Dispositional explanation

• Dispositional explanations for aggression - AO1


  • Importation model
• Irwin and Cressey (1962) - AO1


  • Created the importation model
  • Argued that inmates bring with them (import) a subculture typical of criminality
  • This includes things like beliefs, values, norms, attitudes, learning experiences and personal characteristics (gender race and class)
  • Inmates import these to negotiate their way through the unfamiliar prion environment where existing inmates use aggression to establish power, status and access to recourses.
• Importation model- AO1


  • Aggression is a result of individual charteristics inmates import into the prison rather than the prion enviroment itself
• Two studies into dispositional explanations/importation modle for aggression - AO1


  • Irwin and Cressey (1962)
  • DeLesi et al (2011)
• Research support for importation model - 😊- AO3

  • Camp and Gaes (2005)
  • Placed half of their male inmate participants in low-security Californian prisons and the other half in the second highest category of prions
  • No significant difference in aggressive misconduct between the two groups
  • Shows that features of the prison environment are less important predictors of aggressive behaviours that charteristics of inmates
  • Strong evidence in favour of dispositional explanation
  • Random allocation of inmates to different security level prions in creases overall validity of results
• Alternative to importation model may be better - 🙁 - A03

  • Dilulio (1991)
  • Claims importation model is inadequate to explain institutional aggression because it ignores roles of prion officials and factors linked to the running prions
  • Proposes and administrative control model - ACM
  • States that poorly managed prions are more likely to experience serious violence (homicide and rioting).
  • These factors are more influential in determining aggression than inmate characteristics
  • Doubts the validity of the dispositional explanation model and the importation model.
• DeLisi et al (2011) - Procedure

  • They studied 813 juvenile delinquents
  • They had imported several negative characteristics into the prisons
  • For example, childhood trauma, anger, violent behaviour and histories of substance abuse