soc exam 2

"When a juvenile experiences difficulty in the stages of moral development, delinquency can result." This statement is best described by which of the following perspectives?

. Cognitive

The cycle of of social disorganization: cultural transmission

Adults pass norms (focal concerns) to younger generation, creating stable lower-class culture

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: choosing delinquent acts

Concepts of delinquent and delinquency must be considered separately. Delinquents are youth who maintain the propensity to commit delinquent acts Delinquency is an event during which an adolescent choose to violate the law. "Delinquents do not violate the law all the time; like other kids they also go to school, engage in leisure activities and play sports. But when they choose to, if they want money, possessions, or revenge, they use illegal methods to get what they want.

Which of the following statements best describes the cause of delinquency according to psychodynamic theory?

Childhood traumas

Which of the following statements regarding delinquency and intelligence is accurate?

Experts on the connection between IQ and delinquency are split on whether it is a direct or indirect influence.

Which of the following statements best describes arousal theory?

Offenders are seeking optimal levels of stimulation

Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency: behavioral

cause Learning processes * past expereinces *stimuli rewards and punishments

5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency: Psychodynamic (psychoanalytic)

cause: Intrapsychic processes unconsious conflicts childhood traumas family abuse mood disorders psychosis

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: ADHD

one neurological condition that has been linked to antisocial behavior patterns, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), is a condition in which a child shows a developmentally inappropriate distractibility, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and lack of attention

When poor kids live relatively close to rich kids, they can experience negative self-feeling. This is known as

relative deprivation

The core premise of which perspective is that juvenile delinquents have weak social bonds to society?

social control

General strain theory maintains that .

strain can be caused by the presentation of negative stimuli

. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime: Poverty

46 million americans living in proveryt, defined as a family of four earning about 23,000 dollars per year, who have scant, if any, resources, and suffer socially and economically . The median income of the nations upper income families (639,400( is nearly 7 times that of middle incomes families and 30 times that of the poor, the widest gap seen in the past 30 year.s Today about 22 percent of all youth (15 million) live in families with incomes below the poverty line.9 In addition to the poor, the number of homeless children in the United States has surged in recent years, to one child in every 30. Nearly 2.5 million American children were homeless at some point in the past year Being poor and homeless hit adolescents hard. Children who grow up in low income homes are less likely to achieve in school and complete their schooling than children with more affluent parents. Poor kids are also more likely to suffer from health problems and to recieve inadequate health care. It seem logical that children ont he lowest rung of the economic ladder will have the greatest incentive to commit crime. They may be enraged by their lack of economic success or simply financially desperate and disillusioned, . in either instance, delinquency, despite its inherent dangers, may seem an appealing alternative to alife of indigence. A lack of opportunity for upward mobility may make drug dealing and other crimes an attractive solution for socially deprived but economically enterprising people.12 Because social institutions are frayed or absent, law-violating youth groups and gangs form and are free to recruit neighborhood youth. Both boys and girls who feel detached and alienated from their social world are at risk to become gang members.13 There are now almost 31,000 gangs and about 850,000 gang members in the United States; about 2,300 gang-related killings occur each year.14

5. Explain how the labeling process is related to delinquent careers.

Becoming stigmatized, or labeled, by agents of social control, including official institutions (such as the police and the courts) and unofficial institutions (such as parents and neighbors), creates and sustains delinquent careers. According to this view, also known as labeling theory, kids may violate the law for a variety of reasons, including poor family relationships, peer pressure, psychological abnormality, and so on. Regardless of the original cause, if their deviant behavior is detected and punished, the result is a negative label that can follow them throughout life. These labels include "juvenile delinquent," "mentally ill," "junkie," and many more. Although the original cause of the misbehavior is important, it is the labeling process that transforms the adolescent's identity. Without the label and stigma, they might be able to return to a conventional lifestyle; with it, they are locked forever into a delinquent way of life. L

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Biochemical factors

Biochemical problems can begin at conception when mothers ingest harmful substances during pregnancy.106 Maternal alcohol abuse during gestation has long been linked to prenatal damage and subsequent antisocial behavior in adolescence.107 Environmental contamination has been linked to adverse behavior changes as well. Children exposed to high levels of air pollution show evidence of cognitive impairment and inflammation in the prefrontal lobes of the brain, factors correlated with antisocial behavior in adolescence. Exposure to lead has also been linked to emotional and behavioral disorder

Compare the principles of Situational crime prevention

Defination: A crime prevention method that relies on reducing the opportunity to commit criminal acts by making them more difficult to perform, reducing their reward, and increasing their risks. According to the concept of situational crime prevention, in order to reduce delinquent activity, crime control efforts must recognize the characteristics of sites and situations that are at risk to crime; the things that draw or push kids toward these sites and situations; what equips potential delinquents to take advantage of illegal opportunities offered by these sites and situations; and what constitutes the immediate triggers for delinquent actions .74 Delinquency can be neutralized if (1) potential targets are carefully guarded, (2) the means to commit crime are controlled, and (3) potential offenders are carefully monitored. Some desperate kids may contemplate crime, but only the truly irrational will attack a well-defended, inaccessible target and risk strict punishment. Increasing the effort of delinquency might involve target-hardening techniques, such as placing unbreakable glass on storefronts. Installing a locking device on cars prevents drunken drivers from starting the vehicle (the breath-analyzed ignition interlock device).76 Access to property can be controlled by locking gates and fencing yards.77 Facilitators of crime can be controlled by banning the sale of spray paint to adolescents in an effort to cut down on graffiti, or putting ID photos on credit cards to limit their use if stolen. Read more in the textbook

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory.

Defination: The view that both thought and behavior have biological and social bases. focuses on the association between biological makeup, environmental conditions, and antisocial behavior -focuses on the association between biological makeup, environmental conditions, and antisocial behavior CHECKPOINTS There is a suspected relationship between antisocial behavior and biochemical makeup. One view is that body chemistry can govern behavior and personality, including levels of aggression and depression. Overexposure to particular environmental contaminants puts kids at risk for antisocial behavior. There is also evidence that diet may influence behavior through its impact on body chemistry. Hormonal levels are another area of biochemical research. Another focus of biosocial theory is the neurological—brain and nervous system—structure of offenders. Biosocial theorists also study the genetic makeup of delinquents.

Compare the principles of general deterrence

Definition: Sending convicted offenders to secure incarceration facilities so that punishment is severe enough to convince them not to repeat their criminal activity. It stands to reason that if deliqnents truly are rational and commit crimes because they see them as beneficial, they will stop offending if they are caught and severely punished. According to this concept, if young offenders are punished severely, the experience will convince them not to repeat theri illegal acts. A problem: the more kids are arrested, the less likely they are to fear arrest. In some instances, experiencing punishment may actually increase the likelihood that offenders will commit new crimes (recidivate).56 In fact, a history of prior arrests, convictions, and punishments has proven to be the best predictor of rearrest among young offenders released from correctional institutions.57 :

Compare the principles of Specific deterrence

Definition: Sending convicted offenders to secure incarceration facilities so that punishment is severe enough to convince them not to repeat their criminal activity. It stands to reason that if deliqnents truly are rational and commit crimes because they see them as beneficial, they will stop offending if they are caught and severely punished. According to this concept, if young offenders are punished severely, the experience will convince them not to repeat theri illegal acts. A problem: the more kids are arrested, the less likely they are to fear arrest. In some instances, experiencing punishment may actually increase the likelihood that offenders will commit new crimes (recidivate).56 In fact, a history of prior arrests, convictions, and punishments has proven to be the best predictor of rearrest among young offenders released from correctional institutions.57

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: economic need/ opportunity

Engages in illegals acts if the opportunity for success is right around the corner. "The potential for profit cannot be discounted and teens with forego crime if they don't beleive it will bring sufficient rewards." Example: drug users, may increase theri delinquent activities to pay for the spiraling cost of their habit. As the cost of their drug habir increase, the need to make greater illegal profit become overwhelmingly attractive. (while the average tke from cruise is not that much, it's a lot quicker and more efficient to steal a car or tv than to work at a minimum wage job. There is also the potential for future riches no matter what the current risks. They believed that if they stayed in the drug business and somday earned a "management" position there was as trong potential for future riches. Gang kids are willing to take risk adn work hard today for the promise of a high paid position tomorrow.

social theory : social reaction core premise and strengths

People enter into law-violating careers when they are labeled for their acts and organize their personalities around the labels. Explains the role of society in creating deviance. Explains why some juvenile offenders do not become adult criminals. Develops concepts of criminal careers

social theory : social learning core premise and strengths

People learn to commit delinquent acts through exposure to others who hold deviant values and engage in deviant behaviors. Explains why some at-risk kids do not become delinquents. Accounts for the effects of parental deviance on kids.

Concept of strain to explaining the onset of delinquency

People who adopt the goals of society but lack the means to attain them seek alternatives, such as crime Strength: points out how competition for success creates conflict and crime. Suggests that social conditions and not personality can account for crime .can explain middle- and upper-class crime Inhabitants of a disorganized inner-city area feel Inhabitants of a disorganized inner-city area feel isolated, frustrated, ostracized from the economic mainstream, hopeless, and eventually angry. These are all signs of what sociologists call strain. How do these feelings affect criminal activities? To relieve strain, indigent people may achieve their goals through deviant methods, such as theft or drug trafficking, or they may reject socially accepted goals and substitute more deviant goals, such as being tough and aggressive. A condition caused by the failure to achieve one's social goals

social theory : strain core premise and strengths

People who adopt the goals of society but lack the means to attain them seek alternatives, such as crime. Points out the factors that produce the delinquency. Strain People who adopt the goals of society but lack the means to attain them seek alternatives, such as crime. Points out how competition for success creates conflict and crime. Suggests that social conditions and not personality can account for crime. Can explain middle- and upper-class crime. .

. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime: checkpoints

Poor kids are more likely to commit crimes, because they are unable to achieve monetary or social success in any other way. Some kids lack the social support and economic resources familiar to more affluent members of society. Residence in a deteriorated inner-city area, wracked by poverty, decay, fear, and despair, creates harms that extend from an increase in poor health to higher risk of criminal victimization. Children are hit especially hard by poverty. The burdens of underclass life are often felt most acutely by minority group members. Latino and African American children are more likely to be poor and suffer social problems than Asian and white children.

social learning theory

Posit that delinquency is learned through close relationships with others; children are born good and learn to be bad from others. hold that children living in even the most deteriorated areas can resist inducements to crime if they have learned proper values and behaviors. Delinquency, by contrast, develops by learning the values and behaviors associated with criminal activity.123 Kids can learn deviant values from their parents, relatives, or peers. Social learning can involve the techniques of crime (how to hot-wire a car) as well as the psychological aspects (how to deal with guilt). The former are needed to commit crimes, whereas the latter are required to cope with the emotional turmoil that follows.

social control theories

Posit that delinquency results from a weakened commitment to the major social institutions (family, peers, and school); lack of such commitment allows youths to exercise antisocial behavioral choices. The second main branch of the social process approach, suggest that the cause of delinquency resides in the strength of the relationships a child forms with conventional individuals and groups. Those who are socialized to have close relationships with their parents, friends, and teachers will develop a positive self-image and the ability to resist the lure of deviant behaviors. They develop a strong commitment to conformity that enables them to resist pressures to violate the law. If, however, their bonds to society become fractured or broken, youths will feel free to violate the law because they are not worried about jeopardizing their social relationships (see Figure 4.5). review figure 4.5

summary part 2

Poverty undermines the basic stabilizing forces of the community—family, school, peers, and neighbors—rendering them weakened, attenuated, and ineffective. As a result, the ability of the community to control its inhabitants, to assert informal social control, is damaged and frayed. Gangs flourish in deteriorated neighborhoods with high levels of poverty, lack of investment, high unemployment rates, and population turnover. In contrast, cohesive communities develop collective efficacy: mutual trust, a willingness to intervene in the supervision of children, and the maintenance of public order. .

summary part 4

Social learning theories suggest that delinquency is learned in a process that is similar to learning any other human behavior. One of the most prominent social learning theories is Edwin H. Sutherland's differential association theory, which asserts that criminal behavior is learned primarily within interpersonal groups and that youths will become delinquent if definitions they have learned favorable to violating the law exceed definitions favorable to obeying the law within that group. In contrast, social control theories maintain that all people have the potential to violate the law and that modern society presents many opportunities for illegal activity. Travis Hirschi links the onset of delinquency to the weakening of the ties that bind people to society. Other experts focus on how becoming stigmatized, or labeled, by agents of social control creates and sustains delinquent careers. Kids whose deviant behavior is detected and punished will develop negative labels that can follow them throughout life. The labeling process transforms the youngsters' identity. Labels and stigma lock offenders forever into a delinquent way of life. Another social view considers the effect of the capitalist economic system on behavior. Society is set up to favor a few wealthy people over the great majority who have little hope of advancement. Delinquency is a result of the inequities built into contemporary society

. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime: social conditions

Social scientists have noted that the harm caused by residence in a deteriorated inner-city area, beset by poverty, decay, fear, and despair, extends from an increase in poor health to higher risk of criminal victimization. These areas are the home of delinquent gangs and groups. Because these areas often have high violence rates, neighborhood kids are exposed to a constant stream of antisocial behaviors, which make them susceptible to the influence of violent peers while having a higher risk of becoming the victim of violent crimes. Even when neighborhood disadvantage and poverty are taken into account, the more often children are exposed to violence within their residential community the more likely they are to become violent themselves. Communnites experiencing political unrest and mistrust,economic stress, and family disintegration also experience sharp increases in crime and delinuqnecy rates.

checkpoints 3 (chapter 4)

Some experts believe that delinquency is a function of socialization. Socialization involves the interactions people have with various organizations, institutions, and social processes of society. People from all walks of life have the potential to become delinquents if they maintain destructive social relationships with families, schools, peers, and neighbors. Social learning theory stresses that kids learn both how to commit crimes and the attitudes needed to support the behavior. People learn criminal behaviors just as they learn conventional behaviors. Social learning theories suggest that delinquency is learned in a process that is similar to learning any other human behavior. Social control theories analyze the failure of society to control antisocial tendencies. All youths have the potential to become delinquents, but their bonds to conventional society prevent them from violating the law. Travis Hirschi links the onset of delinquency to the weakening of the ties that bind people to society.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Learning disability

TThe relationship between learning disabilities (LD) and delinquency has been highlighted by studies showing that arrested and incarcerated children have a far higher LD rate than do children in the general population. Although approximately 10 percent of all youths have some form of learning disability, LD among adjudicated delinquents is much high The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University released findings that show how learning disabilities are linked to substance abuse: • Risk factors for adolescent substance abuse are very similar to the behavioral effects of learning disabilities: reduced self-esteem, academic difficulty, loneliness, depression, and the desire for social acceptance. Thus, learning disabilities may indirectly lead to substance abuse by generating the types of behavior that typically lead adolescents to abuse drugs. • A child with a learning disability is twice as likely to suffer ADHD as a member of the general population, and there is a high incidence of ADHD among individuals who abuse alcohol and drugs . It is known that as many as half of those suffering ADHD self-medicate with drugs and alcohol. • Children who are exposed to alcohol, tobacco, and drugs in the womb are at higher risk for various developmental disorders, including learning disabilities. Furthermore, a mother who uses drugs while pregnant may be a predictor that the child will grow up in a home with a parent who is a substance abuser. This too will increase the risk that the child will abuse drugs or alcohol himself.146 Despite this evidence, the learning disability-juvenile delinquency link has always been controversial. It is possible that the LD child may not be more susceptible to delinquent behavior than the non-LD child and that the link may be an artifact of bias in the way LD children are treated at school or by the police. LD youths are more likely to be arrested, and if petitioned to juvenile court, they bring with them a record of school problems that may increase the likelihood of their being found delinquent.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: is there a genetic link

The association between delinquency and genes is by no means certain and there has been and continues to be serious debate over the heritability of human behavior. Some critics, such as Calliwe Burt and Ronald Simons, believe that the social environment plays a more critical role in shaping behavior than genes and heredity, especially during the critical periods of childhood and adolescence. The environment, they argue, shapes biological processes and enables people to function and survive in existing social conditions; human biological makeup helps people respond to the everyday situations and events they face in their social world. As environmental conditions change, so do the brain and nervous system. Adverse, dangerous, and negative environments sculpt or change an individual's brain functioning, causing them to respond to environmental events with aggression, violence, and coercion.172 Rather than genes controlling the environment, it's possible that negative environmental influences can influence genes. Biosocial theorists counter that human behavior is shaped by inherited rather than learned traits.173 Over the course of human history, the most aggressive, violent people have gained reproductive advantages that ensure survival of their genetics and a population of aggressive young males. Even though modern society does not tolerate sexual aggression, the genes that produce aggression are still present in the population.174 So the gene-environment debate rages o

Labeling effects and self labeling

The degree to which an adolescent is perceived as deviant may affect their treatment at home and at school. Parents may consider them a bad influence on younger brothers and sisters. Getting arrested can put a strain on family support and acceptance, something that can disrupt a child's future development.140 Neighbors may tell their children to avoid the "troublemakers." Teachers may place them in classes reserved for students with behavior problems, minimizing their chances of obtaining higher education. Beyond these results, and depending on the visibility of the label and the manner in which it is applied, youths will have an increasing commitment to delinquent careers. They may seek out others who are similarly labeled—for example, joining delinquent gangs and groups. Involvement with these newfound delinquent peers increases their involvement in delinquent activities and helps further enmesh them in criminality the effects of stigma may be both long-term and cumulative. As they mature, children are in danger of undergoing repeated, intensive, official labeling, which has been shown to produce self-labeling and to damage identities.142 Kids who perceive that they have been negatively labeled by significant others, such as peers and teachers, are also more likely to self-report delinquent behavior and to adopt a deviant self-concept.143 They are likely to make deviant friends and join gangs, associations that escalate their involvement in criminal activities.144 Kids labeled as troublemakers in school are the most likely to drop out, and dropping out has been linked to delinquent behavior.145 These effects can plague people over the life course. As labeled teens get further involved in their new deviant peer group and increase the frequency of their deviant activities, they face renewed condemnation from law enforcement officers, teachers, and other authority figures. This new round of labeling strengthens their commitment to antisocial behavior. The labeled teens may begin to view themselves as outcasts, abandoned by society S. L the process by which a person who has been engatively labeled accepts the label as a personal role or identity (

control theory

The most prominent control theory is the one developed by sociologist Travis Hirschi.131 In his classic book Causes of Delinquency, Hirschi set out the following arguments: • All people have the potential to commit crimes because they are pleasurable and immediately gratifying: money without work; sex without courtship; revenge without process. • People are kept in check by their social bonds or attachments to society. • If these social bonds are weakened, kids are able to engage in antisocial but personally desirable behaviors. Hirschi argues that the social bond a person maintains with society contains four main elements: • Attachment to parents, peers, and schools • Commitment to the pursuit of conventional activities, such as getting an education and saving for the future • Involvement in conventional activities, such as school, sports, or religion • Belief in values, such as sensitivity to the rights of others and respect for the legal code SOCIAL BOND Ties a person to the institutions and processes of society; elements of the bond include attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. If any or all of these elements of the social bond weaken, kids are free to violate the law. Hirschi further suggests that the interrelationship of social bond elements controls subsequent behavior. People who feel kinship and sensitivity to parents and friends should be more likely to adopt and work toward legitimate goals or gain skills that help them avoid antisocial or dangerous behaviors. For example, girls who have higher levels of bonding to parents and develop good social skills in adolescence are less likely to experience dating violence as young adults. The reason: a close bond to parents reduces early adolescent alcohol use, a factor that shields girls from victimization.132 A significant amount of research evidence has been accumulated that supports Hirschi's ideas: • Positive social attachments, especially to family, help control delinquency.133 • Kids who are detached from the educational experience are at risk of criminality.134 • Kids who do well and are committed to school are less likely to engage in delinquent acts.135 In contrast, youths who are detached and alienated from the educational experience are at significant risk of criminality.136 • Youths who are involved in conventional leisure activities, such as supervised social activities and noncompetitive sports, are less likely to engage in delinquency than those who are involved in unconventional leisure activities and unsupervised, peer-oriented social pursuits.1

Other information about the social disorganization theory

These Chicago-based scholars found that delinquency rates were high in what they called transitional neighborhoods, areas that had changed from affluence to decay. (transitional neightborhoods: Area undergoing a shift in population and structure, usually from middle-class residential to lower-class mixed use.) In such environments, teenage gangs developed as a means of survival, defense, and friendship. Gang leaders recruited younger members, passing on delinquent traditions and ensuring survival of the gang from one generation to the next, a process referred to as cultural transmission. The areas of heaviest delinquency concentration appeared to be the poverty-stricken, transitional, inner-city zones. The zones farthest from the city's center were the least prone to delinquency. Analysis of these data indicated a stable pattern of delinquent activity in the ecological zones over a 65-year period.3 Social control can come in variety of forms, including formal (e.g., police, courts, government agencies) and informal (e.g., parents, neighbors) sources. In areas where social control remains high, children are less likely to become involved with deviant peers and engage in problem behaviors.3 In contrast, children who reside in disorganized neighborhoods live in an environment absent of social control. Their involvement with conventional social institutions, such as schools and after-school programs, is either absent or blocked, which puts them at risk for recruitment into gangs

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: Maintaining respect

Young men in poor inner city neighborhoods build their self- image on the foundation of respect; it is understood that those who have "juice" (as respect is sometimes called on the streat) can take care of themselves, even if it means resorting to violence. For street youths ,losing respect on the street can be damaging and dangerous. Once they have demonstrated that they can be insulted, beaten up, or taken advantage of, they become an easy target for neighborhood predators... they don't have good decent families to help keep their self respect.. And so must retaliate with violence.

Critical theory

defination: The view that intergroup conflict, born out of the unequal distribution of wealth and power, is the root cause of delinquency. According to critical theory, society is in a constant state of internal conflict, and different groups strive to impose their will on others. Those with money and power succeed in shaping the law to meet their needs and to maintain their interests. Those adolescents whose behavior cannot conform to the needs of the power elite are defined as delinquents and criminals. Critical theorists view the law and the justice system as vehicles for controlling the have-not members of society; legal institutions help the powerful and rich impose their standards of good behavior on the entire society. The law helps control the behavior of those who might otherwise threaten the status quo or prevent wealthy businesspeople from making huge profits.158 According to critical theory, the poor may or may not commit more crimes than the rich, but they certainly are arrested more often. Police may act more forcefully in areas where class conflict creates the perception that extreme forms of social control are needed to maintain order. It is not surprising to critical theorists that complaints of police brutality are highest in minority neighborhoods.159 Police misbehavior, which is routine in such neighborhoods, would never be tolerated in affluent European American areas. All too often unwarranted police stops lead to equally unfair arrests. Research shows that minority suspects stopped by police are significantly more likely to be arrested than are white suspects, clear evidence of the racial bias present in American policing.160 Consequently, a deep-seated hostility is generated among members of the lower class toward a social order they may neither shape now share in.

. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime: racial disparity

he median family income of latinos and african americans is two thirds that of whites, and the percentage of racial and ethnic minorites living in poverty is double that of european americans. According to the U.S census Bureau, the average AFrican American household median income is now 33,762, in comparison to 56,565 for non-hispanic white households. About 28% of afican americans are living at the poverty level, in comparison to 11% of non-Hispanic whites. Economic status has a significant on lifestyle and life chances. Whereas many urban European Americans use their economic, social, and political advantages to live in sheltered gated communities patrolled by security guards, most minorities do not have access to similar protections and privileges. The outcome of social and economic disparity are substantial. Because racial minorities are often forced to go to deteriorated, underfunded schools, race-based differences in high school completion are substantial.17 Noncompletion then impacts on finding a job: the unemployment rate for blacks is twice that for non-Hispanic whites (10 percent versus about 5 percent, a finding consistent for both men and women).18 Not only does race influence economic well-being, it also seems to determine how adolescents are treated in the justice systems. Because the juvenile justice system routinely provides less favorable outcomes for minority youth, it increases the chances they will develop an official criminal record at an early age. Consequently, any subsequent encounter with the law will result in more punitive treatment.19 African Americans now constitute nearly 1 million of the total 2.3 million incarcerated population and are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of whites; disproportionate minority incarceration is a significant social problem.20

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Neuroological dyfunction

nother focus of biosocial theory is the neurological brain and nervous system structure of offenders. It has been suggested that children who manifest behavioral disturbances may have neurological deficits, such as damage to the hemispheres of the brain; this is sometimes referred to as minimal brain dysfunction (MBD).129 Such damage can lead to reduction in executive functioning (EF), a condition that refers to impairment of the cognitive processes that facilitate the planning and regulation of goal-oriented behavior. Impairments in EF have been implicated in a range of developmental disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), autism, and Tourette syndrome. EF impairments also have been implicated in a range of neuropsychiatric and medical disorders, including schizophrenia, major depression, alcoholism, structural brain disease, diabetes mellitus, and normal aging.130

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: twins studies

one method of studying the genetic basis of delinquency is to compare twins to non-twin siblings. If crime is an inherited trait, identical twins should be quite similar in their behavior because they share a common genetic makeup. Because twins are usually brought up in the same household, however, any similarity in their delinquent behavior might be a function of environmental influences and not genetics

Synthesize the elements of socialization into an explanation of delinquent behavior: peers (chapter 4)

peer group has a powerful effect on human conduct and can have a dramatic influence on decision making and behavior choices.109 Peer influence on delinquent and criminal behavior has been recorded in different cultures and may be a universal norm. Youths who become involved with peers who engage in antisocial behavior and hold antisocial attitudes may be deeply influenced by negative peer pressure.111 Kids who feel alienated and alone may become involved with similarly disaffected youth. 112 Being a social outcast causes them to hook up with friends who are dangerous and get them into trouble.113 In general, the more antisocial the peer group, the more likely its members will engage in delinquency; nondelinquent friends will help moderate delinquency.114 Popular kids who hang out with their friends without parental supervision are at risk for delinquent behaviors mainly because they have more opportunity to get into trouble.115 Less-popular kids, who are routinely rejected by their peers, are more likely to display aggressive behavior and to disrupt group activities through bickering, bullying, or other antisocial behavior.116 Those who report inadequate or strained peer relations, and who also say they are not popular with the opposite sex, are prone to delinquent behaviors.117 In contrast, having prosocial friends who are committed to conventional success may help shield kids from crime-producing inducements in their environment.121 Kids want to be like their best friends and may moderate their antisocial behavior in order to be in balance with their friends' behaviors.122

social disorganization theory: community deterioration

some urban neighborhoods experience deterioration, with a high percentage of deserted houses and apartments, and abandoned buildings that serve as a "magnet for crime."39 Areas in which houses are in poor repair, boarded up, and burned out, and where owners are absent, are also the location of the highest violence rates and gun crime.40 These are neighborhoods in which retail establishments often go bankrupt, are abandoned, and deteriorate physically.41 Communities on the downswing experience increases in the number of single-parent families, changes in housing from owner- to renter-occupied units, a loss of semi-skilled and unskilled jobs, and growth in the numbers of discouraged, unemployed workers who are no longer seeking jobs. These communities also tend to develop mixed-use areas in which commercial and residential properties stand side by side, an ecological development that increases the opportunity to commit crime. As communities deteriorate, those who can do so move to more affluent neighborhoods to improve their lifestyles.45 Because of racial differences in economic well-being, those "left behind" are all too often minority citizens.46 The remaining European American population may feel threatened as the percentage of minorities in the community increases and they are forced to compete with them for jobs and political power.47 As racial prejudice increases, the call for "law and order" aimed at controlling the minority population grows louder.48 Police become more aggressive, and young minority men believe they are the targets of unwarranted and unfair police harassment and discrimination.49

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: genetic infleunces

t has been hypothesized that some youths inherit a genetic configuration that predisposes them to aggression.151 Biosocial theorists believe antisocial behavior characteristics and mental disorders may be passed down in the same way that people inherit genes that control height and eye color. One connection may be direct: (1) antisocial behavior is inherited, (2) the genetic makeup of parents is passed on to children, and (3) genetic abnormality is directly linked to a variety of antisocial behaviors

The cycle of of social disorganization: Social disorganization

* breakdown of social institutions and organizations such as school and family lack of informal and formal social control

The cycle of of social disorganization: erosion of traditional values

* development of gangs, groups * peer group replaces family and social institutions

The cycle of of social disorganization: Poverty

* development of isolated lower class areas * lack of conventional social opportunities * racial and ethnic discrimination

Officical labeling and self fulliing procphecy

: Children who get involved with the police in adolescence suffer long-term effects of this negative labeling experience well into their 30s The result is they are expected to fail and their association with delinquent peers helps make sure that happens.14 Failure is assured when the labeling process helps create a self-fulfilling prophecy.150 If children continually receive negative feedback from parents, teachers, and others whose opinion they take to heart, they will interpret this rejection as accurate of course, outcomes will be more positive if there are significant others who give support and reject negative labels. When parents stick by kids, the effect of negative labels bestowed by others can be neutralized, helping to ward off the damaging effects of labeling.152 Deviant behavior patterns that are a response to an earlier labeling experience; youths act out these social roles even if they were falsely bestowed.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: adoption

AAnother way to determine whether delinquency is an inherited trait is to compare the behavior of adopted children with that of their biological parents. If the criminal behavior of children is more like that of their biological parents (whom they have never met) than that of their adoptive parents (who brought them up), it would indicate that the tendency toward delinquency is inherited.

The cycle of of social disorganization: Limited collective efficacy

Absence of informal social control weakened institutional social control

checkpoint 2

Anomie describes a society in which rules of behavior have broken down during periods of rapid social change or social crisis. Strain occurs when kids feel frustrated about their place in the social structure. Strain can also be produced by negative life events. Sociologist Robert Agnew's general strain theory explains why individuals who feel stress and strain are more likely to engage in delinquent acts. Delinquency is the direct result of negative affective states—the anger, frustration, and adverse emotions that kids feel in the wake of negative and destructive social relationships. Cultural deviance theories hold that a unique value system develops in lower-class areas; lower-class kids approve of behaviors such as being tough and having street smarts.

summary part 3

Another approach rests on the work of French sociologist Emile Durkheim, who coined the term anomie to describe a society in which rules of behavior have broken down during periods of rapid social change or social crisis. From this origin strain theory emerged. Sociologist Robert Agnew's general strain theory explains why individuals who feel stress and strain are more likely to engage in delinquent acts. Delinquency is the direct result of negative affective states—the anger, frustration, and adverse emotions that kids feel in the wake of negative and destructive social relationships. Because their lifestyle is draining, frustrating, and dispiriting, members of the lower class create an independent subculture with its own set of rules and values. Because social conditions make them incapable of achieving success legitimately, lower-class youths experience a form of culture conflict. Some social theorists believe that delinquency is a function of socialization, the interactions people have with various organizations, institutions, and processes of society. If these relationships are positive and supportive, kids can succeed within the rules of society; if these relationships are dysfunctional and destructive, conventional success may be impossible, and delinquent solutions may become a feasible alternative.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Hormonal Levels

Antisocial behavior allegedly peaks in the teenage years because hormonal activity is then at its greatest level. It is possible that increased levels of testosterone are responsible for excessive violence among teenage boys. Adolescents who experience more intense moods, anxiety, and restlessness also have the highest crime rates.1

differential association theory

Asserts that criminal behavior is learned primarily in interpersonal groups and that youths will become delinquent if definitions they learn in those groups that are favorable to violating the law exceed definitions favorable to obeying the law. deviant values: parents and peers, hold values that condone crimal and deliquent behaviors exposure: youths are exposed to deviant norms and calues while in intimate contact with signifant others learning: norms andvalues and transfered to youths through learning experiences delinquent behaviors :youth learn the attitudes, techniques, values, and perceptions needed to sustain deliqunet behaivors. Sutherland believed that as children are socialized, they are exposed to and learn prosocial and antisocial attitudes and behavior from friends, relatives, parents, and so on. A prodelinquency definition might be "don't get mad, get even" or "only suckers work for a living" (see Figure 4.4). Simply put, if the prodelinquency definitions they have learned outweigh the conventional ones, an adolescent will engage in antisocial behaviors.125 The prodelinquency definitions will be particularly influential if they come from significant others, such as parents or peers, and are frequent and intense. Some kids may meet and associate with criminal "mentors," who teach them how to be successful criminals and gain the greatest benefits from their criminal activities.126 In contrast, if a child is constantly told by her parents to be honest and never harm others, and is brought up in environment in which people "practice what they preach," then she will have learned the necessary attitudes and behaviors to allow her to avoid environmental inducements to delinquency. Criminal careers appear to be intergenerational: adolescents whose parents are deviant and criminal are more likely to become criminals themselves and eventually to produce criminal children. The more time kids are exposed to, learn from, and are involved with criminal parents, the more likely they are to commit crime themselves.127

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: brain chemistry

Chemical compounds called neurotransmitters influence or activate brain functions. Those studied in relation to aggression and other antisocial behaviors include dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, monoamine oxidase (MAO), and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA).120 Evidence exists that abnormal levels of these chemicals are associated with aggression.12

Summary

Choice theory suggests that young offenders choose to engage in antisocial activity because they believe their actions will be beneficial and profitable. Trait theory suggests that youthful misbehavior is driven by biological or psychological abnormalities, such as hyperactivity, low intelligence, biochemical imbalance, or genetic defects. Both views suggest that delinquency is an individual problem, not a social problem. Choice theory assumes that people have free will to choose their behavior. Kids who violate the law were motivated by personal needs such as greed, revenge, survival, and hedonism. The decision to violate the law comes after a careful weighing of the benefits and costs of criminal behaviors. Routine activities theory holds that delinquency is produced by the lack of capable guardians, the availability of suitable targets, and the presence of motivated offenders (such as unemployed teenagers). The general deterrence concept holds that the choice to commit delinquent acts is structured by the threat of punishment. One of the guiding principles of deterrence theory is that the more severe, certain, and swift the punishment, the greater its deterrent effect will be. Deterrence strategies are based on the idea of a rational, calculating offender. The theory of specific deterrence holds that if offenders are punished severely, the experience will convince them not to repeat their illegal acts. Some research studies show that arrest and conviction may under some circumstances lower the frequency of reoffending. Imprisoning established offenders may open new opportunities for competitors. An incapacitation strategy is also terribly expensive. Even if incarceration can have a short-term effect, almost all delinquents eventually return to society. In addition, incarceration exposes younger offenders to higher-risk, more experienced inmates who can influence their lifestyle and help shape their attitudes. According to the concept of situational crime prevention, delinquency can be neutralized if (a) potential targets are carefully guarded, (b) the means to commit crime are controlled, and (c) potential offenders are carefully monitored. Situational crime prevention strategies aim to reduce the opportunities people have to commit particular crimes. The first attempts to discover why delinquent tendencies develop focused on the physical makeup of offenders. Biological traits present at birth were thought to predetermine whether people would live a life of crime. The origin of this school of thought is generally credited to the Italian physician Cesare Lombroso. These early views portrayed delinquent behavior as a function of a single factor or trait, such as body build or defective intelligence. There is a suspected relationship between antisocial behavior and biochemical makeup. One view is that body chemistry can govern behavior and personality, including levels of aggression and depression. Overexposure to particular environmental contaminants puts kids at risk for antisocial behavior. There is also evidence that diet may influence behavior through its impact on body chemistry. Hormonal levels are another area of biochemical research. Another focus of biosocial theory is the neurological or brain and nervous system structure of offenders. Biosocial theorists also study the genetic makeup of delinquents. Some experts view the cause of delinquency as essentially psychological. According to psychodynamic theory, law violations are a product of an abnormal personality structure formed early in life and which thereafter controls human behavior choices. Behaviorists suggest that individuals learn by observing how people react to their behavior. Behavior is triggered initially by a stimulus or change in the environment. Cognitive theorists who study information processing try to explain antisocial behavior in terms of perception and analysis of data. A common theme is that delinquents are hyperactive, impulsive individuals with short attention spans (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), who frequently manifest conduct disorders, anxiety disorders, and depression.

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: problem solving

Choose crime as a mean to solve personal problems and show their competence. Delinquent act are than ideal mechanism for displayign courage and fearlessness. Rather than creating overwhelming social problems, a deliqnet way of life may help kids overcome the problems and stresses they face in theri daily lives. Some turn to substance abuse to increase their sense of personal power, to become more assertive, and to reduce tension and anxiety. Some kids embrace devaint lifestyles, such a s joining a gang, in order to compensate for their feelings of social powerlessness. Engaging in risky behavior helps them feel alive and competence.

Which of the following concepts represents the process of juveniles committing crimes in groups?

Co-offending

Which of the following statements best represents general deterrence?

Creating fear in the potential offender by instituting long prison sentences

social theory : critical theory core premise and strengths

Crime is a function of class conflict. The law is defined by people who hold social and political power. The capitalist system produces delinquency. Accounts for class differentials in the delinquency rate. Shows how class conflict influences behavior

Concept of social disorganization to explain the onset of delinquency

Crime is a product of transitional neighborhoods that manifest social disorganization and value conflict. The conflicts and problems of urban social life and communities, including fear, unemployment, deterioration, and siege mentality, influence crime rates. strengths : identifies why crime rates are highest in lower-class areas. Points out the factors that produce the delinquency

"Individuals who commit crimes just look like criminals. There is something about their physical appearance that sets them apart." This statement best describes which of the following concepts?

Criminal atavism

Concept summary 3.2: biolgical views of deliquency: Genetic Major premise and focus

Criminal traits and predispositions are inherited. The criminality of parents can predict the delinquency of children. Explains why only a small percentage of youth in a high-crime area become chronic offenders.

Which perspective explains delinquency by accounting for class differentials in delinquency rates and maintains that class conflict can influence behavior?

Critical theory

A youth who becomes delinquent because they conform to lower-class values is best described by which theory?

Cultural deviance

Concept summary 3.2: biolgical views of deliquency: Neurological Major premise and focus

Delinquents often suffer brain impairment, as measured by the EEG. ADHD and minimal brain dysfunction are related to antisocial behavior. explains the relationship between child abuse and delinquency. May be used to clarify the link between school problems and delinquency.

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: excitement and thrills

Engage in illegal behaivor because they love excitment and thrills. Breaking the law can produce a natural "high" and other exhilarating sensations. This has been termed edgework: the "exhilarating, momentrary integration of danger, risk, and skills" that motivates some adolescent to try deliqnet acts such as vandalism nd shoplifting that allow kids to get sneaky thrills; profit is not the primary motive. The need for excitement may conter fear of apprehension; the risker the act is the more attractive it becomes.

social disorganization theory: collective Efficacy

In disorganized areas, where the population is transient, interpersonal relationships remain superficial and nonsupportive. Residents find that the social support they need to live a conventional life is absent or lacking.65 The resulting lack of social cohesion produces an atmosphere where antisocial behavior becomes normative.66 In contrast, in more cohesive communities people know one another and develop interpersonal ties.67 These areas also experience higher levels of social control and social integration, while reporting less disorder and criminal activity.68 A process in which mutual trust and a willingness to intervene in the supervision of children and help maintain public order create a sense of well-being in a neighborhood and help control antisocial activities.

social disorganization theory: community fear

In neighborhoods where people help one another, residents are less likely to fear crime or be afraid of becoming a crime victim.50 However, when people feel distant from one another and disconnected from the community, they are more likely to view their environment as a dangerous place.51 Not surprisingly, they are the ones most likely to experience fear In these disorganized neighborhoods, residents suffer social incivility, trash and litter, graffiti, burned-out buildings, drunks, vagabonds, loiterers, prostitutes, noise, congestion, and angry words. Having parks and playgrounds where teens hang out and loiter may contribute to fear.53 As fear increases, quality of life deteriorates.54 People lose respect for the police: they are supposed to "serve and protect" the community but cannot seem to do their job.55 Those who doubt that the agencies of justice can help them develop a degree of "legal cynicism" where they perceive the law as illegitimate, unresponsive, and ill equipped to ensure public safety Because fear is pervasive, young people may feel that the only way to protect themselves is to join a gang. While gang membership may be a dangerous pastime, increasing the likelihood of victimization and injury, gang boys do report being less anxious and fearful.57 Community fear may breed gang membership.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Teenager brains

Is there something about teenage brains that make their owners crime prone? There is evidence that aggressive teen behavior may be linked to the amygdala, an area of the brain that processes information regarding threats and fear, and to a lessening of activity in the frontal lobe, a brain region associated with decision making and impulse control. Research indicates that reactively aggressive adolescents, most commonly boys, frequently misinterpret their surroundings, feel threatened, and act inappropriately aggressive. They tend to strike back when being teased, blame others when getting into a fight, and overreact to accidents

Principles of the routine activities theory Capable guardian

Kids will commit crimes when they believe their action will go undetected by a guardian, such as police, security guard,neighbors, teahcers, or homeowners. One way to discourage crime in areas without neighborly guardians: security cameras.

Which of the following perspectives best describes when a disobedient child is stigmatized as a bad child and then acts in accordance with this stigma, becoming more delinquent?

Labeling theory

checkpoints (chapter 4)

Labeling theory (also known as social reaction theory) maintains that negative labels produce delinquent careers. Labels create expectations that the labeled person will act in a certain way; labeled people are always watched and suspected. Becoming stigmatized, or labeled, by agents of social control creates and sustains delinquent careers. Kids whose deviant behavior is detected and punished will develop negative labels that can follow them throughout life. The labeling process transforms the youngsters' identity. Labels and stigma lock offenders forever into a delinquent way of life.

Synthesize the elements of socialization into an explanation of delinquent behavior: How socialization influences delinquency (chapter 4)

Learning. Delinquency may be learned through interaction with other people. By interacting with deviant peers, parents, neighbors, and relatives, kids may learn both the techniques of crime and the attitudes necessary to support delinquency. According to this view, because they learn to commit crimes, children who are born good learn to be bad from others. • Control. Delinquency may result when life circumstances weaken the attachment a child has to family, peers, school, and society. Because their bonds to these institutions are severed, some adolescents feel free to exercise antisocial behavior. This view assumes that people are born bad and then must be taught to control themselves through the efforts of parents and teachers. Labeling. Some kids are considered to be winners; they are admired and envied. Others are labeled as troublemakers, losers, or punks. They are stigmatized and find themselves locked out of conventional society and into a deviant or delinquent way of life. This view holds that kids are born neither bad nor good, but become what they are through the reactions of others.

The cycle of of social disorganization: criminal careers

Most youths age out of delinquency, marry, and raise families, but some remain in life of crime.

The cycle of of social disorganization: development of criminal areas

Neighborhood becomes crime prone stable pockets of crime develop lack of external support and investment

Concept of anime to explaining the onset of delinquency

Normlessness produced by rapidly shifting moral values; according to Merton, anomie occurs when personal goals cannot be achieved using available means. Without acceptable means for obtaining success, individuals feel social and psychological strain; Merton called this condition anomie. Consequently, these youths may either (a) use deviant methods to achieve their goals (e.g., stealing money) or (b) reject socially accepted goals and substitute deviant ones (e.g., becoming drug users or alcoholics). Feelings of anomie or strain are not typically found in middle- and upper-class communities, in which education and prestigious occupations are readily obtainable. In lower-class areas, however, strain occurs because legitimate avenues for success are closed. Considering the economic stratification of U.S. society, anomie predicts that crime will prevail in lower-class culture, which it does.76

social theory : cultural deviance core premise and strengths

Obedience to the norms of their lower-class culture puts people in conflict with the norms of the dominant culture. Identifies the aspects of lower-class life that produce street crime. Creates the concept of culture conflict.

Concept of labeling theory to explain the onset of delinquency

Posits that society creates deviance through a system of social control agencies that designate (or label) certain individuals as delinquent, thereby stigmatizing them and encouraging them to accept this negative personal identity.

. "Problems with parental attachment can lead to delinquency." This statement best describes which of the following perspectives?

Psychodynamic

Analyze the association between social conditions and crime: interpersonal interaction (chapter 4)

Social relationships with families peers,, schools, jobs, criminal justice agencies, and the like may play an important role in shaping behavioral choices. Inappropriate and disrupted social relationship have been linked to crime and delinquency

Which of the following is one of the three components of the routine activities theory?

Suitable targets

Principles of the routine activities theory Suitable targets

The availability of suitable targets, such as cash,jewerly and pensesive electornc gear, will increase crime rates That the more wealth a home ocntain, the more likely it is to be a crime target.

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: Routine activities theory

The view that crime is a normal function of the routine activities of modern living. Offenses can be expected if there is a motivated offender and a suitable target that is not protected by capable guardians. According to routine activities theory, developed by Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson, the volume and distribution of predatory crimes (violent crimes against persons, and crimes in which an offender attempts to steal an object directly from its holder) in a particular area and at a particular time are influenced by the interaction of three variables: 1. the availability of suitable targets (such as homes containing easily saleable goods), 2. the absence of capable guardians (such as homeowners, police, and security guards), 3. and the presence of motivated offenders (such as unemployed teenagers)31 (see Figure 3.1).

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: diet and delinquency

There is evidence that a child's diet may influence his or her behavior through its impact on body chemistry. Either eliminating harmful substances or introducing beneficial ones into the diet can reduce the threat of antisocial behaviors.1 Research conducted over the past decade shows that an over- or undersupply of certain chemicals and minerals in the adolescent diet, including sodium, mercury, potassium, calcium, amino acids, and/or iron, can lead to depression, hyperactivity, cognitive problems, intelligence deficits, memory loss, or abnormal sexual activity; these conditions have been associated with crime and delinquency.115 It is also possible that a poor diet is indirectly related to antisocial activity. For example, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) has been linked to delinquency, and its cause may be diet driven. Substances linked to a higher rate of ADHD include fast foods, processed meats, red meat, high-fat dairy products, and candy.116 A survey of existing research found that the combination of nutrients most commonly associated with good mental health and well-being is as follows:117 • Polyunsaturated fatty acids (particularly the omega-3 types found in oily fish and some plants) • Minerals, such as zinc (in whole grains, legumes, meat, and milk), magnesium (in green leafy vegetables, nuts, and whole grains), and iron (in red meat, green leafy vegetables, eggs, and some fruit) • Vitamins, such as folate (in green leafy vegetables and fortified cereals), a range of B vitamins (in whole grain products, yeast, and dairy products), and antioxidant vitamins, such as C and E (in a wide range of fruits and vegetables) People eating diets that lack any of this combination of polyunsaturated fats, minerals, and vitamins, and/or contain too much saturated fat (or other elements, including sugar and a range of food and agricultural chemicals) seem to be at higher risk of developing the following conditions : • Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) • Depressive conditions • Schizophrenia • Dementia, including Alzheimer's disease A number of research studies have found a link between diet and aggressive behavior patterns. In some cases, the relationship is direct; in others, a poor diet may compromise individual functioning, which in turn produces aggressive behavior responses. For example, a poor diet may inhibit school performance, and children who fail at school are at risk for delinquent behavior and criminality. Student misbehavior levels have been reduced in controlled experiments in which school-age subjects were provided with improved diets and provided with nutritional supplements.118 Because diet is often a function of income and status, racial and class differences in the delinquency rate could disappear if children in all social and racial groups were provided with a proper diet.119

2. Compare the principles of general deterrence, specific deterrence, and situational crime prevention.

Use own words checkpoint General deterrence models are based on the fear of punishment. If punishments are severe, swift, and certain, then would-be delinquents would choose not to risk breaking the law. Specific deterrence aims at reducing crime through the application of severe punishments. Once offenders experience these punishments, they will be unwilling to repeat their delinquent activities. Situational crime prevention efforts are designed to reduce or redirect crime by making it more difficult to profit from illegal acts.

Summary part 1

We know that most serious delinquents grow up in deteriorated parts of town and lack the social support and economic resources familiar to more affluent members of society. Latino and African American children are more than twice as likely to be poor as Asian and white children. It is also apparent that social relationships with families, peers, schools, jobs, criminal justice agencies, and the like may play an important role in shaping behavioral choices. As a result, many delinquency theorists believe that elements of social life are responsible for kids getting involved in antisocial behaviors. Social disorganization theory focuses on the conditions within the urban environment that affect delinquency rates, such as socioeconomic conditions.

Synthesize the elements of socialization into an explanation of delinquent behavior: family relations

When parenting is inadequate, a child, maturational processes will be interrupted and damaged Children who grow up in homes where parents use severe discipline, yet lack warmth and involvement in their lives, are prone to antisocial behaivor. Martial distress and conflicts are signifcantly related to harsh and hostile parenting styles. Adolescents who live in this type of environment develop poor emotional well-being, externalize their problems, and engage in antisocial behavior. The effects of family dysfunction are felt well beyond childhood.] Kids who experience high levels of family conflict grow up to lead stressful adult lives, punctuated by periods of depression.101 Children whose parents are harsh, angry, and irritable are likely to behave in same way toward their own children, putting their own offspring at risk.102 Children who experience abuse, neglect, or sexual abuse are believed to be more crime prone and suffer from other social problems, such as depression, suicide attempts, and self-injurious behaviors.103 Kids who were abused are less likely to graduate from high school, hold a job, and be happily married; they are more likely to have juvenile and adult arrests.104 They are also more likely to grow up to be abusers themselves.105 Thus the seeds of adult dysfunction are planted early in childhood In contrast, parents who are supportive and effectively control their children in a noncoercive fashion are more likely to raise children who refrain from delinquency; this is referred to as parental efficacy.106 Delinquency will be reduced if parents provide the type of structure that integrates children into the family, while giving them the ability to assert their individuality and regulate their own behavior.107 The family-crime relationship is significant across racial, ethnic, and gender lines and is one of the most replicated findings in the criminological literature.1

routine activites thory (princples) Motivated offenders

When the number of teenagers in a given population exceed the number of available part time and after school jobs, the supply of motivated offenders may increase.

Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency:cogntive

cause: information processing * thinking problem solving script moral development

social disorganization theory: relative deprivation

condiiton tha texists when people of wealth and proverty live in close proximity to one another. The realitvely depreved are apt to have feelings of anger and hostility, which may produce criminal behaivors.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: Parental Deviance.

f criminal tendencies are inherited, then the children of criminal parents should be more likely to become law violators than the offspring of conventional parents...In sum, there is growing evidence that crime is intergenerational: criminal fathers produce criminal sons who then produce criminal grandchildren. It is possible that at least part of the association is genetic.

Concept summary 3.2: biolgical views of deliquency: Biochemical Major premise and focus

l Delinquency, especially violence, is a function of diet, vitamin intake, hormonal imbalance, or food allergies. Explains irrational violence. Shows how the environment interacts with personal traits to influence behavior.

review keywords chapter 3 and 4

look in textbook

If an individual is tense, anxious, and emotionally unstable, they are best described as being .

neurotic

"Poor people commit more crimes because they lack access to the power, property, and prestige." This statement is best described by which of the following perspectives?

social disorganization

social disorganization theory.

typically divided into three subcategories: social disorganization, anomie/ strain, and cultural devilance. Definition: Neighborhood or area marked by culture conflict, lack of cohesiveness, a transient population, and insufficient social organizations. These problems are reflected in the problems at schools in these areas. This concept was first recognized early in the twentieth century by sociologists clifford shaw and henry mckay. According to the social disorganization view, a healthy, organized community has the ability to regulate itself so that common goals (such as living in a crime-free area) can be achieved; this is referred to as social control.31 Those neighborhoods that become disorganized are incapable of social control, because they are undermined by deterioration and economic failure; they are the ones most at risk for delinquency.

routine activitess theory

1. police officer 2. homeowners 3. security system (all three is lack of capable guardians) 1. unsupervised youth 2. unemplyed 3. addict population (motivated offenders) 1. costly jewerly 2. expensice cares easily transportable goods (suitable targets)

social theory : social disorganation core premise and strengths

Crime is a product of transitional neighborhoods that manifest social disorganization and value conflict. The conflicts and problems of urban social life and communities, including fear, unemployment, deterioration, and siege mentality, influence crime rates. identifies why crime rates are highest in lower-class areas. Points out the factors that produce the delinquency

. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory: from checkpoint

Choice theory suggests that young offenders choose to engage in antisocial activity because they believe their actions will be beneficial and profitable. Choice theory assumes that people have free will to choose their behavior. Kids who violate the law are motivated by personal needs such as greed, revenge, survival, and hedonism. The decision to violate the law comes after a careful weighing of the benefits and costs of criminal behaviors. Punishment should be only severe enough to deter a particular offense. Routine activities theory suggests that delinquent acts are a function of motivated offenders, lack of capable guardians, and availability of suitable targets.

the cause of Delinquency and Critical thorists

Critical theorists view delinquency as a normal response to the conditions created by capitalism.162 In fact, the creation of the legal category of juvenile delinquency is a function of the class consciousness that occurred around the turn of the twentieth century.1 Platt believed that the child-saving movement's real goal was to maintain order and control while preserving the existing class system.164 He and others have concluded that the child savers were powerful citizens who aimed to control the behavior of disenfranchised youths.165 Critical theorists still view delinquent behavior as a function of the capitalist system's inherent inequity. They argue that capitalism accelerates the trend toward replacing human labor with machines so that youths are removed from the labor force From early childhood, the values of capitalism are reinforced. Social control agencies such as schools prepare youths for placement in the capitalist system by presenting them with behavior models that will help them conform to later job expectations. Rewards for good schoolwork correspond to the rewards a manager uses with employees. In fact, most schools are set up to reward youths who show promise in self-discipline and motivation and are therefore judged likely to perform well in the capitalist system. Youths who are judged inferior as potential job prospects wind up in delinquent roles

When a juvenile learns how to be deviant from their friends and/or the groups with which they hang out, it is best described by which theoretical perspective?

Differential association

What impact does parental efficacy have on juvenile delinquency?

High efficacy reduces the likelihood of juvenile delinquency.

List the principles of social disorganization theory

Some principles of this theory is Relative deprivation Community deterioration Community fear Poverty concentration Collective efficacy

Synthesize the elements of socialization into an explanation of delinquent behavior: school

TThe literature linking delinquency to poor school performance and inadequate educational facilities is extensive. Youths who feel that teachers do not care, who consider themselves failures, and who drop out of school are more likely to become involved in a delinquent way of life than adolescents who are educationally successful. Many drop out and once they do are forced to enter the adult world.

checkpoints

The first attempts to discover why delinquent tendencies develop focused on the physical makeup of offenders. Biological traits present at birth were thought to predetermine whether people would live a life of crime . The origin of this school of thought is generally credited to the Italian physician Cesare Lombroso. These early views portrayed delinquent behavior as a function of a single factor or trait, such as body build or defective intelligence.

. Other important information on social structure theories

Definition: Those theories that suggest that social and economic forces operating in deteriorated lower-class areas, including disorganization, stress, and cultural deviance, push residents into criminal behavior patterns. Oscar lewis cained the phrase culture of poverty to describe the cruising burden faced by the urban poor. According to Lewis, people living within this culture regularly experience apathy, cynicism, helplessness, and mistrust of governmental institutions. Skepticism prevents the impoverished from taking advantage of the few conventional opportunities available. The result is development of a permanent underclass whose members have little chance of upward mobility or improvement. Economic and social hardship has been related to psychological maladjustment: people who live in poverty are more likely to suffer low self-esteem, depression, and loneliness. Unfortunately, many of the social problems Lewis identified 50 years ago still exist. Nowhere are urban problems more pressing than in the inner-city neighborhoods. Here, constant population turnover disrupts neighborhood cohesion as more affluent residents flee to more stable suburban communities.22 Some cities have become hollowed out, with a deteriorated inner core surrounded by less devastated communities.23 Those who remain in the deteriorated inner cities are forced to live in communities with poorly organized social networks, alienated populations, and high crime. Members of the urban underclass, typically minority group members, are referred to by sociologist William Julius Wilson as the truly disadvantaged. But not all cities become hollowed out. In some areas, formerly impoverished neighborhoods are being rehabilitated or gentrified, going from poor, commercial, or transient to stable, residential, and affluent. But there are social costs to pay for this transformation. Longtime residents can no longer afford to pay the higher rents or buy into expensive refurbished condos. Many are forced to relocate, destroying whatever ties they had to the neighborhood and creating a cultural vacuum. . They attend poor schools, live in substandard housing, and lack good health care. More than half of families in poverty are fatherless and husbandless; many are supported entirely by government aid, which is growing increasingly more difficult to obtain. Minority neighborhoods are especially hard hit by the loss of relatively high-paid manufacturing and government jobs and replacement with a relatively low-paid service economy.25 Neighborhoods that provide few employment opportunities are the most vulnerable to predatory crime.26 Long-term unemployment destabilizes households, and unstable families are more likely to produce children who choose aggression as a means of dealing with limited opportunity. Lack of employment opportunity also limits the authority of parents, reducing their ability to influence children. Because adults cannot serve as role models, and social institutions are frayed or absent, law-violating youth groups and gangs form and are free to recruit neighborhood youths.They have their own culture and language, and members espouse a philosophy of survival by any means necessary This view of delinquency is both structural and cultural. It holds that delinquency is a consequence of (a) the inequalities built into the social structure and (b) the cultural values that form in inner-city poverty areas. Even youths who receive the loving support of family members are at risk of delinquency if they suffer from social disadvantage and are forced to live in disorganized areas. SST tie delinquency rates to both socioeconomic structural conditions (e.g., poverty, chronic unemployment, neighborhood deterioration) and cultural values (e.g., gang culture). Areas that experience high levels of poverty and social disorganization, that maintain deviant cultural values, will also have high delinquency rates. Residents of such areas view conventional social values, such as hard work and getting an education, skeptically. They believe that they can never be part of the American Dream.

Synthesize the elements of socialization into an explanation of delinquent behavior.

- family relations - school - peers -socialization influence

The cycle of of social disorganization:

Poverty Social disorganization Erosion of traditional values Limited collective efficacy Development of criminal areas Cultural transmission Criminal careers.

social theory : social control core premise and strengths

A person's bond to society prevents him or her from violating social rules. If the bond weakens, the person is free to commit delinquent acts. Explains the onset of delinquency; can apply to both middle- and lower-class crime. Explains its theoretical constructs adequately so they can be measured. Has been empirically tested.

checkpoint 2 chapter 3

According to psychodynamic theory, unconscious motivations developed early in childhood propel some people into destructive or illegal behavior. Behaviorists view aggression as a learned behavior. Some learning is direct and experiential while other types are observational, such as watching TV and movies. A link between media and violence has not been proven, but there is some evidence linking observing violent media with aggressive behavior. Cognitive theory stresses knowing and perception. Some adolescents have a warped view of the world. There is evidence that kids with abnormal or antisocial personalities are delinquency prone. Although some experts find a link between intelligence and delinquency, others dispute any linkage between IQ level and law-violating behaviors.

Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory: arousal theory

It has long been suspected that adolescents may engage in crimes such as shoplifting and vandalism because they offer the thrill of "getting away with it."147 Is it possible that thrill seekers have some form of abnormal brain functioning? Arousal theorists believe that some people's brains function differently in response to environmental stimuli. We all seek to maintain an optimal level of arousal: too much stimulation leaves us anxious, and too little makes us feel bored.

evaluating the labeling perspective

It identifies the role played by social control agents in the process of delinquency causation. Delinquent behavior cannot be fully understood if the agencies empowered to control it are ignored. • It recognizes that delinquency is not a pathological behavior. It focuses on the social interactions that shape behavior. • It distinguishes between delinquent acts and delinquent careers, and shows that they must be treated differently.155 Labeling theory, then, may help explain the onset and continuation of a delinquent career. It clarifies why some youths continue down the path of antisocial behavior (they are self-labeled), whereas most are able to desist from crime (they are stigma-free)

degradation ceremonies

OOfficial labels are often applied in what sociologist Harold Garfinkel described as "degradation ceremonies" that are designed to impress their target with the gravity and seriousness of his or her offenses. During the process, a permanent record is produced or a report goes into a file, so that the denounced adolescent is ritually separated from a place in the legitimate order and set outside the world occupied by citizens of good standing.153 A good example of the labeling degradation ceremony occurs in juvenile . Here offenders find (perhaps for the first time) that authority figures consider them incorrigible outcasts who must be separated from the right-thinking members of society. To reach that decision, the judge relies on the testimony of witnesses—parents, teachers, police officers, social workers, and psychologists—who may testify that the offender is unfit to be part of conventional society. Sanctioning ceremonies, such as juvenile court hearings, are not only aimed at punishing transgressions, but also serve as rituals to impress the mischief maker both with the seriousness of their behavior and the community's outrage over their misconduct. 154 They ought to be ashamed of what they did! The effect of this process is a durable negative label and an accompanying loss of status. The labeled deviant becomes a social outcast who should be prevented from enjoying higher education, well-paying jobs, and other societal benefits. Because this label is "official," few question the accuracy of the assessment. People who may have been merely suspicious now feel justified in their assessments: "I always knew he was a bad kid

Trace the history and development of trait theory.

People are not greedy and calculating but a product of their mental and physical traits. While they focus on the physical and mental factors that cause antisocial behavior, Rimland and other trait theorists recognize that traits are only one part of the equation and the child's environment and social world also play important roles in shaping behaviors.[ 87 Even hard-core trait theorists recognize that an interactive association between genetic influences and environment is the key determinant of delinquent behavior choices.88 A youth's genetic predisposition to commit antisocial acts will be elevated by environmental stresses, such as poor family life, educational failure, and exposure to delinquent peers. Conversely, genetic disposition will be dampened by a supportive environment that can effectively counteract adverse biological and psychological traits.89] ] The first attempts to discover why criminal tendencies develop focused on biological traits present at birth. Italian physician Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909).90 Known as the father of criminology, Lombroso developed the theory of criminal atavism. (The idea that delinquents manifest physical anomalies that make them biologically and physiologically similar to our primitive ancestors, savage throwbacks to an earlier stage of human evolution.) He found that delinquents manifest physical anomalies that make them similar to our primitive ancestors. Contemporaries of Lombroso refined the notion of a physical basis of crime. Raffaele Garofalo (1851-1934) shared Lombroso's belief that certain physical characteristics indicate a criminal nature The English criminologist Charles Goring (1870-1919) challenged the validity of Lombroso's research and claimed instead that delinquent behaviors bore a significant relationship to "defective intelligence."95 Consequently, he advocated that criminality could best be controlled by regulating the reproduction of families exhibiting abnormal traits, such as "feeblemindedness For most of the twentieth century, most delinquency research focused on social factors, such as poverty and family life. . By implication, if there were racial, economic, or gender differences in the crime rate, and there was a biological basis for crime, then human subgroups were inherently different at birth.. This position was challenged as racist, classist, and gender biased.99 . Sociobiology revived interest in a biological basis of all social behavior. If biological (genetic) and psychological (mental) makeup controls all human behavior, it follows that a person's genes and physical makeup should determine whether he or she chooses law-violating or conventional behavior.1 02 It is not surprising then that biological factors ranging from diet to heredity have been linked to violence and other forms of antisocial behaviors.103 Even hard-core trait theorists recognize that individual deficits by themselves do not cause delinquency. However, possessing suspect individual traits may make a child more susceptible to the delinquency-producing factors in the environment. Adolescents who possess a particular genetic makeup are more susceptible to the effect of community and family adversity than others. A substrata of the population is genetically predisposed to be more responsive to their social environment than those with other genotypes.104 Today trait theory can be divided into two separate branches: the first, biosocial theory, assumes that the cause of delinquency can be found in a child's physical or biological makeup, and the second points the finger at psychological traits and characteristics

checkpoint

The social structure view is that position in the socioeconomic structure influences the chances of becoming a delinquent. Poor kids are more likely to commit crimes, because they are unable to achieve monetary or social success in any other way. Kids who live in socially disorganized areas commit crime because the forces of social control have broken down. Social disorganization theory focuses on the conditions within the urban environment that affect delinquency rates, such as socioeconomic conditions. Delinquency rates are sensitive to the destructive social forces operating in lower-class urban neighborhoods. Poverty undermines the basic stabilizing forces of the community—family, school, peers, and neighbors—rendering them weakened, attenuated, and ineffective. The ability of the community to control its inhabitants—to assert informal social control—is damaged and frayed. Contemporary social disorganization theorists have found an association between delinquency rates and community deterioration: disorder, poverty, alienation, disassociation, and fear of delinquency.