Psychology and Crime

1. Psychology and Crime • Psychoanalytic Theory/Psychoanalysis • Cognitive Psychology • Principles of Learning • Personality and Crime • IQ/Intelligence and Crime

2. Psychoanalytic Theory ▪ Sigmund Freud ▪ 1856–1939 ▪ Psychic Determinism • A CIGAR IS NEVER JUST A CIGAR

3. Freudian Elements of Personality ▪ Conscious vs. Unconscious Mind ▪ Id: “If it feels good, do it!” ▪ Superego: conscience—“Stealing is wrong.” ▪ Ego: psychological thermostat that regulates the wishes of the id with the social restrictions of the superego

4. Defense Mechanisms ▪ Used to reduce anxiety • REPRESSION • RATIONALIZATION • DENIAL • PROJECTION

5. Freudian Explanations of Delinquency ▪ Overactive Id ▪ Delinquent Superego ▪ Delinquent Ego • Crimes with “special meaning” • Translating psychoanalysis into rehabilitation? • Works for articulate adult neurotics who can talk out their problems…

6. Policy Implications of Freudian Theory ▪ Drawbacks ▪ Almost impossible to test empirically (Cannot be directly observed and measured) ▪ Still maintains a place in psychology of criminal behavior • Many concepts from Freud used in modern theory • LOW SELF CONTROL • PRO-CRIMINAL ATTITUDES

7. Principles of Learning ▪ Three types of learning ▪ Classical conditioning ▪ Operant conditioning ▪ Observational (vicarious) learning

8. Classical Conditioning

9. How is classical conditioning related to crime? • As a cause of crime? Not likely • Use as a foundation for rehabilitation • Aversion Therapy

10. Operant Conditioning ▪ Positive reinforcement: increases the target behavior by rewarding the individual ▪ Negative reinforcement: increases the target behavior by removing an unpleasant stimulus ▪ Punishment: reduces the odds of the target behavior being repeated

11. Principles of Learning ▪ Delinquency tied to parents’ failure to effectively condition their children away from bad behavior • Inconsistent and harsh punishment • Glueck and Glueck study from 1950s

12. Principles of Learning GERALD PATTERSON AND FRIENDS

13. Do parents matter that much? • Patterson and others • Effective parenting (monitoring, punishing, and reinforcing behavior)non-deliquent • Judith Rich Harris • Argues that parental behaviors may have few effects on the child’s long-term development. • Instead, parenting is related to kids behavior because troublesome kids evoke angry parenting. • How would you tell who is correct?

14. How to Train Your Parent

15. Observational Learning ▪ Albert Bandura (Bobo doll experiments): most human learning is not based on trial and error (operant conditioning). ▪ Effects on criminal behaviors are difficult to determine.

16. Media and Crime ▪ Does media (TV and movies) influence aggression, violence, and criminal behavior? ▪ Conducive to role modeling ▪ Perpetrators not punished ▪ Targets of violence show little pain ▪ Few long-term negative consequences • Some evidence (but still debate)—reducing exposure may reduce aggression

17. Policy Implications of Operant Conditioning • Manipulate Reward Structure of Offenders • Token Economy • Contract Contingencies • Parent Management Training • Reinforcement works better than punishment! • Immediate reinforcement works best (or you end up owning a yellow raft).

18. The Yellow Raft The “Contingency” Contract The Child Reaction after Failing to Meet Quota

19. ▪ Humans’ ability to think creates unique learning processes ▪ Cognitions (like behaviors) can be learned, and humans can use cognition to self-reinforce ▪ Focus on: ▪ Cognitive structure (how people think) ▪ Cognitive content (what people think) Cognitive Psychology

20. Cognitive Structure ▪ Kohlberg's theory of moral reasoning: humans advance through predictable stages of moral reasoning ▪ Self-control ▪ Ability to empathize ▪ Ability to anticipate consequences ▪ Ability to control anger

21. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development(1 of 2) ▪ Stage 1 ▪ Right is blindly obeying those with power and authority. ▪ Emphasis is on avoiding punishment. ▪ Interests of others are not considered. ▪ Stage 2 ▪ Right is furthering one’s own interests. ▪ Interests of others are important only as a way to satisfy self-interests. ▪ Stage 3 ▪ Moral reasoning is motivated by loyalties to others and a desire to live up to other’s standards.

22. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development (2 of 2) ▪ Stage 4 ▪ Right is following the rules of society and maintaining important social institutions (e.g., family, community). ▪ Stage 5 ▪ Moral decisions are made by weighing individual rights against legal principles and the common good. ▪ Stage 6 ▪ Moral decisions are based on universal principles (e.g., human dignity, desire for justice). ▪ Principles are considered across different contexts and are independent of the law.

23. Cognitive Content ▪ Rationalizations or denials that support criminal behavior ▪ For example, a criminal thinks, “I’m not really hurting anyone.” • Extremely common for sex offenders ▪ Criminals are more likely to express such thoughts • Sociologists are often skeptical (time-ordering) • Psychologists: NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT ▪

24. Policy Implications of Cognitive Psychology ▪ Cognitive theory translates easily into practice. • Cognitive skills programs teach offenders cognitive skills like moral reasoning, anger management, or self-control. • Cognitive restructuring attempts to change the content of an individual’s thoughts. ▪ Combination cognitive-behavioral have track record of success

26. Theory in Action ▪ Multisystematic therapy (MST) ▪ Creator Scott Henggeler and associates ▪ Example of “Cognitive-Behavioral” Approach ▪ Observe family, design specific intervention ▪ Targets many areas for change (parenting, school/peer systems, home environment…)

27. Personality and Crime ▪ Crime and delinquency related to the presence of some personality trait ▪ Personality trait: a characteristic of an individual that is stable over time and across different social circumstances ▪ Personality: the sum of personality traits that define a person

28. Personality Traits and Crime (2 of 3) ▪ Personality dimensions in the MPQ ▪ Constraint ▪ Traditionalism ▪ Harm avoidance ▪ Control ▪ Negative emotionality ▪ Aggression ▪ Alienation ▪ Stress reaction

29. Personality Traits and Crime (1 of 3) ▪ A number of related traits combine to form super factors ▪ Several different models ▪ Five-factor model ▪ Tellegen’s personality model ▪ Recent studies use the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ)

30. Personality Traits and Crime (3 of 3) ▪ Personality dimensions in the MPQ ▪ Positive emotionality ▪ Achievement ▪ Social potency ▪ Well-being ▪ Social closeness

31. Criminal Personality:The Psychopath ▪ A distinct “criminal personality” ▪ One of the oldest concepts in criminology • “MORAL INSANITY”

32. Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) from DSM-IV 1. Disregard for the rights of others. At least three of the following: behaves in a way that is grounds for arrest, deceitful and manipulative, impulsive, aggressive, irresponsible, lack of remorse 2. Age 18 or older 3. A history of child conduct disorder 4. Antisocial behavior not a product of schizophrenic episode

33. “Psychopath” is narrower concept • Hervey Cleckley’s (1957) The Mask of Sanity • Key features: Manipulative, Superficial charm, Above-average intelligence, Absence of psychotic symptoms, Absence of anxiety, Lack of remorse, Failure to learn from experience, Egocentric, Lack of emotional depth • Other Characteristics: Trivial Sex life, Unreliable, Failure to follow a life plan, Untruthful, Suicide attempts rarely genuine, Impulsive, Antisocial behavior

34. HARE PCL • The Psychopathy Checklist • Interview • Measures different aspects of psychopathy (each scored on a 0-2 scale) • Has produced very interesting studies (difference between psychopath and non-psychopath inmates)

35. Policy Implications of Personality Theory ▪ Personality traits consistently predict delinquency and crime. ▪ Criticisms: • Personality traits are often portrayed as impossible to change (See, Psychopathy) • What causes personality traits?

36. Intelligence and Crime ▪ “Feeblemindedness” was once thought to be a cause of crime. ▪ What exactly is IQ and how does it relate to criminal behavior?

37. A Brief History of Intelligence Testing ▪ Binet started out like his peers: Measuring people’s skull size • Not much difference—worried about bias in the tests • Developed a “hodgepodge” of tests measure identify learning disabled children • Not meant to be a measuring device for intelligence in “normal” students • Translated to English, used to identify “morons” and “low grade defectives” as part of eugenics

38. IQ and Crime ▪ There is an IQ gap of 8–10 points between criminals and noncriminals, even when statistically controlled for race and social class. ▪ IQ is not a very strong indicator of criminal behavior. • But, it does consistently predict

39. IQ and Crime ▪ Travis Hirschi and Michael Hindelang ▪ The Bell Curve ▪Direct effect ▪ Most criminologists find evidence of indirect effects IQ  School, Peers, etc.  Crime

40. Conclusion ▪ Psychological theories  the individual ▪ Modern Theory • LEARNING • COGNITION and IQ • PERSONALITY ▪ Many psychological theories translate well into treatment programs.