CRIM unit 2 criminological theories

• Individualistic theories of crime

  Theories that focus on the individual as the cause of crime, rather than external factors
• Sigmund Freud's psychodynamic theory


  • Focuses on the early stages of an individual's development and how their upbringing impacts their later life and criminal behavior
  • Examines unconscious processes in the mind that impact behavior
• ID


  The dominant part of personality that dictates wants and desires, develops early in life
• Superego


  Moral code that limits access to things desired by the ID, develops to know right from wrong
• Ego


  Balances the desires of the ID and the morals of the superego, governs behavior to be socially desirable
• Weakly developed superego


  Reduces guilt, individuals may indulge their needs at the expense of others
• Overdeveloped superego


  Leads to high guilt and anxiety, negative impact on self-esteem, individuals seek punishment
• Deviant superego


  Socialized into deviant norms and values, less fear of committing crime, more likely to satisfy ID
• Strengths of Freud's theory

  • Looks at how upbringing can influence later life, suggests individuals are shaped rather than born criminals, has positive applications for treating criminal behavior
  • Not biologically deterministic like genetic or physiological theories
• Limitations of Freud's theory

  • Much of it based on Freud's ideas rather than empirical research, fails to account for people who commit crime without criminal family backgrounds, fails to account for people socialized into crime becoming victims
• Lombroso's atavistic form Theory


  Suggests that an individual's physiology is the cause behind their criminal activities
• Lombroso's atavistic form Theorylinks


  • Lombroso found a correlation between physical characteristics and criminality
  • Lombroso's theory has been widely criticized, particularly in contemporary society
• Lombroso's research


  1. Examined the skulls of deceased prisoners

  2. Recorded the facial features of prisoners

  3. Attempted to prove his theory that criminals were less evolved than other members of society
• Atavistic form


  Criminals have similar features, including more prominent jaws and jawlines, larger eye sockets, eyes further apart, more prominent eyebrow arches, and higher cheekbones
• Differing types of criminals

  • Thieves have larger flatter noses
  • Murderers have smaller pointed noses
• Many critics of Lombroso reject his theory, even though he conducted his research scientifically
• Lombroso recorded the facial features of his subjects, and the drawings showed many of the features he identified
• Lombroso's research was somewhat subjective, as he had a theory and looked to prove it
• Lombroso could not prove cause and effect through his observations, only correlations
• Lombroso's findings were not proven by other researchers in the field, impacting the reliability of his methods and findings
• Lombroso's work has been criticized for focusing on features that were not common in Western Europeans, and can be seen as a form of ethnic profiling
• Biological theories of criminality

  Physiological, genetic, and neurochemical explanations of criminal behavior
• Physiological explanations


  • Examine the idea that criminal behavior is a result of an individual's physiology
• Somatotypes


  Body types
• Sheldon's theory


  • Categorized individuals into three distinct somatotypes based upon their physical appearance
  • Found correlations between criminality and a specific body type (mesomorph)
• Somatotypes


  • Endomorph (round body shape, lack of muscle tone, wide hips)
  • Ectomorph (thinner, taller, lacking fat and muscle)
  • Mesomorph (muscular, strong, broad shoulders)
• Endomorphs


  More sociable, outgoing, less likely to commit crime
• Ectomorphs


  More self-conscious, emotionally restrained
• Mesomorphs


  Sensation seeking, risk taking, dominant, more likely to commit crime
• Changes to diet, exercise, and working patterns in contemporary society have created a wider range of body types
• Sheldon's theory is limited in explaining female criminality and modern desirable body types
• Sheldon's research has been supported by other studies, particularly by Black and Black
• Critics argue that body shape does not dictate criminality, but rather criminality impacts an individual's body shape
• Sheldon's typology has been criticized for criminalizing the working class, as many would develop mesomorphic somatotypes through manual work
• Social learning theory


  Individuals learn behavior through observation and reinforcement
• Social learning theory

  • Individuals copy or imitate the behavior of another person through a process known as modeling
  • Individuals witness other people performing the behavior and perceive that behavior to be socially desirable (vicarious learning)
• Individualistic theories of criminality

  Theories that focus on the individual as the cause of criminal behavior
• Bobo doll study


  Experiment conducted by Albert Bandura to discover the impact of young children being exposed to adults modeling violent behavior towards a Bobo doll
• Learning theories


  • Based on how criminal behavior is learned from others, usually through interactions and the surrounding culture
  • Individuals learn to imitate behaviors they see being rewarded
• Bobo doll study

  1. Children observed an adult of either the same sex or opposite sex interacting with the Bobo doll

  2. Children were then given the opportunity to interact with the doll themselves