Question

New theories of crime were being studied by psychologists. These theories began to develop in the early 1900s. Your task is to search Biological, Sociological and Psychological Theories of Crime and then you need to write your findings with your own thoughts and words. Your word limit is 750-1000. very long please explain

Answer 1

Biological theories

There are many theories of crime among which the biological theories are the one which talks about the linkage between biological conditions and the tendency of an individual to engage in criminal behaviour. There are many debates and controversies in these theories like biological theory of the Italian criminologist Cesare Lombroso, whose investigated the skulls and facial features of criminals after which he hypothesized that serious or persistent criminality was associated with atavism, or the reversion to a primitive stage of human development. Cesare Lombroso in a theory called anthropological theory of crime proposed the idea criminal determinism that is that in the world which we live there are criminals whose behaviour is unavoidable and can be anticipated since in his theory the concept revolves around the notion of born criminal which means that in society some people are born just to do crime and deviate from societal norms and engage in criminal activities and these factors are exclusively genetic. The criminal according to this theory is anthropological type of his own, the “homo delinquens”. This is atavistic, i.e. an earlier and more primitive type of human being who has regressed in evolution, who comes along immorally and instinctively.

Another major theory is Two path theory by moffitt. According to this theory the age of the criminals who engage in crimes do not match to the normal distribution. During adolescence there are many experiences by individuals like conspicuous, antisocial and possibly also criminal behaviour. Crime statistics show the highest crime rates for the 17-year-old age group. so there are 2 types of offender according to this theory one who are showing the ., deviant behaviour for a limited period of which characterizes the transition to adulthood and are known as adolescence limited offender and other are individuals who repeatedly and possibly over the course of their lives attract attention due to deviant and criminal behaviour and are known as life course persistent offender. an increase in antisocial behaviour can be detected among those belonging to this second type of offender. The antisocial, deviant behaviour of the life course persistent offender is due to neuropsychological dysfunctionalities.

These deviant behaviours of the adolescence limited offender is are due to the disproportion between the autonomy demanded and the legal chances of realising these autonomy aspirations.

On the other hand life course offenders persistently open the door to influence and act as role models (drugs, sex and autonomy) because of their different lifestyles. The short-term orientation of the adolescence limited offender towards the deviant lifestyle of the lifecourse persistent offender can be described as social mimicry.

Many studies have found that there is a connection between biology and criminality by studying twins and adoptees. Identical twins are more likely to show similar tendencies in criminal behaviour than if they are fraternal. certain neurotransmitter imbalances in the brain hormonal imbalances slower reactions of the autonomic nervous system appear to be associated with increased criminality.

Psychological theories

Psychologists try to explain delinquent and criminal behaviour by trying to find the connection between individual’s personality and criminal behaviour . they try to understand the processes by which behaviour and restraints on behaviour are learned. One of the major explanation in this comes from work of Sigmund Freud who stated that human personality has three parts id, ego and superego, and id works on pleasure principal which demand gratification. Other two are superego which works on moral principle ego which works on reality principle an balances and work according to looking after id and superego. Id is a relatively constant drive, criminality is assumed to result from the failure of the superego, a consequence of its incomplete development.

Other theories like behaviour theory, according to which all human behaviour—criminal and otherwise—as learned and can be unlearned by the use of reinforcement and punishment. Another is the social learning theory of Ronald Akers which stated that behaviour is learned from contacts within the family and other intimate groups, from social contacts outside the family like peer groups, and from exposure to models of behaviour in the media, particularly television.

It is also assumed that criminal behaviour is linked to Mental illness and is generally the cause of a relatively small proportion of crimes, but its perceived importance may be exaggerated by the seriousness of some of the crimes committed by persons with mental disorders. Like antisocial personality disorder—is thought to be strongly associated with criminality.

Sociological theories

The last but major work comes with from the sociological theories of criminal behaviour according to which society influences a person to become a criminal. Like in social learning theory, it is aaserted that an individual learn criminal behavior from the people around them, and social conflict theory, which says that class warfare is responsible for crime.

The amount of contact an individual have with other criminals or individuals who conduct crime determine how much person is likely to learn such behaviour. An major theory of anomie by Robert K. Merton according to which the offender is unable to complete the goals that he desired by socially acceptable ways and when such happens they are likely to turn to socially unacceptable means of attaining the goal

. Neutralization theory, given David Cressey, Gresham Sykes, and David Matza, according to which criminal or individual who commit crime are the one who are unable to justify their behaviour through the process of neutralization whereby the behaviour is redefined to make it morally acceptable. Control theory emphasizes the links between the offender and his social group—his bond to society. According to this view, the ability of the individual to resist the inclination to commit crime depends on the strength of his attachment to his parents, his involvement in conventional activities and avenues of progress, and his commitment to orthodox moral values that prohibit the conduct in question..

Labelling theory which states that portrays criminality as a product of society’s reaction to the individual. It contends that the individual, once convicted of a crime, is labeled a criminal and thereby acquires a criminal identity. Once returned to society, he continues to be regarded as a criminal and is consequently rejected by law-abiding persons and accepted by other delinquents. Over time, therefore, the offender becomes increasingly socialized into criminal behaviour patterns and more estranged from law-abiding behaviour.

Another type of theory is conflict theory according to which powerful follow their own self-interest though the enactment and enforcement of criminal laws. According to conflict theory, individual with power and wealth are likely to follow laws and norms because it fullfill their self interest