Should we revisit how juveniles are prosecuted? Explain your reasoning and address both prosecution in juvenile court and in adult court under the waiver system. Include the economic implications of juvenile prosecution and consider the individual, group, and community implications of juvenile prosecution in your response.
Chapter 3: Individual Views of Delinquency: Choice and Trait
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Rational choice, or choice, theory
Cesare Beccaria & Jeremy Bentham
Argues that people consider the consequences prior to the commission of their behaviors
Holds that the decision to violate the law comes after a careful weighing of the benefits
Assumes that people have “free will” to choose their behavior
Choice Theory
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LO1. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory.
Photo:
I. Glory / Alamy
2
Economic need/opportunity – Kids may engage in illegal acts if the opportunity for success I right round the corner.
In reality, many youths from affluent families choose to break the law
Delinquent motives include:
Economic need/opportunity
Problem solving
False expectations
Opportunity
ENCOURAGING DELINQUENCY
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LO1. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory.
Photos:
Is delinquency truly rational? Shane, a Portland, Oregon, youth, left an abusive family and has been
homeless since he was 17. He struggles with heroin addiction and is in and out of housing.
Portland has the highest population per capita of homeless youth in the United States. An estimated
2,500 youth lack permanent housing and live on the streets, in shelters, or “squats.” According
to studies, over 90 percent of Portland’s street kids are victims of sexual and physical abuse. The
epidemic spread of “meth” and some of the cheapest heroin in the nation fuel a high rate of drug
addiction. Infection of incurable diseases such as Hepatitis C and HIV are also rampant among
homeless youth. The average life expectancy for a homeless youth living on the streets is 26 years
of age. Do kids like Shane really “choose” delinquency and drug abuse?
Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
3
Developed by Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson
The view that crime is a normal function of the routine activities of modern living
Predatory crimes
Violent crimes against persons and crimes in which an offender attempts to steal an object from its holder are influenced by three variables:
The availability of suitable targets
The absence of capable guardians
The presence of motivated offenders
Routine Activities Theory
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LO1. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory.
4
Fluctuations in the Delinquency Rate
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO1. List the principles of choice theory and routine activities theory.
Figure 3.1 Routine Activities Theory Helps Explain Fluctuations in the Delinquency Rate
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.
Predatory crimes Violent crimes against persons and crimes in which an offender attempts to steal an object
directly from its holder.
5
General deterrence
Crime control policies that depend on the fear of criminal penalties, i.e., long prison sentences for violent crime
A guiding principle of deterrence is based on:
The severity of the punishment
The certainty of the punishment
The swiftness of the punishment
There is evidence that adolescents who perceive they will be arrested and punished for a crime will often forego delinquent acts
Choice Theory and Delinquency Prevention
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO2. Compare the principles of general deterrence, specific deterrence, and situational crime prevention.
6
Specific deterrence
If young offenders are punished severely, they will not repeat their illegal acts
“Learn from their own mistakes”
For example, sending convicted offenders to secure incarceration facilities; punishment is severe enough to convince them not to repeat their criminal activity
However, in some cases, experiencing punishment may actually increase the likelihood of reoffending
Choice Theory and Delinquency Prevention
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO2. Compare the principles of general deterrence, specific deterrence, and situational crime prevention.
7
Problems with a strict deterrence strategy:
Minors are not “rational”
Experienced offenders do not fear the legal consequences
High-risk offenders may not fear getting arrested
Many juveniles are under influence of drugs/alcohol
Juveniles often commit crimes in groups – “co-offending”
Most serious delinquents are not able to comprehend consequences
Punishment may produce defiance, rather than deterrence
Choice Theory and Delinquency Prevention
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO2. Compare the principles of general deterrence, specific deterrence, and situational crime prevention.
8
Situational crime prevention
To reduce delinquency, crime control must recognize the characteristics of sites and situations that are at risk to crime
Potential offenders are carefully guarded
The means to commit crime are controlled
Potential offenders are carefully monitored
Situational crime prevention includes:
Hot spot and crackdowns
Choice Theory and Delinquency Prevention
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO2. Compare the principles of general deterrence, specific deterrence, and situational crime prevention.
Photo;
This photo, taken from police surveillance video, shows vandals
inside Chesapeake High School in Pasadena, Maryland. Roughly
12 hours after the senior class graduated, vandals returned to
the school and caused significant property damage. What crime
prevention methods could be used to deter or prevent this type
of delinquent activity?
AP Images/Anne Arundel County police/Handout – Goverment Produced
9
Origins of trait theory
The school of thought is generally believed to have originated with the Italian physician Cesar Lombroso (1835-1909)
Father of criminology
Criminal atavism
Idea that delinquents manifest physical anomalies that make them biologically and psychologically similar to our primitive ancestors
By the middle of the 20th century, biological theories had fallen out of favor
Trait Theories: Biosocial and Psychological Views
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LO3. Trace the history and development of trait theory.
10
Contemporary trait theory
For the most of the 20th century, delinquency research focused on social factors
Trait theories argue that a combination of personal traits and environmental factors lead to behavior patterns
Today’s trait theories:
Biosocial theory
Delinquency can be found in a child’s physical or biological makeup
Psychological traits and characteristics
Trait Theories: Biosocial and Psychological Views
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LO3. Trace the history and development of trait theory.
11
Focuses on the association between biological makeup, environmental conditions, and antisocial behaviors
Three areas of biosocial theories:
Biochemical factors
Neurological function
Genetic history
Biosocial Theories of Delinquency
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LO4. Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory.
12
Suspected relationship between antisocial behavior and biochemical makeup
Biochemical problems can begin at conception
e.g., maternal alcohol abuse
Environmental contamination, such as children exposed to high levels of air pollution
There is evidence that a child’s diet may influences his or her behavior
Hormonal levels, such as increased levels of testosterone, are also associated with antisocial behavior
Biochemical Factors
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LO4. Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory.
13
Neurological dysfunction, such as minimal brain dysfunction (MBD) is associated with antisocial behavior
ADHD:
Condition in which a child shows a developmentally inappropriate lack of attention and impulse
Learning disabilities (LD):
Arrested children have a higher rate of LDs than children in the general population
Arousal theory:
“Thrill” and “sensation seekers”
Neurological Dysfunction
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LO4. Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory.
Photo:
Neurological dysfunction linked to early childhood experiences has
been correlated with violent acts. Charles J. Hackney is serving
a 15-year sentence for shooting at vehicles on an interstate
highway with a pellet gun. Dr. Carl Bell, a psychiatrist who studies
violence prevention and mental health, said Hackney’s behavioral
history seems consistent with the effects of fetal alcohol spectrum
disorders, which are caused by prenatal exposure to alcohol.
© St. Louis Post Dispatch
14
Assumes that:
Antisocial behavior is inherited
The genetic makeup of parent is passed on to children
Genetic abnormality is directly linked to antisocial behaviors
Three approaches to test the association:
Parental deviance
Twin studies
Adoption studies
Genetic Influences
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LO4. Analyze the branches and substance of biosocial theory.
Photo:
Dalton Hayes, 18, is shown following his arrest in Panama City Beach, Florida. Hayes
and his 13-year-old girlfriend had vanished from their small hometown in western
Kentucky in January 2015. The couple was
arrested following a two-week crime spree
of stolen vehicles and pilfered checks across
the South. Could their spree be linked to the
need for arousing behavior that made them
feel “normal”?
AP Images/Uncredited
15
Many delinquent youths have poor home lives, and destructive relationships with people around them; this can indicate a disturbed personality
Three prominent psychological perspectives:
Psychodynamic theory
Behavioral theory
Cognitive theory
Psychological Theories of Delinquency
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
16
Psychological Perspectives of Delinquency
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
Figure 3.2
17
Psychodynamic theory
Branch of psychology that holds that the human personality is controlled by unconscious mental processes
Originated by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Personality consists of three major components:
Id
Ego
Superego
The theory suggests that an imbalance in personality traits, caused by early childhood, can result in long-term psychological difficulties
Psychodynamic Theory
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
18
Behavioral theory
Argument that personality is learned throughout life during interactions with others
“Behaviorism” concerns the study of observable behavior, rather than unconscious processes; focuses on particular stimuli and responses to them
Kids learn through reward and punishment
Cognitive theory
Studies the perception of reality and the mental processes required to understand the world we live in
Behavioral Theory/Cognitive Theory
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
19
Personality
The stable patterns of behavior, including thoughts and emotions, that distinguish one person from the other
Hans Eysenck’s two traits associate with antisocial behavior:
Extraversion
Impulsive individuals who lack the ability to examine their own motives
Neuroticism
Individuals who are anxious and emotionally unstable
Personality and Delinquency
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
20
Psychopathic personality
Also known as sociopathic or antisocial personality
A person lacking in warmth, exhibiting inappropriate behavior responses, and unable to learn from experience
Defined by persistent violations of social norms
Personality and Delinquency
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
21
Delinquents believed to be substandard in intelligence and thus inclined to commit more crimes
Nature theory:
Intelligence is inherited and is a function of genetic makeup
Nurture theory:
Intelligence is determined by environmental stimulation and socialization
Intelligence and Delinquency
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
22
Prevention efforts should be directed at strengthening a youth’s home life and relationships
Individual approaches have been used to prevent adjudicated youths from engaging in further criminal activities
Rehabilitation methods include psychological counseling or prescribed psychotropic medications
Trait Theory and Delinquency Prevention
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LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
23
Prevention
Early prevention pays off
Targeted at children’s health and well-being
Example: Prenatal/Early Infancy Project (PEIP)
Is there a danger that early prevention will label or stigmatize kids as potential delinquents? Can trying to do good result in something that creates long-term harm?
© 2017 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
LO5. Contrast the various psychological theories of delinquency.
24
There are two branches of individual-level theories of delinquency
Choice theory (e.g., routine activities theory)
Biological trait theories (e.g., biosocial)
Psychological theories of delinquency explain delinquent behaviors
Psychodynamic theory, behavioral theory, and cognitive theory
Summary
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Chapter 4: Sociological Views of Delinquency
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What are the social factors believed to cause or affect delinquent behaviors?
Interpersonal interactions
Social relationships with families, peers, schools, jobs
Social conditions
Political unrest/mistrust, economic stress, and family disintegration
Poverty
People on the lowest rung of the economic ladder have the greatest incentive to commit crime
Racial disparity
The consequences of racial disparity and poverty take a harsh toll on minority youths
Social Factors and Delinquency
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LO1. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime.
2
Social problems can turn American youths toward antisocial behaviors
Three main sociological theoretical groups:
Social structure theories
Social process theories
Critical theories
Social Factors and Delinquency
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LO1. Analyze the association between social conditions and crime.
Photo:
Minority group members have lower incomes and enjoy fewer social
benefits than whites. Their children go to inadequate schools
and many people are forced to accept government benefits.
Here, a monthly distribution of free food for low-income residents
by the Detroit Department of Human Services draws a crowd.
Jim West/Report Digital-Rea/Redux
3
Oscar Louis (1966) coined the phrase “culture of poverty”
The view that lower class people form a separate culture with their own values and norms
“Underclass”
Group of urban poor whose members have little chance of upward mobility or improvement
William Julius Wilson: the “truly disadvantaged”
The impoverished are deprived of a standard of living enjoyed by the other citizens
People who are left out of the economic mainstream and living in the deteriorated inner-city
Social Structure Theories
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LO2. List the principles of social disorganization theory.
4
The theories tie delinquency rates to:
Socioeconomic conditions
e.g., poverty, neighborhood deterioration
Cultural values
e.g., gang culture
Three prominent views:
Social disorganization
Anomie/strain
Cultural deviance
Social Structure Theories
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LO2. List the principles of social disorganization theory.
5
Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay-Chicago School
Transitional neighborhoods
Teenage gangs develop in areas undergoing decay
Cultural transmission
The process of passing on deviant traditions and delinquent values from one generation to the next
Social control
The ability of an organized community to regulate itself via formal/informal social control
Relative deprivation
Exists when people of wealth and poverty live in close proximity to one another
Social Disorganization
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LO2. List the principles of social disorganization theory.
6
Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay-Chicago School
Community change
Impoverished areas “gentrified” to stabilize them
Community fear
As fear increases, quality of life deteriorates
Poverty concentration
Poverty becomes concentrated to specific area(s) as people flee
Collective efficacy
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
Social Disorganization
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LO2. List the principles of social disorganization theory.
7
The Cycle of Social Disorganization
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LO2. List the principles of social disorganization theory.
Figure 4.2 – © Cengage Learning
Photo:
In 2014, Detroit turned 313 years old, a year after declaring bankruptcy. Once an industrial powerhouse,
the city now contains vast tracts of abandoned factories and homes, and its population
has sunk to 700,000. These municipal conditions are believed to produce the social conditions that
create high rates of crime and delinquency.
Robert Wallace/Corbis News/Corbis
8
Strain
A condition caused by the failure to achieve one’s social goals
Anomie
Robert Merton (1910-2003)
Without acceptable means for obtaining success, individuals feel social and psychological strain
Consequently, these youths may use deviant methods to achieve their goals or reject socially accepted goals and substitute deviant ones
Anomie/Strain TheOry
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LO3. Apply the concepts of anomie and strain to explaining the onset of delinquency.
9
Robert Agnew
General strain
Links delinquency to the strain of being locked out of the economic mainstream, which leads to anger and frustration
Sources of strain
Failure to achieve positively valued goals
Removal of positively valued stimuli
Presentation of negative stimuli
Negative affective states
Anger, depression, disappointment, fear, and other adverse emotions that derive from strain
General Strain Theory
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LO3. Apply the concepts of anomie and strain to explaining the onset of delinquency.
10
Links delinquency to the formation of independent subcultures with a unique set of values that clash with the mainstream culture
By joining gangs, lower-class youths are rejecting the culture that has already rejected them
They may be failures in conventional society, but they are the kings and queens in their own neighborhood
Cultural Deviance Theory
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