SOC 3410 Exam 2

Major Premise (RCT)

- Anyone is a potential criminal that is motivated to either commit or not commit crime based on personal and situational factors. - In order to prevent crime, criminals must deem the risk or consequences greater than the potential reward

Administrative response to violence (WP)

- Architecture: used smaller blocks and wings so fewer people were housed together - Adopted principles of crime prevention through environmental design: increased surveillance, controlled access via locks, quick response and removal of problems (troublemakers go to solitary before problems start)

Recommendations for Prevention / Punishment & Criticisms (Beccaria)

- Crime is because of bad laws, not bad people - Prevention is more important than punishment - need simple, clear laws so everyone can understand them - Criticisms came from the proponents of harsh punishments and individual responsibility - Based on Bentham's hedonistic calculus

5 different techniques of neutralization (ToN)

- Denial of Responsibility: crime is a result of the situation; not my fault - Denial of Injury: No harm, no foul mentality - Denial of Victim: Rightful retaliation; they had it coming - Condemnation of Condemner: reject those who reject you; unfair to condemn my behavior when you are guilty of something just as bad or worse - Appeal to higher loyalties: Rock paper scissors between the law, loyalty to peer group, etc.

Reasons for the ineffectiveness of General Deterrence

- Offenders are not always rational or in a rational mindset due to trauma, drugs/alcohol, being a chronic offender, being a sociopath, poverty - CJ system has low certainty and is very, very slow, and criminals are not even aware of some punishments

Principles of operant conditioning (DR)

- People have a number of choices, all that will likely produce the same outcome. The choice that is most likely to produce that outcome will be the option likely taken after all other options are considered - rational choice and differential association

Keys to Success (PL)

- explicit cause and effect relationship between crimes and response by the police - balance of power - Importance of community

Problems with specific deterrence

- punishment may breed defiance rather than deterrence - stigma of harsh treatment labels people and may lock them into a criminal life - effect of punishment is negligible in neighborhoods where almost everyone has a criminal record

Risk associated with crime (RCT)

- risk of getting caught and punished - risk of losing respect of peers; damaged reputation - risk feelings of guilt or shame from committing a crime - risk of losing other potential opportunities due to criminal history

Situational Crime Prevention Strategies

Access Control - Defensible space; crime can be prevented by limiting the opportunities individuals have to commit crimes Target Hardening - increase effort needed to commit crime; unbreakable glass in store fronts, locking gates, etc. Crime Discouragers - people who serve as guardians of property or people; three categories: guardians (monitor targets), handlers (monitor potential offenders), and managers (monitor places); CCTV, police, parents, etc. Diffusion - occurs when efforts to prevent one crime unintentionally prevent another; video cameras set up to stop shoplifting also stop property damage, police watching for people speeding helps fight illicit trafficking, etc. Discouragement - occurs when crime control efforts targeting a particular locale help reduce crime in surrounding areas and populations; programs designed to control drug dealing in one area also discourage drug dealing in surrounding areas, etc. Displacement - occurs when crime control efforts simply move, or redirect, offenders to less heavily guarded alternate areas; beefed up police patrols in one neighborhood may encourage criminals to move to a less patrolled neighborhood instead Extinction - occurs when crime reduction programs produce a short-term positive effect, but benefits dissipate as criminals adjust to new conditions; burglars learn to dismantle alarms or avoid patrols, etc

Saints and Roughnecks (LT) (article)

Application of labeling theory: If an offender can maintain a normal presentation of self, you can have that prior deviant activity viewed as atypical; allows you to deflect labels and win the trust of others (juries) by portraying pro-social behavior Moral Responsibility: Impression Management: You create a particular image of yourself to present to the outside world - try to create the impression that offender's actions were reasonable - vocabulary when describing events can be used to deflect labels and frame actions as acceptable

Cloward & Ohlin - Theory of Differential Opportunity (CDT)

Assumptions: Presence of universal success goals; everyone does not have the same means to achieve these goals; different types of subcultures emerge because opportunities for illegitimate success are not equally distributed either Premise: lower class youths, whose legitimate opportunities are limited, join gangs and pursue criminal careers as alternative means to achieve universal success goals

Agnew - General Strain Theory (ST)

Basic Premise: (Micro Theory) Failure to achieve material success is not the only cause of crime, it can also result from negative affective states Role of Negative Affective States: Expand strain Theory past Merton's initially source and recognize multiple sources of strain Sources of strain: - Failure to achieve positively valued goals (Merton) - Disparity between aspirations and achievements (comparing yourself to someone more successful) - Removing positively valued stimuli - Introducing negatively valued stimuli Consequences of strain: Negative emotions can cause a desire for revenge and lowered inhibition; however not everyone that experiences stress turns to crime, some use cognitive defenses such as rationalization (maybe its not a big deal), looking at those worse off (at least I'm not that guy), behavioral solutions (get drunk or work out), etc.

Cultural Deviance Theory

Basic Premise: Because their lifestyle is draining, frustrating, and dispiriting, members of the lower socioeconomic class create independent subcultures with their own sets of rules and values

Messner & Rosenfeld - Institutional (Macro) Anomie Theory (ST)

Basic Premise: Crime is a function of cultural and institutional influences; anomic conditions occur because the desire to succeed at any cost drives people apart, fosters ambition Why is Anomie so pervasive?: Social institutions that might have been able to control exaggerated emphasis on money have been undermined Factors that undermine social institutions: - Economic language has penetrated non-economic parts of life - dominance of American Dream ensures people develop desires for material goods that cannot be achieved through their means - economic roles take precedence over non-economic roles when conflict arises

Cohen - Theory of Delinquent Subcultures (CDT)

Basic Premise: Delinquent behavior of lower-class youths is actually a protest against the values of middle-class US culture Nature of Delinquency: non-utilitarian, malicious, and negativistic; lower-class delinquent subculture is created in direct opposition to the dominant value system Ascribed v achieved status: Ascribed status is the status you are assigned at birth, that you do not choose; Achieved status is the status you gain from what you do Middle Class Measuring Rod: the standards by which authority figures, such as teachers and employers, evaluate lower-class youngsters and use to often prejudge them negatively Reaction Formation: Irrational hostility evidenced by young delinquents, who adopt norms directly opposed to middle-class goals and standards that seem impossible to achieve

Strain Theory

Basic Premise: Deviance is more likely to occur when a gap exists between cultural goals and the means of individuals to achieve those goals in legitimate ways

Miller - Focal Concerns Theory (CDT)

Basic Premise: Focal Concerns refer to the values that have evolved specifically to fit in lower-class environments Valued Qualities among the lower class: - Trouble: dealing with trouble can confer prestige - Toughness: local males desire recognition for physical and spiritual strength - Smartness: maintain an image of being streetwise and savvy; not formally educated - Excitement: search for fun and excitement to break up the monotony of lower-class life - Fate: many believe their lives are in the hands of strong spiritual forces that guide their destiny - Autonomy: being independent of authority figures is a necessity

Differential Enforcement (LT)

Behavior is reinforced by being either rewarded or punished while interacting with others; also called direct conditioning

Pulling Levers Strategy Origin

Boston Ceasefire Approach: PD in Boston did an intense study of a violent gang in the area, did a wide sweep of arrests, and then went around the community and basically said "we know who is committing these homicides, and we won't tolerate it anymore." Used the original gang as an example of those that don't cooperate, quick response, harsh punishment that everybody pays the price Concerns with early evaluation: not rigorous (pre and post implementation means comparisons); subsequent evaluations reported downward trend would have continued without the ceasefire;

Merton - Theory of Anomie (ST)

Cause of Crime: Frustration caused by the disparity between cultural goals and the legitimate means for individuals to achieve those goals Anomie: An uprooting or breakdown of any moral values, standards, or guidance for individuals to follow Key Concepts: 1) Cultural aspirations that people believe are worth striving for (goals); 2) Institutionalized means to obtain them; if society tells you what to want, it must also provide the means to achieve those goals

Factors responsible for resurgence + James Q. Wilson

Classical Theory re-emerged in the mainstream in the late 1960s. There was a growing idea that criminals were rational and predictable when it came to committing crime, engaging in cost-benefit analyses. James Q. Wilson observed that people who are likely to commit crime are unafraid of breaking the law because they value the excitement of crime, have a low stake in conformity, and are willing to take greater chances than the average person.

Social Ecology School (SST)

Community fear: Characteristic of high crime areas; Rooted in physical (vandalism) and social (homeless population, prostitutes) incivilities; Poverty concentration effect: those who are able to leave high crime areas do, and take their resources with them; this pushes the community that is unable to leave even deeper into poverty Community disorder: abandoned houses serve as magnets for crime, high rates of violence and gun crimes, retail establishments can't survive in areas with high disorder Siege Mentality: Those unable to leave the community then choose to withdraw as much as possible from the community, which attracts offenders Community Change: S&M said that crime rates are highest in transitional areas. Today, most crime prone areas are stable, homogeneous areas where residents are trapped (urban ghettos, people with low fixed incomes) Collective Efficacy: the ability of members of a community to control the behavior of other individuals or groups in the community through the use of informal controls (Ex. parental supervision), institutional controls (Ex. after school programs) and public controls (police presence)

Merton's Adaptations to strain (ST)

Conformists: +G, +M; play by the rules Innovators: +G, -M; criminals Ritualists: -G, +M; value rules systems (bureaucrats) Retreatists: -G, -M; drug addicts Rebellion: -G, -M, +g, +m; substitute new goals and means (people calling for alternative lifestyles)

Theory of Delinquent Subcultures typology (CDT)

Corner Boy: Not a chronic delinquent, but may engage in petty or status offenses; main loyalty is to his peer group and his values are those of this peers; eventually retreats from crime to the comfort of their lower-class community where they become a stable member of the community College Boy: Embraces the cultural and social values of the middle class; embarking on an almost hopeless path as he is ill-equipped academically, socially, and linguistically to achieve the goals of middle-class life Delinquent Boy: Engages in short run hedonism; strives for group autonomy and resists efforts from authority figures to control their behavior; Reaction formation

How is crime learned + what is learned? (SPT)

Crime is learned through interaction with others, criminality cannot occur without the help of mentors or counselors. Most important people are the ones you have a relationship with. Learning includes techniques of how to commit crime, specific motives, drives, and rationalizations. Learning also involves knowing when to rationalize, justify, explain, or show remorse when caught

Theory of Differential Opportunity typology (CDT)

Criminal Gangs: exist in stable neighborhoods where close connections among adolescent, young adults, and adult offenders create an environment for successful criminal enterprise; young criminals learn the ways from older, more experienced gang members Conflict Gangs: Develop in communities unable to provide either legit or illegitimate opportunities; must be ready to fight to protect their own and their honor Retreatist Gangs: double failures, unable to gain success through legitimate means and unwilling to do so through illegal means; constantly search for ways to get high and support their habit

Utilitarian Theory of Hedonistic Punishment (Bentham)

Criminals, like any other people, will weigh the positive and negative consequences of a potential action before deciding whether to do it or not - People are hedonistic calculators

Burgess & Akers - Differential Reinforcement (SPT)

Criticism of Sutherland: Theory is too broad, doesn;t explain the learning process Explanation of crime: people are motivated to continue behaving certain ways if they are rewarded for doing so, or discouraged from behaving certain ways through punishment. People will commit offenses if they find it more rewarding than conventional behavior. Offenders evaluate what they have done before, take context from sources of influence, and make decisions Contribution of Theory: Origin of crime can be imitation, and if it is supported by the outcome it will be reinforced;

Sutherland - Social Learning Theories (SPT)

Differential Association: Criminal behavior is learned in a step-by-step process through interaction with others; What causes a person to be criminal: Importance of relationship (close relations with criminals will encourage people to become criminals), criminal behavior is an expression of needs and values, but cannot be explained by them as legal behavior is an expression of those same needs and values Research: Inter-generational crime patterns - criminal parents more likely to have criminal kids; people with delinquent friends and partners more likely to commit crimes than their counterparts; nature of relationship supersedes demographics (race, ethnicity, etc.); not tied to class Criticisms: Tautological Theory (we know someone has experienced an excess of definitions favorable to crime when they commit crime, and people commit crime because they have experienced an excess of definitions... you know how it ends); assumes delinquent acts are rational (doesn't account for spontaneity and the role of opportunity)

Components of Disculturation process + Prisonization (WP)

Disculturation - Stripping process, goal is to deindividualize you, make you pliable and easy to control, make you feel insignificant. - take away freedom - take away your roles, sever relationships - take away your identity - matching prison clothing (no individuality whatsoever) - All you get is what the State gives you - You must feel completely exposed (showers, toilets, bed, everything in the open) - Lower sense of security in prison, more reliant on the prison for safety Prisonization - Inmates create their own subculture within the prison; leads to widespread riots against unfair treatment of the prisoners by the prison

Typology of modes of adjustment (WP)

Doing Time - Prisoners keep their sights set on life after release; they avoid trouble, find activities to occupy their time (reading or body building), secure a few luxuries (through prison jobs), form small groups of friendship while avoiding the mix, and do whatever is necessary to get out as soon as possible. Self Improvement - an increasing number of prisoners choose to better themselves while in prison. Prisoners glean every resource available in order to try and overcome educational deficiencies (get their GED), learn a trade (vocational programs), study the creative arts, or turn to religion (an increasingly popular option) The Mix - Active participation in prisoner "public" activities. Common with state-raised prisoners, gang members, and general "short-termers". They spend most of their free time in communal spaces with other prisoners. Withdrawal - Shy away from public settings and avoid activities of the prisoners involved in the mix. They stay in their cell, confine their contact to a few close friends, and avoid public spaces as much as possible. Withdrawal is encouraged by guards and prison admin that fear organized revolt

How do Social Control Theories differ from other theories?

Don't ask what causes crime, ask what causes conformity. Crime and delinquency do not need to be learned, people are naturally inclined to these behaviors unless restrained (like kids taking a toy car that they want)

Rewards of Crime (RCT)

Economic: - Get money when it is needed (ability to pay bills, buy food, etc.) - support a more lavish lifestyle - Opportunity for advancement and potentially greater riches if part of a gang - "Big scores" Non-Economic: - Adrenaline rush from the excitement of criminal activity - Gain respect from peers; "street cred"

Results (PL)

Effectiveness: Yes, 80% of studies saw stat significant reductions in target behavior; also not leading to displacement. Rather than displacement, we see a diffusion of these benefits to other groups not intentionally targeted. Strongest impact was gang-violence, smallest impact was drug markets What is missing: relative impact of individual parts of the program; "Black box evaluation" where we don't know what element is most important in generating deterrence

general deterrence

Either the law, or the punishment of one person serves as a deterrent to others, influencing by fear of receiving punishment; measured with crime rates

Meta-analysis (PL)

Evolution of the concept - Target Groups: target group themselves can transmit info to other members about the risk their behavior poses; peer pressure can change individual and group behavior. Pulling levers address the rationality of the group itself - changes group norms. - Procedural Justice: Treat offenders with respect and dignity to increase the likelihood that offenders buy in and want to participate in alternatives - Community: newer programs more dedicated to community involvement. Remove justifications of offenders through the community; undermine excuses and appeal to offenders sense of conscience - doing harm in your own neighborhood

Stratification (SST)

Extent of poverty: Half of Americans control less than 1% of all wealth in the U.S.; top 1% controls over a third of all wealth in the U.S. Demographic characteristics: Black poverty rates about 3x the white poverty rate; 1 in 6 US kids live in poverty, impact is compounded if you combine age and race (one third of Black children live in poverty); over 1 in 4 single Black-mother led households are in poverty; demographic is not surprising but the extent is Problems: inadequate housing, poor access to healthcare, under and unemployment, effects of childhood poverty on educational achievement, more exposure to violence in impoverished areas

Evaluations of Strain Theory

Fails to account for gender differences. Males greatly outnumber females, but it's not as though women do not feel as much or greater strain than men. - women are more likely to internalize and blame themselves, whereas men are more likely to lash out

Situational Crime Prevention

Focus: Effective crime prevention strategies must be aimed at reducing immediate and particular criminal opportunities Assumptions: crime is rational, criminals are calculating, criminals will strike if there are valuable items (a), that can be taken easily (b), with nothing and no one around to protect it (the target or the victim)

Guards view of Prisoners and Prisoners view of guards (WP)

Guards view of Prisoners: - generally, they perceive prisoners as worthless, untrustworthy, manipulative, and disreputable deviants - prisoners are moral inferiors who deserve their state of reduced circumstances Prisoners view of Guards: - prisoners intensely dislike their overseers - a guard may be removed from the "despised" category if prisoners believe the guard possesses exceptional qualities - prisoners evaluate guards based on four metrics: fairness (uniform application of the rules; non-pettiness), consistency (consistency in the rules enforced), stringency (the intensity of supervision), and empathy (treating prisoners with respect)

Importance of Policy

If people can learn to become criminals, they can unlearn criminality as well. Programs have been developed to help keep people committed to conventional values, repair bonds that have been broken, and programs aimed to help offenders reconfigure their self-image.

Incapacitation Effect + Problems

Incapacitation Effect: the idea that offenders in confinement will eliminate the risk of committing further offenses problems: - little evidence that incapacitating criminals will deter future criminality - former inmates often suffer social and financial problems that push them back to committing crime - prison exposes young first-time offenders to more seasoned criminals that can teach them how to better commit crime - Incarceration is really costly - could keep people in prison past the time they are high risk offenders

Deterrence

Major Premise: Given the idea that people are rational, we should be able to deter behavior through fear

Typology of Car Thieves (KtAT)

Manipulation - Arguably the most skilled typology, they rely on their wits and ability to control the interaction in order to manipulate keys away from their owner. Manipulators most often targeted car dealerships, either by swapping the key with a fake during a test drive or making a mould of the key in clay and then copying the grooves to a blank key later. Manipulators may also target drunks and drug addicts who are easily manipulated Alert Opportunist - Claim they did not set out intending to steal a car, but their was an easy opportunity and they seized it. Participation in street life facilitates crime by instilling an openness to crime in people, and fostering the ability to recognize criminal opportunities. Opportunities for auto theft often materialized while offenders were engaged in a variety of other illegal activities such as trespassing and burglary. Active Searchers - set out with the desire and intent to steal, and 'capitalize on other people's carelessness'. Usually limited in their search to 'whatever is open and has a key in it'. Some offenders target specific neighborhoods (wealthy or middle class), while some target specific locations where people are likely to leave their cars vulnerable, like places where people are drinking. Many will search private residences and businesses along with cars for keys. Force - Most car thieves try to avoid direct contact with the owner of the vehicle they are stealing, and most would agree that taking a car by force is much more dangerous and requires 'ignorance and balls of steel'. Some researchers hypothesize that as car security becomes more complex, more car thieves will turn to use of force. Some carjackings emerged from alert and motivated opportunism (stealing a car because they needed it) and others who purposely sought out people to rob. Typically these robberies occurred because the thief did not have the skills to steal it without using force. Some offenders drugged victims and stole their keys

Key concepts of Labeling Theory

Moral Entrepreneurs: Individuals who create moral rules that reflect the values of those in power rather than any objective, universal standards of right and wrong Devalued Status: Being a criminal, exactly what it sounds like; you are valued less than 'normal' people because of your status Dramatization of evil: Tagging -> defining -> identifying -> segregating -> describing -> emphasizing (stop other people from committing crime because they see this) Public Degradation ceremonies: a course of action or ritual in which someone's identity is publicly redefined and destroyed and they are thereafter viewed as socially unacceptable Master Status: A label not easily removed once it has been stuck to you

Park and Burgess - Ecological Model/Concentric Zone Theory

Natural Areas: Individual organisms within an environment might work together or coexist in order to create a complex organism made up of many individual parts. P&B argue that cities are natural areas just like jungles for example Ecological Succession: The idea that the balance of an area can change if a new species is introduced. Park saw cultures taking over one another and businesses taking over residential areas in Chicago. Concentric Zones: Cities expand radially from thee center in a pattern of (5) concentric zones Characteristics of concentric zones: - CBD (Central business district): downtown area, central, factories, retail, transient population, high homeless population - Transition: Constantly invaded by CBD, poor and unskilled live here, dilapidated, new immigrants (cheap), slumlords waiting for developers and investors to come and buy the land - Working Men: Blue collar workers able to escape zone 2 (transition), many ethnic neighborhoods and apartment complexes - Residential: Middle class professionals, small business owners, single-family dwellings - Commuter: Suburbs

Demise of Classical Theory - role of positivism

Positivist views focused on social and personal factors rather than personal choice and decision making replaced previous Classical Theory views in the mainstream. The prevailing view was that crime was not a matter of choice but the by-product of destructive personal and anti-social conditions and influences.

Policy Implications: Diversion (LT)

Pre-trial diversion can prevent labelling. - provide the opportunity to be diverted from the CJ system - suspend processing, give opportunity to participate in programs and treatment - keep juveniles from going to detention centers, getting labelled as troublemakers, and prevent further delinquency - diversion must be tailored to help that person specifically

Future for key theft (KtAT)

Predicted to increase, why? - Auto theft using keys is an ideal method for auto thieves. Keys add to a sense of normalcy, reduce potential damage, and make it very easy to steal the car - Offenders have adapted and will continue to adapt to new security measures being implemented. If anything, greater security measures have encouraged thieves to steal more keys Policy Recommendations: - Publicity campaigns that remind people to make a concerted effort to protect their keys - Car dealership employees should never allow customers to handle the keys to deter last minute swaps, and keep records of those that test drive cars to assist police if theft occurs. - "Blocking opportunities for car theft"

Reckless - Containment Theory (SCT)

Premise: Every person has a containing external structure and a protective internal structure that insulate you from committing crimes. Inner Containments: Self control, self concept, sense of responsibility; developed through the socialization process Outer Containments: Structural buffers that set limits; let you know someone or something is monitoring your behavior (teacher, boss, etc.) Internal Pushes: Frustration and hostility (negative emotions) External Pulls: Delinquent friends, etc. (things that pull you towards delinquency) External Pressures: poverty, unemployment, etc. (things that push you to feel like you need to commit crime) When do we commit crime: Probability of crime is related to the likelihood that internal pushes, external pressures, and external pulls can be controlled by inner and outer containments The most important factor for preventing crime is self concept (self-image)

Hirschi - Social Control Theory (SCT)

Premise: Most people don't commit crime because of a strong bond to society that prevents them from committing crime 4 components of bond to society: - Attachment: to peers and institutions (family, friends, schools, programs) - Commitment: if people invest time and effort into building a conventional lifestyle, they will be less likely to engage in behaviors that might jeopardize it - Involvement: Keeping people busy (church lock-ins or midnight basketball leagues) - Belief: That rules are not discriminatory Research: Charter schools have grown in popularity since the 90s as a way to strengthen the bond between traditional underachievers and their community. Usually this is done with intensive schooling, positive reinforcement, and the expectation that kids will become good citizens Criticisms: The influence of friendship (Hirschi contends that delinquents are loners); failure to achieve can lead to crime; higher than expected levels of deviant involvement; influence of deviant peers and parents; mistaken causal order? (children who break laws then see their bonds to society broken, rather than the opposite direction)

Sykes & Matza - Techniques of Neutralization (SLT)

Premise: Offenders have conventional values, but they learn techniques to neutralize those values in order to drift between crime and a normal lifestyle Drift: movement in and out of delinquency; shifting between conventional and deviant values Functions of neutralization: Can alleviate guilt, can prevent offender from being completely alienated from mainstream society (like middle class drug users)

Social Reaction aka Labeling Theory

Premise: You created bad people because of the way you treated them What is crime: Crime is a function of destructive interaction; socially constructed Who is a criminal: Criminal is an acquired label given to those of devalued status Consequences: Empirical evidence shows that negative labels may cause significant long-term damage to both a person's self-image and how they are viewed by others. Negative labels can follow people their entire lives, ultimately pushing them into the deviant behavior they feel is expected of them Criticisms: Inability to specify the conditions that must exist before an act or individual is labeled deviant (secret deviants); does stigma produce crime?

Social Disorganization Theory

Premise: crime flourishes in a disorganized area in which institutions of social control have broken down and can no longer perform their expected or stated function Policy Implications: Crime is a product of environment, not because of people. So, policies to combat criminal activity must work to empower the institutions of social control and bring a sense of organization to the community

Lemert - Primary v Secondary Deviance (LT)

Primary deviance: A norm violation or crime that has little or no long-term effect on the violator Secondary Deviance: A norm violation or crime that comes to the attention of significant others or social control agents, who apply a negative label that has long-term consequences for the violator's self-identity and social interactions

Retrospective Accounts of Violence by Gun Offenders (article)

Purpose of study: Cause vs account; reasons offenders gave for their actions, which may or may not have anything to do with the actual cause Justifications + excuses utilized: Denial of victim was the most common justification (offender had a right to do what they did); denial of responsibility was also common; excuses were often paired with other excuses or justifications Significance: accounts can impact a juries decision to determine guilt, judges decision in sentencing, parole board decisions, and the general perception of the offender

Death Penalty

Research: Majority of Americans support the death penalty; - Immediate impact: We should expect a highly-publicized execution to immediately deter murder, but most research has failed to find evidence that an execution produce an immediate decline in the murder rate, even when the cases are highly publicized - comparative research: studies have found little difference in the murder rates of adjacent states, regardless of their use of the death penalty; capital punishment did not appear to impact homicide rates - Time-series studies: most research efforts have failed to show a relationship between periods with high execution rates and periods with low homicide rates. Econ conditions, pop. density, and incarceration rates have a greater effect on murder rates than the death penalty Major Problems: Racial bias - 35% of those executed are Black, over 75% of death sentences carried out had a white victim even though 50% of homicide victims were Black; Getting it Wrong - increasing number of studies show evidence of flawed convictions, >80% of the time the person receiving the death penalty does not deserve it, 10% that are sentenced to death did not even commit the crime State/Federal Actions: IL gave all death row inmates access to DNA testing which proved the innocence of 13 people, so they declared a moratorium on the death penalty, eventually abolished it. Other states have also implemented moratoriums on the death penalty, more research and DNA testing is being done; - Justice for All Act (2004): provides DNA testing for all Fed. DRI, allotted money to states to provide adequate defense for suspects in capital cases, compensate people if you get them wrong on death row

Research for rationality of specific offenses: Robbery - Drug Use - Murder (RCT)

Robbery: Street robbers use a considerable amount of rational thought before choosing robbery, which may involve violence rather than stealth. Robbers generally choose targets close to their homes or in areas to which they routinely travel. Robbers report avoiding freestanding buildings (easier for police to surround), and tend to prefer targets heavy in cash dealings. Some robbers choose a target to send a message rather than to generate capital. Drug Use: At onset, drug use is controlled by rational decision making. Users report they begin using drugs when they believe the benefits of substance abuse outweigh the costs. Drug dealers approach their profession in a business-like fashion, and face many of the same problems as legitimate retailers (namely competition), but turf wars could also end in violence. Street-level dealers employ rational thinking to limit exposure to police through stash spots and other things. Murder: yes, crime is not a random event but the product of calculation and planning, designed to provide the would-be criminal with an overall benefit, whether monetary or emotional

How do Social Process Theories (SPT) differ from Social Structural Theories (SST)/

SPT emerged in response to criticism that most people that live in deteriorated areas don't commit crime; crime is a function of socialization; if poverty was directly linked to crime we would see much higher crime rates

Key components of general deterrence

Sanction must be certain, swift, and severe Certain - most important, certainty of being punished for a crime. People who believe they will be punished for committing crime are more likely to be deterred from criminal acts. Certainty increases when police officers are proactive and aggressive crimefighters. Swift - the more rapidly punishment is applied and the more closely it is linked to the crime, the better it will serve as a deterrent. Effect may be neutralized if there is a significant lag in between apprehension and punishment. Typically more than 10 year elapse between the time a criminal is sentenced to death and the time the execution is carried out. Severe - people who believe they will be punished severely are less likely to commit crime, but there is little consensus that severe punishment alone can reduce criminal activity. One reason for skepticism is the alleged failure of the death penalty (arguably the most severe punishment available) to deter murder.

Logic and Structure of strategy as applied to Stockton (PL)

Steps Involved: - select target behavior (violent behavior by chronic gang members) - assemble interagency workgroup (local police, probation, prosecutors, ATF, FAI, DEA, neighborhood groups, faith-based groups) - explicit message to target audience (here are the consequences for homicide) - offer social services as an alternative (to gang activity) - follow through - continue communication - select new target behavior Role of community: when you incorporate the community it creates a joint sense of ownership over the problem; very important to have political support for intervention Effectiveness of Operation Peacekeeper: Very effective, confirmed by multi-variate analyses even though other similar cities did not have the same results, able to facilitate prosocial behavior

Key Factor in developing Successful Situational Crime Prevention Program (Key to Auto Theft)?

The reduction for opportunities of theft through target hardening such as the manufacturing of more secure cars, better securing keys, etc.

Rational Choice Theory

The view that crime is a function of a decision-making process in which the potential offender weighs the potential costs and benefits of an illegal act.

Shaw and McKay - application to juvenile delinquency (SST)

Where is delinquency: Often takes place in areas adjacent to business districts, with many condemned buildings, a decreasing transitional population (high rates of turnover), high rates of poverty & unemployments, and a high % of minority residents Gradient Tendency: As you push out from the center of the city, delinquency rates diminish Cause of Crime and implications for crime control: Delinquency is not a function of economics, race, or ethnicity; high delinquency areas remained no matter who lived there. Crime is normal people responding in expected ways to their surroundings. Doesn't explain why people age out of crime in bad areas, or why most people in bad areas do not commit crime

Specific Deterrence - Logic behind incapacitation

criminal sanctions should be so powerful that known criminals never repeat their criminal acts. People can learn from their mistakes.

Pains of Imprisonment (Warehouse Prisons)

psychological suffering (deprivation, frustration, boredom, etc), disculturation process, prisonization,

Social Structure Theory and Public Policy

public assistance or welfare, improving community-structure in high-crime areas, head start, legal services, community action programs, community-oriented policing

specific deterrence

punishment inflicted on criminals to discourage them from committing future crimes; meant to deter a specific person; measured with recidivism rates

Social Structural Theories

structural forces in society push people into committing crime - environment is the key

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Chapter 6 video clips

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