescence and adulthood. These researchers consider a series of predictable steps that lead to chronic delinquency.

Poor parental discipline and monitoring. School failure and social rejection. Commitment to antisocial peer groups. Delinquency.

patriarchal

Referring to a social system that is controlled by males.

General Theory of Crime and Delinquency

Robert Agnew is best known for his general strain theory in which he expanded on Merton's classic strain theory. Recently, however, Agnew has developed a more ambitious integrated theory that includes not only strain, but also several other theoretical perspectives. His efforts to develop a general theory of crime and delinquency focus on simple relationships between influences that tend to produce crime. Agnew argues that crime is caused by problems that occur within individuals' five life domains: the self, the family, school, peers, and work. Each domain is important on its own, but, according to Agnew, the interaction between them can accelerate and enhance a person's chances of being drawn into antisocial behavior. The important point in Agnew's theory is that these domains do not act alone or independently; rather, they are interdependent, and negative consequences can have a cumulative effect when problems occur in more than one life domain. These five life domains are related to crime and delinquency in the following ways.

Moffitt's pathways to crime theory provides an interesting and complex look at how antisocial behavior affects the life course. By developing these two categories of offenders, the life-course-persistent offender and the adolescence-limited delinquent, Moffitt provides an explanation for why some individuals remain mired in crime while others find their way to more socially acceptable lifestyles.

She does not neglect the biological and psychological influences that result in crime but rather attempts to integrate them into traditional sociological explanations. Although dividing youthful offenders into only two types is problematic, the categories might be viewed as extreme examples rather than as a comprehensive typology. Often, theoretical explanations must simplify a phenomenon in order to make the theory conceptually manageable.

classical criminology

Shortened form of "classical school of criminology." A set of ideas that focuses on deterrence and considers crime to be the result of offenders' free will.

AUSTIN TURK

Sociologist Austin Turk has made a major contribution to conflict theory with his ideas about the interaction of dominant groups and subordinate groups. Turk identified norms of domination and deference whereby the values, standards, and laws of powerful groups must be recognized and respected by subordinate groups. If this recognition does not occur, then the subordinate groups' behaviors and values will be criminalized. Even when subordinate groups adopt the dominant group's worldview, the behaviors of some individuals in the subordinate group will be considered deviant. Because of the dynamic nature of societies, some groups or individuals will not always be fully invested in the dominant value system and will therefore be considered deviant. Over time, some of this deviance may become normalized. For instance, tattoos were once considered a mark of deviance and rebellion for middle-class people. Today, tattoos have become fashion statements, and such body art no longer has the extremely negative social and political consequences it once had.

Persistent Offending and Desistance from Crime

Sociologists John Laub and Robert Sampson have developed a particularly complex and detailed developmental theory of crime and delinquency.34 Laub and Sampson were graduate students of Travis Hirschi, and their theory has some elements in common with Hirschi's social control theory, which focuses on why people do not break the law. For Laub and Sampson, the element that keeps people from crime is the quality of their social bonds to pro-social peers, spouses, and parents, as well as jobs and schools. The strength of Laub and Sampson's theory is the data on which it is based. Developmental theories of crime depend on following at least one group of offenders throughout their life course. Doing so can be extremely difficult and expensive because researchers typically move on to other subjects or databases or retire from academic life long before life-course offenders progress from juvenile delinquency to adult offending. This logistical problem means that it is almost impossible to keep track of a group of offenders for a period of 40 or more years. Thanks to some good luck, Laub and Sampson overcame this problem. Laub was doing research in the archives in the basement of the Harvard University Law School library when he stumbled upon the data from a study published in 1950 by Sheldon and Eleanor Glueck.37 (See Doubletake for the Gluecks' story.) The Gluecks followed the lives of 500 delinquents plus a control group of 500 non-delinquents in the 1930s and 1940s. They collected data on a vast range of variables. Although they did not focus primarily on life-course theories, the Gluecks did lay the groundwork for Laub and Sampson to contact many of these subjects and update their life histories. Laub and Sampson published two influential books based on the Gluecks' data and their investigations of the research subjects: Crime in the Making: Pathways and Turning Points Through Life (1993) and Shared Beginnings, Divergent Lives: Delinquent Boys to Age 70 (2003). In these two books, which followed the Gluecks' subjects as they grew from young to old men, Laub and Sampson examined the arrest records for the entire sample as well as death certificates. They followed the subjects' involvement in crime and ascertained the points at which the men moved toward more conventional behavior. This alone is a significant accomplishment because for the first time we have an indication of a cohort's involvement in crime throughout a complete lifetime. But Laub and Sampson went one step further. They tracked down 52 individuals from the original sample and did extensive life histories on each. Laub and Sampson added a new feature to the examination of life-course criminology. Most life-course studies are conducted using quantitative data, particularly arrest records, which yield valuable information about the group in question. However, by adding life histories, Laub and Sampson provided a qualitative element that gave more detailed information about the subjects' lives. Life histories are conducted as extensive interviews in which the researchers ask the subjects not only what happened in their lives, but also why. Life histories also allow researchers to ask follow-up questions and probe for potentially significant details. The life-history methodology is extremely labor intensive and requires the researchers to develop a rapport with the subjects. Locating 52 individuals from the original 500 delinquents the Gluecks studied was a remarkable feat considering that it had been more than 35 years since the subjects were first interviewed. Given the state of communication in the 1930s and 1940s, it is a wonder any of the men were found. In an age before private telephones were common and long before the Internet, the types of identifying data that would allow for tracing this cohort were greatly limited. Consequently, the data obtained by the Gluecks and the findings of Laub and Sampson are extremely valuable contributions to the literature on life-course criminology.

Moffitt's theory has several policy implications. However, because her theory is so inclusive and complex, these policy implications are complicated, and many of them only indirectly affect antisocial behavior. For instance, children born with neuropsychological problems stemming from poor prenatal nutrition or maternal drug abuse during pregnancy will require extensive attention in order to overcome their difficulties. Similarly, children raised by parents who are poor disciplinarians will require extensive re-education in order to develop the psychological skills necessary to deal with their impulsivity and low regard for others.

Substandard schools, impoverished neighborhoods, and a national economy suffering from the effects of globalization indirectly affect the ability of life-course-persistent offenders to enter mainstream society. Moffitt's theory is powerful because it includes biological, psychological, and sociological factors, but it is also vulnerable to criticism because transforming policies at all these levels is beyond the capabilities and resources of the juvenile justice system. Furthermore, since life-course-persistent offenders have limited opportunities and few social skills, it is unrealistic to think that they will be able to turn over a new leaf without substantial assistance.

differential association

Sutherland's idea that offenders learn crime from each other.

sex

The biological characteristics that distinguish organisms on the basis of their reproductive ability.

routine activities theory

The concept that three elements are necessary for crime to occur: motivated offenders, attractive targets, and the absence of capable guardians.

Contending that early antisocial behavior can lead to more serious consequences, Patterson, De-Baryshe, and Ramsey advocate early intervention to prevent chronic delinquency. Although their theory is more concerned with what leads a child into antisocial behavior than out of it, their developmental perspective has been used in the field to help troubled families (see Theory to Practice).

The development of antisocial behavior in children can be prevented if it is addressed early. Patterson and his colleagues suggest that providing parents with the skills necessary to develop healthy children is more effective than waiting until middle childhood to address delinquency issues. This developmental perspective argues that the factors that cause delinquency are linked in a way that requires early intervention. The suggested intervention would include not only parent training, but also training children in social skills and providing academic remediation so that they can catch up with their peers.

racial profiling

The disproportionate selection by law enforcement of minority suspects.

Marx and Communism

The idea of economics as a primary factor in antisocial behavior can be traced to Karl Marx (1818-1883), a 19th-century German social theorist, philosopher, and economist. Marx did not say much about crime specifically, but his ideas have led other theorists to contemplate the relationship between economic conditions and crime.11 Popularly known as the "father of communism," Marx is a major intellectual figure and is considered to have provided the foundation for an alternative economic system to capitalism. Although Marx's theories inspired modern communism in China, the former Soviet Union, Vietnam, North Korea, and Cuba, the communism practiced in these countries is not really what Marx envisioned. In order to appreciate his ideas, we must understand the time and context in which he wrote. In the late 19th century, Europe underwent a radical transformation from an agrarian, rural population to one that is now heavily industrial and urban. As people moved to the city for jobs, they found themselves working hard for low wages. Typically, companies had extensive financial and social relationships with the government that allowed the companies to maximize the value of the workers' labor for a low cost. Marx was appalled by the effects of this unbridled capitalism on the working class. The owners of the means of production, whom Marx called the bourgeoisie (pronounced boor-zhwah-ZEE), paid extremely low wages, maximizing their profits at the workers' expense. Workers were forced to labor in unsafe conditions without any form of safety net for their health or lives. A worker hurt or maimed on the job was out of a job if he or she was unable to continue to work. Companies owed nothing to these workers or to their families, even if company negligence was to blame if the worker was killed. Job security, bonuses, raises, vacations, or clean and safe working conditions were unheard of. Children had to work as hard as adults. Marx believed that a livable wage and decent working conditions were necessary for the proletariat, the social class of people who worked for wages.

social learning theory

The idea that people learn how to act by watching others and copying the interactions that are rewarded and avoiding those that are punished. The theory is empirically informed. Cullen uses empirical studies to construct his theoretical perspective. Social support is based on several respected research studies that Cullen places in the context of social support. The use of empirical studies allows others to evaluate Cullen's perspective and design new studies based on his propositions. An important aspect of any theory is its testability, and Cullen has formulated his perspective in ways that encourage future research efforts. The theory has practical implications. It is not difficult to see how social support theory can inform the practices of the criminal justice system. Cullen is a strong advocate of rehabilitation as criminal justice policy, and his social support theory justifies renewed efforts to provide funding and programs to assist offenders in reintegrating into society. Social support may not only reduce the amount of harm done by crime, but also improve the lives of those who have not yet begun to engage in antisocial behaviors. In many ways, social support theory promises to produce a coherent and effective response to crime. Counseling sessions are good for rehabilitative support.

strain theory

The idea that people who experience anger and frustration when they cannot achieve cultural goals through legitimate means try to achieve these goals through illegitimate means.

The life-course theories we have discussed in this chapter are, to a great extent, integrated theories. These theories have limitations, however, in that they focus primarily on the life-course perspective and do not include several other types of explanations. In contrast, integrated theories use several theories to explain more types of antisocial behavior. When considering integrated theories, we must be careful not to use them to explain too much. A grand theory that attempts to explain everything runs the risk of looking at variables in such a superficial manner that they actually explain very little.

The integrated theories we examine in this section limit the number of factors or variables they include, while trying to take advantage of how each variable can help explain why people break the law.

social location

The position of an individual within a society according to race, sex, class, geography, and age.

Cullen's Social Support Theory

The quality of social support affects an individual's behavior to become either pro-social or antisocial. Influence from parents, peers, spouses, schools, community programs, and criminal justice systems can be positive or negative. Cullen's social support theory has important implications for criminology. Its focus on the support that individuals give and receive takes advantage of several more traditional criminological theories and places them into a new paradigm. Although Cullen does not specifically borrow the terminology and constructs of many of the theories included in his paradigm, his focus on the theme of social support allows him to link the components of this theory to several other theories. This new paradigm has several advantages.

Breaking out of this cycle of antisocial behavior becomes more difficult as the delinquents age. They are unable to get off the track of life-course-persistent antisocial behavior for two reasons. The first is the youths' limited behavioral repertoire. Because of their early involvement in the juvenile justice system, they miss out on many opportunities to learn pro-social behaviors. Failing at school, becoming labeled a delinquent, and constantly attempting to solve problems with antisocial behavior combine to produce a cumulative effect that leads to further antisocial behavior. These youths never learn how to act appropriately and successfully engage conventional society. Moffitt contends that "simply put, if social and academic skills are not mastered in childhood, it is very difficult to later recover lost opportunities."

The second reason that life-course-persistent offenders have a hard time reentering conventional society is that they become ensnared by the consequences of their antisocial behavior. The decisions they made as adolescent delinquents create a number of disadvantages later in life. Moffitt contends that: characteristics such as poor self-control, impulsivity, and inability to delay gratification increase the risk that antisocial youngsters will make irrevocable decisions that close the doors of opportunity. Teenage parenthood, addiction to drugs or alcohol, school dropout, disabling or disfiguring injuries, patchy work histories, and time spent incarcerated are snares that diminish the probabilities of later success by eliminating opportunities for breaking the chain of cumulative continuity.

Shame can negatively affect one's self-concept. How can reintegrative shaming repair the harm done by offenders and draw them back into society?

Theoretical integration is achieved. Cullen draws widely from a number of traditional theories, but he also looks to some emerging perspectives to construct a comprehensive view of delinquency and crime. His social support theory draws on strain theory, social learning theory, and social control theory, as well as newer and more critical theories, such as feminist theory and peacemaking criminology (see Chapter 8 for more on the last two perspectives). In bringing all the theoretical perspectives together under the theme of social support, Cullen's theory demonstrates how this concept has been hinted at previously but now takes a central role in explaining antisocial behavior.

As Moffitt had done, Laub and Sampson found continuities in the life-course behaviors of delinquents. For example, individuals who had difficult childhood and adolescent years were more likely to become involved in crime in their later years. Such individuals are similar to Moffitt's category of life-course-persistent offenders. Laub and Sampson also found changes in the offending patterns of delinquents, and, much like Moffitt's adolescence-limited delinquents, these individuals eventually desisted from breaking the law. But the qualitative nature of Laub and Sampson's theory advanced Moffitt's ideas. An important element in desisting from crime is developing conventional social bonds. As graduate students of Travis Hirschi, Laub and Sampson were especially attuned to the idea that individuals with close ties to families, schools, and communities are invested in good behavior and do not wish to take risks that could put them at a disadvantage in life. Conversely, marginalized individuals have little investment in obeying the law and are much more likely to break it.

These features of social control theory are borne out in the life histories that Laub and Sampson conducted. However, there is more to life-course criminology than a simple updating of control theory. Laub and Sampson "put meat on the bones" of life-course criminology by providing detailed histories of a set of individuals as they aged. What Sampson and Laub found fits well with what we suspect happens to individuals as they age: They leave antisocial behavior behind and advance into more conventional society. Like Moffitt, Laub and Sampson identified specific events that prompted an individual to desist from crime. These turning points include activities such as joining the military, having a family, and securing a good job. A major feature of these turning points, according to Laub and Sampson, is agency. By "agency," Laub and Sampson mean that individuals make a conscious choice to stop breaking the law. Desisting from crime is not just something that happens automatically when a person marries or joins the military. Rather, the individual decides he or she has too much invested in a new lifestyle to risk any more involvement with the criminal justice system. Laub and Sampson provide an example of a man they call Leon, who was arrested several times as a youth for property offenses, yet grew into a successful adult who had a long and stable marriage.

Conflict theory considers social institutions, specifically those concerned with money and social class, to contribute more to crime than individual antisocial behavior (see Figure 8.2). One strength of conflict theory is that it highlights social and political dynamics, which are often taken for granted. Conflict theory explores the idea that crime stems from competition among interest groups—rich versus poor, upper class versus lower class, whites versus non-whites, men versus women, and so on.

These power struggles for economic and political dominance affect the definition of crime and enforcement of the law as dominant interest groups impose their values and judgments through their power to write the criminal law. The uneven distribution of wealth, property, and power leads to want and resentment of the wealthy, which ultimately leads to crime as those without the resources necessary for survival try to acquire them.

Integrated Theories

Throughout this book we have discussed several major theories that attempt to link crime to a variety of causes. Each of these theories has a certain level of relevance to sociological factors associated with deviance, although none of them can completely explain all types of crime (see Policy Implications). The reason for this is that each of these theories, whether biological, psychological, or sociological, considers the causes of crime to be greatly limited. Few of the theories we have discussed so far try to combine, in an organized way, all the issues that may be responsible for causing people to break the law. We turn now to a discussion of integrated theories that attempt to combine several different criminological theories in order to expand the focus on crime.

According to Tittle, people who have a balance of control are constrained by external factors but have sufficient freedom to countermand those factors. Thus, those with a balance of control are less likely to engage in unacceptable or unlawful behavior. According to control balance theory, everyone has a basic impulse to engage in antisocial behavior.50 This impulse is mediated by control factors outside the individual, such as law enforcement, the rules and regulations of organizations, and lack of opportunity. Individual personality factors, such as a desire for autonomy, motivate people to rebel, but these factors are often checked by external and internal controls. Some factors, such as living in a bad neighborhood or failing in school, encourage antisocial behavior. However, an individual's control surplus or deficit can balance this motivation to break the law. For instance, although an impoverished youth with an inferior education is predisposed toward delinquency, holding a job, even a low-paying job, provides some control. This measure of control can counteract the negative forces exerted by the impoverished neighborhood and failure at school.

Tittle lists some of the situations that can provoke an individual to engage in antisocial behavior: · receiving a harsh, commanding order or sharp, hostile reaction from an authority figure; · breaking up with a romantic partner; · falling behind in paying debts and bills; · being questioned about one's authority or rights; · being pushed while waiting in line; · being stopped by the police; · being denied membership in a club; and · being hungry, with no money to buy food. People in control deficit (those with more control exerted on them than they exert) and in control surplus (those who exert more control than they experience) are more likely to break the law. Those in control balance are more likely to be law abiding. The arrows pointing toward the figure represent controls exerted on the subject; arrows pointing away from the figures represent the subject's control.

Primary deviance occurs when society reacts to an individual's actions, successfully labels that individual, and acts upon that label. This kind of labeling is desirable in many ways. It is useful, for example, to know who the drug addicts, child molesters, and thieves are. However, once this negative label is successfully applied and sticks, labeled individuals are treated as if the label is the only status that matters, and the label becomes the person's master status. Secondary deviance is complete when labeled individuals internalize the label and see themselves as devalued members of society. If you tell a child often enough that he or she is stupid, this label becomes self-fulfilling when the child no longer attempts to excel at school. Once someone starts to live up to a negative label, it becomes part of his or her self-concept, and rehabilitation becomes much more difficult.

When a label is internalized, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. abeling theory has several limitations. The first is that it does not adequately explain the original deviance. It is reasonable to ask where negative labels originated. For example, why did a child labeled as a delinquent first get involved in burglary, drugs, or gang activity? Primary deviance only explains how society treats an individual once the person has been successfully labeled. Another limitation involves secondary deviance. White-collar or corporate offenders do not appear to suffer as much from negative labels as street-crime offenders and do not appear to internalize those labels, instead seeing themselves as shrewd businesspeople. In addition, many violent offenders, such as those who commit spouse abuse or acquaintance rape, have not been previously involved with the criminal justice system and have not suffered primary deviance. Nevertheless, criminologists continue to employ labeling theory to explain repeat offending.

Critical theory

a set of criminological theories that describe and critique the social structure and seek solutions to the problems of crime and criminal justice. It uses conflict theory to extend its critiques beyond class to other social locations. Labeling theory focuses on social expectations; feminist criminology focuses on sex and gender; peacemaking criminology on social justice; cultural criminology on media; postmodern criminology on language; and critical race theory on race. Because conflict theory came first and its ideas are important to understanding critical theory, we will begin there.

FIGURE 7.2a Moffitt's Pathways to Crime: Life-Course-Persistent Theory

https://prnt.sc/-QhBf9w157MS

Crime is traditionally dominated by male persons. Figure A shows the percentage of male and female arrests in 2016, and Figure B shows the percentage of male and female violent crime victimizations.

https://prnt.sc/YUnPBNMeC6GW

Historically, those who were white, male, and economically secure occupied social locations that enabled them to go to the best universities, receive excellent health care, and be welcomed into family businesses. By contrast, people who were female, impoverished, or within minority groups had a much more difficult time. Social location is concerned more with who you are than what you do. The major factors of social location include the following.

· Class. Class refers to a group defined by a particular social, economic, and educational status. Class is not only an organizing factor of society, but also a basis for discrimination. Social class can reflect how power is wielded in society, and some scholars consider the development of the criminal law and the actions of the criminal justice system to be an example of how stronger social classes seek power over weaker ones. · Race. Race is the use of certain biological characteristics, such as skin color, to classify human beings into categories. Many criminologists believe race is a significant factor in how the criminal justice system creates and applies the law. · Gender and sex. Gender is the social concept of how male and female persons should behave. The criminal justice system's differential treatment of males and females is based on sex, the biological characteristics that distinguish organisms on the basis of their reproductive ability. · Age. Many rights and responsibilities are allocated according to age. For example, U.S. citizens cannot vote until age 18. Many states have mandatory school-attendance policies based on age. People cannot collect social security until age 62. Very young lawbreakers are processed by the juvenile justice system, although some legal rules specify the waiver of some juvenile delinquents to adult courts.

The extent to which government should regulate the marketplace is often a point of contention, but we need only look at the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as Russia during the 1990s after the Soviet Union disintegrated, to understand how the market can be manipulated. For example, in the United States, in the late 19th century, "robber barons" such as John Jacob Astor, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and John D. Rockefeller took advantage of political corruption, the Industrial Revolution, and nearly non-existent corporate controls to monopolize industries and throttle competition.

· John Jacob Astor monopolized the fur trade and used his political connections to call in the U.S. military against American Indians who complained of being defrauded by Astor's American Fur Company. Astor then speculated in New York City real estate where his tenement housing made him one of the city's foremost slumlords. · Cornelius Vanderbilt used his influence as a shipbuilder to convince Nicaragua to give his Accessory Transit Company sole access to a passage connecting the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. When the deal soured, Vanderbilt invaded Nicaragua with mercenaries and later persuaded the U.S. government to send in the Marines. · John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company monopolized the U.S. oil industry by controlling the railroads and charging competitors exorbitant rates to transport their oil. With the help of corrupt officials, Rockefeller controlled 90 percent of U.S. petroleum production by 1890.

What affects a person's movement from antisocial potential to antisocial behavior?

· Strain. Strain is brought about by the desire for goods, money, status, excitement, or sex. Those who have difficulty fulfilling these goals, such as the impoverished, the young, and the disadvantaged, tend to choose antisocial methods. · Modeling and socialization. Consistent parenting, that is, consistent rewards and punishment, leads to low antisocial potential. Inconsistent parenting, such as erratic discipline or frequently absent parents, leads to high antisocial potential. Antisocial peers and models also encourage antisocial potential. · Life-course events. Antisocial potential tends to decrease after marriage or after a move out of disorganized neighborhoods. It increases after separation from a spouse or significant partner. · Biological factors. Impulsive people have high antisocial potential; parents with high antisocial potential could transmit that trait to their children. Related biological traits include hormonal issues, low intelligence (which leads to school failure), and low anxiety (which leads to less worry about the consequences of breaking the law). · Rational choice. A person with low antisocial potential will not break the law even if it is rational to do so (imagine an impoverished father stealing bread to feed a hungry child). A person with high antisocial potential may break the law even when it is not rational to do so (imagine a wealthy woman stealing jewelry from a department store for excitement). Judgment impairment often plays a role in these situations. For example, people addicted to alcohol or drugs may be motivated to commit offenses that they otherwise would not. · Labeling. A boy with low antisocial potential might develop long-term antisocial potential if he is caught breaking windows in an old house and is negatively labeled as a vandal for the rest of his youth. Likewise, a middle-aged man being released from prison might discover that he cannot find work because he is a felon. Although his antisocial potential is only moderate, he returns to breaking the law to survive. · Learning. Peer approval of lawbreaking might increase a youth's antisocial potential, as could the disapproval of authority figures who have become less important to the youth. However, the same parental disapproval of a younger child's antisocial activities might decrease that child's antisocial potential. The strength of ICAP is the number of theories it takes into account. Its disadvantages are that it does not explain variations in crime rates, and although it includes peer influence, it does not explain the development of gangs. In addition, ICAP focuses only on male offending and does not account for gender and race differences. For example, although females are assumed to have antisocial potential, they probably have different risk factors than males, which ICAP does not take into account

Rock climbing is a positive form of thrill-seeking for many young people. Why is a high degree of thrill-seeking often associated with delinquent behavior?

· The self: irritability/low self-control. Youths are more likely to engage in delinquent behavior when they get upset and are unable to control their emotions and behaviors. These behaviors are often characterized by intense emotional reactions, blame of others for their problems, impulsivity, chronic anger, lack of motivation, thrill-seeking, and an attitude that favors breaking the law. Although this description may fit almost any teenager, it is the degree to which teenagers possess these attributes that makes them potential delinquents. · The family: poor parenting practices/no marriages or bad marriages. Youths who do not bond to their parents in positive ways are more likely to engage in antisocial behavior. Delinquency is also more likely when parents do not provide adequate supervision and constructive discipline. Parents who are involved in antisocial activities provide poor role models. Families in which there is conflict and abuse as well as families in which the parents are estranged are also linked to delinquency. Parents who are absent or not involved with their children cannot provide the proper supervision and discipline or bond with them in positive ways. · School: negative school experiences. Schools can play a large part in explaining why youngsters break the law. Negative school experiences, such as poor academic performance and spending little or no time on homework, can be linked to delinquent behavior. In troubled schools, teachers do not provide positive role models and often treat students in negative ways. In addition, those youths who are not intellectually challenged at school are more likely to have limited educational and occupational goals. Those with a limited education find it hard to compete for high-paying jobs and for work they find meaningful and fulfilling. · Peers: delinquent friends. Adolescents with delinquent friends are more likely to become delinquent themselves. Police often interpret peer conflicts, such as fighting, as delinquency and may detain youths involved in such conflicts. Involvement in the juvenile or criminal justice system exposes youths to others with a history of delinquency. According to learning theory, this exposure can draw a youth deeper into delinquency. · Work: unemployment/bad jobs. Those who are underemployed or employed at low-paying jobs find little self-esteem in the workplace. Such experiences cause individuals to feel alienated not only from a particular job, but also from positive work habits. Estrangement from work and good work habits can make youths cynical about conventional society.