Development of Theories of Crime

Development of Theories of Crime Past to present Francis Cullen & Robert Agnew (1999)

Biological & Psychological Theories of Crime • The criminal Man: Cesare Lombroso (1911) • Genetic drawbacks, born criminal; Positivism • Unraveling Juvenile Delinquency: Glueck & Glueck (1950) • Individual traits: hyperactivity, impulsivity, sensation seeking • Social Learning and Aggression: Albert Bandura (1973) • Aggression is reinforced and punished • Crime and Human Nature: Wilson & Herrnstein (1985) • Individual’s perception of the reward and costs of crime are influenced by individual traits and social environment • Pathways in the Life course to crime: Terrie E. Moffitt (1933) • Adolescent-limited offending, life course-persistent offending

The Chicago School: The City, Social Disorganization and Crime Juvenile Delinquency and Urban Areas: Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay (1942) • Macro-level ecology of crime drawing from Burgess’s city map (zone in transition); breakdown of the social institutions (e.g., family disruption) • Community Social Disorganization and Crime: Robert Sampson and Byron Groves (1989) • Community varied in their informal social control • Macrostructural factors caused race-based inequality in urban ghetto; concentrated disadvantages

Learning to be a Criminal: Differential Association, Subcultural, and Social Learning Theories • A Theory of Differential Association: Edwin Sutherland and Donald Cressey (1960) • Individual commits crime because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to the violation. • Techniques of Neutralization: Gresham Sykes and David Matza (1957) • Denial of responsibility, injury, victim; the condemnation of condemners; the appeal to higher loyalties • A Social Learning Theory of Crime: Ronald Akers (1994) • Beliefs, reinforcement, imitation • The Thesis of a Subculture of Violence: Marvin Wolfgang and Franco Ferracuti (1982) • The Code of the Streets: Elijah Anderson (1994)

Anomie/Strain Theories of Crime • Social Structure and Anomie: Robert Merton (1938) • Strong emphasis on the goal; weak emphasis on the legitimate norms for achievement • Delinquent Boys: The Culture of the Gang: Albert Cohen (1955) • Goal blockage; broader goals; rejection of middle class values • Delinquency and Opportunity: Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin (1960) • Criminal subcultures (theft); conflict subcultures (fighting); retreatist subcultures (drug use) • Crime and the American Dream: Richard Rosenfeld and Steven Messner (1995) • It’s not how you play the game; it’s whether you win or lose • A General Strain Theory of Crime and Delinquency: Robert Agnew (1992) - three sources of strain (prevent, remove, present)

Varieties of Control Theory • Social Bond Theory: Travis Hirschi (1969) • Why don’t they do it?; attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief • A General Theory of Crime: Michael Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi (1990) • Self-control theory; ineffective child-rearing • Crime and the Life Course: Robert Sampson and John Laub (1993) • Change, transition, life events (marriage, job) • A Power-Control Theory of Gender: John Hagan (1989) • Power relations between father and mother (patriarchal vs. egalitarian)

Integrated Theories of Crime • An Integrated Theoretical Perspective on Delinquent Behavior: Elliott, et al (1979) • End-to-end strategy; strain, learning, control • Toward an Integrated Theory of Delinquency: Terence Thornberry (1987) • Developmental process, reciprocal effects • Social Support and Crime: Francis Cullen (1994) • Common theme (I.e., social support)

Rational Choice and Routine Activities Theories • Crime and Punishment: an Economic Approach: Gary Becker (1968) • Number of offenses is a function of probabilies of arrest, severity • Crime as a Rational Choice: Derek Cornish and Ronald Clarke (1986) • Making of decisions and of choice as rationality • Routine Activity Theory: Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson (1979) • Motivated offender (given), suitable target (benefit), absence of guardian (cost)

Labeling, Interaction, and Crime: Societal Reaction and the Creation of Criminals • Crime and the Community: Tannenbaum • Dramatization of Evil • Primary and Secondary Deviance: Edwin Lemert (1952) • Reflected Appraisals, Parental Labeling, and Delinquency: Ross Matsueda (1992) • Symbolic interactionism • Crime, Shame, and Reintegration: John Braithwaite (1989)

Critical Criminology: Power, Inequality, and Crime • Criminality and Economic Conditions: William Adrian Bonger (1969) • Egoism, bourgeois crime, class character of penal law • Class, State, and Crime: Richard Quinney (1980) • Peacemaking criminology; social justice • Delinquency and the Age Structure of Society: David Greenberg (1977) • delinquency within historically structured conditions; masculine status anxiety • An Integrated Structural-Marxist Theory of Delinquency: Mark Colvin and John Pauly (1983) • Parents’ class position in labor market; coercive sanction • Social Capital and Crime: John Hagan (1994) • Social capital, cultural capital, recapitalization

Feminist Theories: Gender, Power, and Crime • Sisters in Crime: Freda Adler • Feminism and Criminology: Kathleen Daly and Meda Chesney-Lind • Masculinities and Crime: James Messerschmidt

Development of Theories of Crime