Cognitive explanations

• Kohlberg's moral reasoning theory


  Our attitudes regarding issues of right or wrong can be summarised in a series of stages, the higher the stage, the more sophisticated the reasoning - This was established after he provided the Heinz Dilemma to a group of violent youths and compared it to a control.
• Kohlberg's moral reasoning stages

  Pre-conventional morality : Avoiding punishment and personal gain

  Conventional morality : Approval from others

  Post conventional morality : Rights of others and ethical principles

  Criminals show a lower level of moral reasoning so offenders are more likely to be classified at the pre-conventional level where non-criminals are above that. Pre-conventional are more likely to commit crime if they think they can get away with it/gain rewards such as money or respect. Egocentric and poor social skills.
• Kohlberg's moral reasoning:


  Those who reason at a higher level (conventional or higher) tend to sympathise more with rights of others and show more conventional behaviours like honesty, generosity and non violence so are less likely to be criminal
• (Kohlberg) EVALUATION : Supporting evidence

  Palmer and Hollin compared moral reasoning between female non offenders, male non offenders and convicted offenders using 11 moral dilemma related questions such as not taking things that belong to others etc/ The delinquent group showed less mature moral reasoning that the non-delinquent groups, supporting Kohlberg's predictions
• (Kohlberg) Evaluation : Level of moral reasoning may depend on type of offence

  Thornton and Reid found those who commit crimes for financial gain were more likely to show a pre-conventional morality whereas those convicted of impulsive crimes such as assault no moral reasoning type was evident, suggesting the theory cannot be applied to all types of crime
• (Kohlberg) Evaluation: Cognitive explanations can be criticised for being descriptive not explanatory


  It describes the levels of moral reasoning of offenders but does not explain why offenders have these lower levels. Doesn't explain why they're committing the crime and therefore there must be an alternative explanation as to why such as biological theories
• (Kohlberg) Evaluation : Gender bias

  Kohlberg developed these stages through interviews with teenage boys and he suggests that these stages are universal and represent the moral reasoning of both males and females. Research was later carried out with female participants and concluded women reach lower levels of moral development than men however are less likely to be convicted of an offence. Issues as it contradicts his theory and represents how it was based on a beta bias as the differences were ignored
• Cognitive Distortions : Faulty, based and irrational ways of thinking that mean we perceive ourselves, other people and the world inaccurately. In terms of criminality, this can affect how criminals interpret other people's behaviours and justify their own actions
• Cognitive distortions: Hostile attribution bias = tendency to judge ambiguous situations or the actions of other as aggressive and/or threatening when it reality they may not be. Offenders may misread non aggressive cues and this may trigger a violent response
• Cognitive distortions: Minimalisation = An attempt to downplay or deny the seriousness of an event or emotion and this is a common strategy for dealing with feelings of guilt.

  Studies show sex offenders are particularly prone to minimalisation

  54% of convicted rapists denied that they had committed an offence and 40% minimised the harm they had caused
• (Cognitive distortions) Evaluation : Supporting evidence

  Schonenburg and Justye presented 55 violent offenders with images of emotionally ambiguous facial expressions. When compared with a non-aggressive control the offenders were significantly more likely to perceive the images as angry and hostile. Supports hostile attribution bias as it demonstrates criminals are likely to perceive others as aggressive or threatening when this is not being presented
• (Cognitive distortions) Evaluation : Understanding cognitive distortions has led to development of treatments for criminal behaviour

  The dominant approach in the rehabilitation of sex offenders is cognitive behavioural therapy which encourages offenders to face up to what they have done and establish a less distorted view of their actions. Studies have found a reduction of denial and minimalisation is highly correlated with a reduced risk of reoffending. Supports the theory that cognitive distortion is a reason for offending
• (Cognitive distortions) Evaluation : Descriptive not explanatory


  Good description of how the criminal mind and thought processes work but doesn't explain why the offender thinks this way and doesn't provide much insight into why a criminal may have committed an offence in the first place. In contrast with deterministic approaches such as biological approaches which attempt to establish the cause of criminal behaviour