SOC 307: Criminology Exam I - Ch. 1-5

delinquency

A term often used in conjunction w/ crime & deviance. > Refers to violations of the criminal law & other misbehavior committed by young people.

criminaloid

A term used by Cesare Lombroso to describe the occasional criminal who is enticed into criminality primarily by environmental influences.

criminal behavior

Human activity, both intentional & negligent, that violates the criminal law. It may include a failure to act when there is a legal obligation to do so.

The Legalistic Perspective on Crime

Human conduct in violation of the criminal laws of a state, federal government, or a local jurisdiction that has power to make such laws. > Laws are social products; crime is socially relative. > Viewpoint: If there is no law against it, there can be no rime, no matter how deviant or socially repugnant the behavior in question may be. > Shortcoming: yields moral high ground to powerful people to influence lawmaking.

crime

Human conduct in violation of the criminal laws of the federal gov't, a state, or a local jurisdiction that has the power to make such laws.

Demonic era

Humankind has always been preoccupied w/ the ongoing war btwn good vs. evil. > Early explanations of evil, i.e., demonic possession, spiritual influences, & divine punishment. > Some early human societies believed that outlandish behavior was b/c of spirit possession.

Defining Criminology

"There seems to be nearly as many definitions of contemporary criminology as there are criminologists," - Criminologist J. Sheley

hypothesis

(1) A tentative explanation accounting for a set of facts that can be tested by further investigation. (2) Something that is taken to be true for the purpose of argument or investigation.

What do criminologists do?

(1) Academic (research) criminologists: (a) Ph.D. in crim., CJ, or related fields; (b) teach in universities; (c) conduct research to advance the field's knowledge; (d) & publish in journals. (2) Other careers: (a) work in CJS; (b) private security or private investigation; (c) law school; (d) work for legislative bodies as an expert on civic organizations.

the 4 stages of scientific research

(1) Problem identification, (2) Research design development, (3) Choice of data-gathering techniques, & (4) Review of findings.

criminality

A behavioral predisposition that disproportionately favors criminal activity.

mesomorph

A body type described as athletic & muscular; more likely to be assoc. w/ delinquency; have "semantic structures [that] are in the ascendancy" (larger bones & considerable muscle mass).

endomorph

A body type originally described as soft & round (or overweight); relaxed & sociable; w/ "digestive viscera [that] are massive & highly developed" (large stomach).

ectomorph

A body type originally described as thin & fragile; restrained, shy, & inhibited; w/ "long, slender, poorly muscled extremities & delicate bones."

variable

A concept that can undergo measurable changes.

"feeblemindedness" (or "medical ret*rdation")

A criminological belief that criminals were severely mentally defective. > A term used to describe persons who suffer from physical & mental impairments. >Assoc. w/ the study of eugenics & 19th/early 20th cent. practices.

evidence-based criminology (or "knowledge-based criminology")

A form of contemporary criminology that makes use of rigorous social scientific techniques, esp. randomized controlled experiments, & the systematic review of research results.

translational criminology

A form of criminology whose purpose it is to translate the results of research into workable social policy.

social policy

A government initiative, program, or plan intended to address problems in society. > Ex: the war of crime is a kind of generic (large-scale) social policy; one consisting of many smaller programs.

Supermale (XYY)

A male individual displaying the XYY chromosome structure.

Italian School of Criminology

A perspective on criminology developed in the late 1800s that held that criminals can be identified by physical features & are throwbacks to earlier stages of human evolution. The Italian School was largely based on studies of criminal anthropology.

confounding effect

A rival explanation or competing hypotheses that is a threat to the internal or external validity of a research design.

theory

A series of interrelated propositions that attempts to describe, explain, predict, & ultimately control some class of events. > Gains explanatory power from inherent logical consistency (reliability & validity), & testing on how well it describes & predicts reality.

criminalist

A specialist in the collection & examination of the physical evidence of crime.

theoretical criminology

A subfield of general criminology. > Mainly found in colleges & universities. > Posits explanations & methods of understanding criminal behavior.

atavism

A term coined by Cesare Lombroso to suggest that criminals are physiological throwbacks to earlier stages of human evolution. > A reappearance of an earlier characteristic.

sociobiology

A theoretical perspective that applies evolutionary theory to social behavior & says that most social behaviors are shaped by natural selection. > Explores ways in which human biology affects how we create culture. > Includes the systematic study of the biological basis of all social behavior.

general theory

A theory that attempts to explain all (or at least most) forms of criminal conduct through a single overarching approach.

dizygotic twin (DZ)

A twin who develops from a separate ovum & who carries the genetic material shared by siblings.

pure research

A type of research undertaken simply for the sake of advancing scientific knowledge. > A type of scientific investigation that seeks to gain knowledge for the sake of knowledge itself.

consensus perspective

A viewpoint holding that laws should be enacted to criminalize behaviors when members of society generally agree that such laws are necessary. > Projects an image of society as the collective expression of shared norms & values. > Applies to homogenous societies & achieving in diverse societies is difficult.

pluralist perspective

A viewpoint that says that behaviors are typically criminalized through a political process only after debate over the appropriate course of action.

Juke Family (Study)

A well-known "criminal family" studied by Richard L. Dugdale. > The study traced six generations of the family to attempt to demonstrate a genetic basis for the family's antisocial behavior.

Kallikak Family (Study)

A well-known "criminal family" was studied by Henry H. Goddard in 1912. > Followed the case of Deborah Kallikak, the descendant of the illegitimate offspring of an upstanding citizen & a "feeble-minded" barmaid. > Institutionalized for feeble-mindedness.

What are the causes & consequences of a criminal event?

Accord. to the text, crime results from the coming together of inputs provided by the offender, victim, CJS, & society. > Foreground causes: features that immediately determine the nature of the crime (inputs). > Background causes: generic contributions to the crime.

born criminal

According to Lombroso, an individual who is born w/ a genetic predilection toward criminality.

The Sociological (or "sociolegal") Perspective on Crime

An antisocial act of such a nature that its repression is necessary for the preservation of the existing social order. > Viewpoint: crime is primarily an offense against human relationships, & a violation of the law.

quasi-experimental design

An approach o research that, although less powerful than experimental designs, is deemed worthy of use when better designs are ≠ feasible.

masculinity hypothesis

An early belief in criminology that criminal women exhibit masculine features & mannerisms.

Positivist School of Criminology

An early criminological perspective that employed scientific objectivity, measurement,& observation in the study of crime & its causation. > Involves a data-driven approach to understanding criminal behavior.

Paradigm

An example, a model, or a theory.

controlled experiment

An experiment that attempts to hold conditions (other than the intentionally introduced experimental intervention) constant.

integrated theory

An explanatory perspective that merges (or attempts to merge) concepts drawn from different sources.

criminology

An interdisciplinary profession built around the scientific study of crime & criminal behavior, including their forms, causes, legal aspects, & control. > Is a discipline & a profession. > Provide solutions to crime.

criminology & criminal justice

Application of the criminal law & study of the components of the justice system. > Focus on control of lawbreaking = heart of criminal justice.

sound social policy

Are the needs to be linked to objective findings of well-conducted criminological research; of which, criminologists are aware.

causes of crime & the criminal justice system

Background causes: (a) failure to prevent crime; (b) failure to identify/inhibit specific offenders; (c) failure to prevent release of recidivists. Foreground causes: (a) proper system response may reduce crime; (b) presence/absence of police officers; (c) availability of official assistance; (d) willingness of officers to intervene pre-crime; (e) response time.

causes of crime & society

Background causes: (a) legislation defining crime; (b) generic social practices & conditions; (c) socialization process--we learn about the dangers of criminal victimization. Foreground causes: (a) distribution of resources; (b) accessibility of services.

causes of crime & the offender

Background causes: (a) life experiences; (b) biology/genetic inventory; (c) personality; (d) values/beliefs; (e) skills/knowledge. Foreground causes: (a) motivation; (b) specific intent; (c) state of mind (drug-induced).

causes of crime & the victim

Background causes: (a) passive presence--wrong place at the wrong time; (b) lifestyle. Foreground causes: (a) victim precipitation; (i) active victim participation in initial stages of criminal event, (ii) victim instigates chain of events resulting in victimization.

evidence based

Built on scientific findings, esp. practices & policies founded upon the results of randomized, controlled experiments.

unicausal theory

Having one cause: to posit a single source for all that they attempt to explain, i.e., all serious deviant & criminal behavior. > Approach used in many past theories.

The Psychological ("Maladaptive") Perspective on Crime

Crime is a form of social maladjustment which can be designated as a > or < pronounced difficulty that the individual has in reacting to the stimuli of their environment in such a way as to remain in harmony w/ that environment. > Viewpoint: (1) crime is a problem behavior for both the individual & for society; (2) crime is considered to be any maladaptive behavior; including, any harmful or potentially harmful behaviors.

What are the roots to criminology?

Criminology (the tree) is rooted in: anthropology, philosophy, biology, law, sociology, medicine, poli. sci., ethology, psychology, psychiatry, ethics, economics, and so on.

deviant behavior

Human activity that violates social norms. > Deviance & crime overlap, but ≠ identical as some deviant behavior does not violate the the law.

criminal justice professionals

Do the day-to-day work of the criminal justice system.

early positivism

Early criminologists who believed that society could be observed scientifically. They used data from the fields of biology & anthropology to identify physical abnormalities, because they thought the data could distinguish criminal offenders from other people.

eugenics criminology in the case Buck v. Bell (1927)

Eugenic criminology accepted genetic determinism & let to social policies that called for sterilization of mentally handicapped women to prevent them from having children.

territoriality

Explains the many conflicts, including homicide, warfare, & other forms of aggression, btwn & among species, esp. humans.

Twins Studies & Heredity

Genetics & heredity, combined w/ processes of natural selection, including sexual selection, can produce biologically based differences in behavior.

Is the social problems perspective a macro approach?

It is a macro approach b/c it sees the individual behavior (crime) due to widespread & contributory social conditions that enmesh unwitting individuals in a causal nexus of uncontrollable social forces.

Is the individual responsibility perspective a micro approach?

It is a micro approach that tends to focus on individual offenders & their unique biology, psychology, background, & immediate life experiences.

traits

Notable features or qualities of a biological entity (aka characteristics that are inherited).

monozygotic twin (MZ)

One of two twins who develop from the same egg & who carry almost identical genetic material.

criminologist

One who is trained in the field of criminology; also, one who studies crime, criminals, & criminal behavior. > Studies crime, criminals, & criminal behavior.

Twin Studies

Studies of twins attempted to identify the role that heredity played in criminal behavior, especially among twins separated at birth & raised in vastly different environments.

secondary research (or "secondary analysis")

Research based on new evaluation of existing information that has been collected by other researchers.

applied research

Research based on scientific inquiry that is designed & carried out w/ practical applications in mind.

primary research

Research is characterized by an original & direct investigation conducted to collect new data to solve a marketing info need.

Altruism

Selfless, helping behavior; unselfish regard for the welfare of others.

primacy of sociology

Sociological perspective that crime is social in nature & controlled by effective social policy = a social phenomenon. > Therefore, (1) many theories of criminal behavior are based in sociology; (2) seen in the textbook theme social problems vs. individual responsibility.

Who said, "It is better for all the world if instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime, or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those persons who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind."?

Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

U.S. Supreme Court, Buck v. Bell (1927)

The U.S. Supreme Court ruling upheld a statute instituting compulsory sterilization of the unfit, including the mentally retarded, "for the protection & health of the state." > U.S.S.C. Justices endorsed social policies of negative eugenics, which is an attempt to improve the human race by eliminating "defectives" from the gene pool.

external validity

The ability to generalize research findings to other settings.

tribalism

The attitudes & behavior that result from strong feelings of identification w/ one's own social group.

What is the theme of the textbook?

The balance between (1) the Social Problems Perspective, and (2) The Individual Responsibility Perspective

individual responsibility perspective

The belief is that individuals are fundamentally responsible for their own behavior & that they choose crime over other, more law-abiding courses of action.

social problems perspective

The belief that crime is a manifestation of underlying social problems, e.g., poverty, discrimination, pervasive family violence, inadequate socialization practices, & the breakdown of traditional social institutions.

genetic determinism

The belief that genes are the major determining factor in human behavior.

internal validity

The certainty that experimental interventions did indeed cause the changes observed in the study group.

somatotyping

The classification of human beings into types according to body build & other physical characteristics.

criminal families

The focus of criminal anthropology in the late 1800s turned to the identification/study of criminal families, built on developing notions of heredity & genetics. > Families that appeared to exhibit criminal tendencies across decades.

socialization

The lifelong process of social interaction through which individuals acquire a self-identity & the physical, mental, & social skills needed for survival in society.

research design

The logic & structure inherent in an approach to data gathering.

social relativity

The notion that social events are interpreted differently according to the cultural experiences & personal interests of the initiator, the observer, or the recipient of that behavior.

heredity

The passing of traits from parents to children/parent to child.

operationalization

The process by which concepts are made measurable.

The Political Perspective on Crime

The result of criteria that have been built into the law by powerful groups & are then used to label selected undesirable forms of behavior as illegal. > Viewpoint: Laws serve the interests of the politically powerful, & crimes are merely forms of behavior that are perceived by those in power as direct or indirect threats to their interests.

criminal justice

The scientific study of crime, the criminal law, & components of the criminal justice system, including police, courts, & correction.

criminal anthropology

The scientific study of the relationship between human physical characteristics (in particular, bodily features) & criminality. > crim. anthropologists saw criminals as throwbacks to earlier evolutionary epochs.

behavioral genetics

The study of genetic & environmental contributions to individual variations in human behavior.

eugenics

The study of hereditary improvement by genetic control.

Gene pool

The total genetic information of all

research

The use of standardized, systematic procedures in the search for knowledge.

criminal justice system

The various agencies of justice, especially the police, courts, & corrections, whose goal is to apprehend, convict, punish, & are rehabilitate law violators.

constitutional (or "biological") theories

Theories that explain criminality by reference to offenders' body types, inheritance, genetics, or external observable physical characteristics.

biological theories

Theories that maintain that the basic determinants of human behavior, including criminality, are constitutionally or physiologically based & often inherited.

eugenics criminology

a perspective that holds that the root causes of criminality are passed from generation to generation in the form of "bad genes."

phrenology (or "craniology")

the detailed study of the shape & size of the cranium (head) to determine anatomical correlates of human behavior, & as a supposed indication of character & mental abilities.

criminalize

to make illegal or treat as criminal.