Critical Criminology
crime is a label attached to behavior (usually of less powerful people in society); more powerful groups in society control labeling in order to protect their interests; conflict model explains criminalization process; crime is often a rational response t
Critical Criminology Approaches
(1) Labeling (societal reaction) Perspective; (2) Conflict Theory; (3) Feminist Viewpoint; (4) New Critical Viewpoint; (5) Radical (Marxist) Viewpoint
Labeling (societal reaction) Perspective
individuals are deviant mainly because they have been labeled as deviant by interests of the powerful; crime is a label and not an act; no act is intrinsically criminal; the act of "getting caught" begins the labeling process; age, socioeconomic status an
Labeling Perspective Theorists
Tannenbaum and Lemert
Critiques of Labeling Perspective
(1) overly deterministic and denies individual responsibility; (2) violators of societal rules aren't passive robots of societal reaction; (3) some acts are universally regarded as intrinsically wrong; (4) social reaction approach pays inadequate attentio
Primary vs. Secondary Deviance (Lemert)
Primary: initial deviant act itself
Secondary: psychological reorganization the individual experiences as a result of being caught and labeled as a deviant (can be hard to escape this label)
Moral Entrepreneurs (Becker)
agents or officials who are concerned with creating and labeling new categories of deviance in order to expand the social control function of their organization
Conflict Theory
conflict of interest among groups in which the dominant group controls the legal machinery of the state; numerous groups compete for power, influence and dominance; political struggle; no one group dominates completely
Conflict Theory Theorists
Dahrendorf, Vold, Turk
Austin Turk's Conflict Theories
individuals are different in their understandings and commitments, all of which can be logical, thus creating continual conflict; divergence leads to conflict; each conflicting party tries to promote their own views which leads to a conscious struggle ove
William Chambliss' Conflict Theories
crime is a definition of human conduct created by authorized agents in a politically organized society; criminal definitions describe behaviors that conflict with the interests of segments of society that have power to shape public policy; criminal defini
W.E.B. Du Bois' Conflict Theories
enactment of Black Codes and convict lease system by the Southern oligarchy as a means to compensate for last labor and profits as a result of Emancipation; different sentences for black and white people
Jeffrey Reiman's Conflict Theories
acts that aren't treated as crimes pose at least as great a danger to the public as those that have been criminalized; acts that are criminalized are generally those of the poor; the system often fails to treat as criminal the dangerous acts of the wealth
Feminist Theory
male approaches to criminology express male-dominated bias and exclude women from their analysis
Liberal vs. Radical/Critical Feminist Theory
Liberal: focuses on an increase in female crime as opportunities increased and affirmative action
Radical/Critical: views male aggression and control of female sexuality as the basis of patriarchy (male power and domination in society) and subordination o
Messerschmidt's Criticism
feminists stereotypical men, oppose the scientific method and overfocus on gender as its central theme
Restorative Justice
3-dimensional relationship in which victims, offenders and the community rebuild relationships and decide on responses to crimes
Restorative Justice Principles
(1) crime consists of more than violation of the criminal law and defiance of government authority; (2) crime involves disruptions in a 3-dimensional relationship of victim, community and offender; (3) primary goals should be to repair the harm and heal t
Community Justice
community policing
Richard Quinney's Radical (Marxist) Criminology Theories
the U.S. is organized to serve the interests of the dominant economic class (the capitalist ruling class); criminal law is an instrument of the state and the ruling class to maintain and perpetuate the existing social and economic order; crime control is
William Chambliss' Radical (Marxist) Criminology Theories
as the gap between the ruling class and the working class grows in capitalistic societies, penal law will expand to coerce the working class into submission; crime diverts the lower classes' attention from being exploited and directs it toward other membe
Praxis
practical critical action
Conflict vs. Radical (Marxist) Criminology
Conflict: pluralistic model (diversity of conflicting parties), places less emphasis as capitalism as only source of crime, favors objective research, doesn't reject the legal order, and advocates for reform
Radical: singularistic model (capitalistic clas
Critiques of Conflict Criminology
ignores the consensual basis of much criminal law; assumes rather than demonstrates discrimination in traditional law enforcement
Critiques of Radical (Marxist) Criminology
abandons science for ideology; it's predictable and orthodox; it finds evil in the entire American state, dramatizes/stresses issues and insults the intelligence of the general public; all of the problems of justice are collapsed into the economic interes
Theoretical Range
units of analysis and levels of explanation that may be sought in a particular theory; must describe wider origins of the deviant act, immediate origins of the deviant act, the actual act, immediate origins of the societal reaction, wide origins of the de
Issues with Theoretical Scope
attempt to explain all crime on the basis of one unitary, universal theory; a general theory of crime would have to explain too much and therefore would explain too little
Global Fallacy
the tendency to attempt to generalize relatively specific explanations to all types of crimes
Anomie Theory (Durkheim)
societal breakdown or absence of social norms and values
Routine Activities Approach
crime is more likely when 3 streams come together: (1) motivated offender, (2) attractive target and (3) absence of capable guardians
Target Hardening
making attractive targets less attractive (i.e. implementing security cameras)
5 Aspects of High-Deviance Areas
(1) density, (2) poverty, (3) mixed used, (4) transience and (5) dilapidation (waste)
Middle Class Measuring Rod (Cohen)
lower class reaction to middle class values (reaction formation); inverted value system of that of the middle class
Social Interaction/Focal Concerns (Miller)
areas or issues which command widespread and persistent attention and a high degree of emotional involvement; lower-class youth seek status and prestige within gangs, in which they exaggerate focal concerns already existing in lower-class culture (street
Techniques of Neutralization (Matza & Sykes)
rationalizations or excuses juveniles use to neutralize responsibility for deviant actions; (1) denial of responsibility, (2) denial of harm to anyone, (3) denial of harm to the victim, (4) condemning the condemners, (5) appeal to higher authority
Containment Theory (Walter Reckless)
individuals have various social controls that assist them in resisting pressures that draw them toward criminality; 2 Types of Containment: Inner - sense of self (i.e. Freud's ego), Outer - being worried about punishment of committing crimes
Social Bond Theory (Hirschi)
the stronger the social bonds the less crime will be committed
4 Types of Social Bonds
(1) Attachment; (2) Commitment; (3) Involvement; (4) Belief (in conventional norms)
Limits on Rationality
individual rationality doesn't necessarily translate to collective rationality and can translate to collective irrationality
The Normal Game
Both Prisoner A and B cooperate: each serves 1 month
A cooperates, B defects: A goes free, B serves 1 yr
A defects, B cooperates: A serves 1 yr, B goes free
Both defect: each serves 3 months
Instrumental Marxists
the ruling elite uses the legal system to its advantage, but they (rarely) will be caught
Structural Marxists
institutions/structures function in the long-term interests of capitalism rather than in the short-term interests of members of the ruling elite
Anomie Theory (Merton)
condition that occurs when discrepancies exist between societal goals and the means available for their achievement
Modes of Personality Adaptation (Merton)
different combinations of behavior in accepting or rejecting the means and goals; produced by discrepancy between goals (i.e. the American Dream) and means (or lack thereof); (1) Conformist, (2) Innovator, (3) Ritualist, (4) Retreatist, (5) Rebel
Conformist
has socially acceptable goals and means (i.e. hard work, education, delayed gratification)
Innovator
accepts goals, rejects means; criminal activities include theft and organized crime
Ritualist
accepts means, rejects goals; "mindless bureaucrat
Retreatist
rejects goals and means (i.e. drug addicts who steal)
Rebel
rejects goals and means; seeks to substitute alternative ones that would represent new societal goals and new methods of achieving them (i.e. through revolutionary activities)
General Strain Theory (Agnew)
due to negative relationships in which individuals feel that they're being mistreated; crime becomes a means of resolving emotions associated with these relationships; 3 types: (1) prevent one from achieving positively valued goals, (2) remove or threaten
Chicago School's Human Ecology (Park)
heterogeneous contact of racial and ethnic groups in the city often leads to competition for status/space, conflict
Chicago School's Natural Areas (Park)
subcommunities (i.e. ghettos) that emerge to serve specific, specialized functions
Chicago School's Concentric Zone Theory (Burgess)
plotted crime according to zones...
Zone 1: Economic Center/Central Business District
Zone 2: Zone of Transition
Zone 3: Industry/Working People's Homes
Zone 4: Better Residential Areas
Zone 5: Suburbs
Chicago School's Social Disorganization Theory (Shaw & McKay)
crime is due to social organization and social breakdown of an area; certain areas predispose occupants to crime and social disorganization
Chicago School
in 1892 the first American academic program in sociology began at the University of Chicago; names include Shaw, McKay, Sutherland, Miller and Matza
Theory of Differential Association (Sutherland)
individuals become predisposed toward criminality because of an excess of contacts that advocate criminal behavior
Looking-Glass Self (Cooley)
one's personality as a social product is the sum total of his/her internalization of the impressions he/she receives of the evaluation of others
9 Prepositions of Differential Association (Sutherland)
(1) criminal behavior is learned; (2) criminal behavior is learned via communication with others; (3) criminal behavior is primarily learned within intimate groups; (4) learning includes (a) techniques of committing the crime and (b) specific direction of
Critiques of Differential Association
fails to explain why people have the associations they have; should provide more explanation of origins of crime; difficult to prove/disprove by research since it's a general theory
Delinquency & Draft (Matza)
delinquents exist in a limbo wherein they drift back and forth between delinquency and conventionality
Developmental and Life Course (DLC)
address development of offending and antisocial behavior, risk factors of committing delinquency/crime at different ages and effects of life events on life course development
Cognitive & Moral Development (Kolhberg) - 6 Stages
Pre-Conventional Morality: (1) Obedience/Punishment Orientation, (2) Individualism/Exchange, Conventional Morality: (3) Good Interpersonal Relationships, (4) Maintaining Social Order, (5) Social Contract/Individual Rights, (6) Universal Principles
Pre-Conventional Morality: Obedience/Punishment Orientation
child assumes powerful authorities hand down a fixed set of rules that he/she must unquestionably obey
Pre-Conventional Morality: Individualism/Exchange
different, relative viewpoints; each person is free to pursue his/her individual interests; what's right for X isn't necessarily right for Y
Conventional Morality - Good Interpersonal Relationships
entering teenage years; usually see morality as more than simple deals; people should live up to the expectations of the family and community, and behave in "good" ways; good motives and interpersonal feelings such as love, empathy, trust and concern for
Conventional Morality - Maintaining Social Order
more broadly concerned with society as a whole, emphasis on obeying laws, respecting authority and performing one's duties to ensure maintenance of social order; society needs centralizing framework (i.e. laws); moral decisions from perspective of society
Conventional Morality - Social Contract/Individual Rights
begin to think about society theoretically; "prior-to-society" perspective; a good society is best conceived as a social contract into which people freely enter to work toward benefit of all; don't generally favor breaking laws because laws are social con
Conventional Morality - Universal Principles
democratic processes alone don't always result in outcomes that we intuitively sense are just; defines principles by which we achieve justice (treat the claims of all parties in an impartial manner, respect basic dignity of all people as individuals); pri
Mass Murders
killing several people all at once
Spree Murders
multiple killings but in different locations over short period of time
Serial Killers
gap between killings (shortens after each one)
Common Characteristics of Serial Killers
men; white; begin at later age than average criminals (25-35+); victimology (victim type for a particular killer); income is a poor indicator; intelligence is a limited variable; range of victims; death penalty for offenders
Serial Killers' Relationship w/ Law Enforcement
several serial killers have tried to get into law enforcement but majority of them don't pass the pysch exams; serial killers befriend police officers
Ed Gein
Butcher of Plainfield, Wisconsin; dug up women's graves and collected bones; confessed to killing two women after police found body parts in his house
Albert Fish
child rapist and cannibal; suspected of at least 5 murders; executed by electrical chair; nicknames included Gray Man, the Werewolf of Wysteria, the Brooklyn Vampire, the Moon Maniac and The Boogey Man
Ed Kemper III
The Co-ed Killer; 6'9" and 300 pounds; killed his grandparents, mother and her friend and 6 hitchhikers in Santa Cruz in the 1970s
Herb Baumeister
Ron Rosen"; wealthy (founded Sav-a-Lot chain of discount stores in 1988); diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teen; killed at least 20 people including a gay person; committed suicide before being arrested
Larry Eyler
triangle highway serial killer; convicted and sentenced to death for murder and dismemberment of 15-year old Daniel Bridges; confessed to 21 other homicides of young men and boys; died of AIDS
Gerard Shaefer
imprisoned in 1973 for murders he committed as a Martin County, Florida Sheriff's deputy; privately said he killed over 30 women and girls
Doug Gretzler (leader) & William Luther Steelman
killed at least 17 people; killed 9 people in a house and stuffed some of their bodies in a closet; different MO of killings (unlike many serial killers); convicted in 2 states, sentenced to die in Arizona; Steelman died in prison, Gretzler was executed i
Henry Lucas (leader) & Ottis Toole
Lucas had a sexual relationship with Toole's 12-year-old niece and later was charged with her murder; they killed over 100 people
Randy Kraft
The Notebook Killer" - took notes of all his killings; brilliant student as a child; military member - protested Vietnam War; told parents he was gay (ideological differences with them); tortured and killed along West coast highways; disposed of victims
Dean Corri
Handyman Corri"; well-liked in community; lured young men to his residence (had many residences) with promise of a party; got victims high with modern airplane glue; recruited accomplices to help him lure children to his residence
Dennis Nilsen (British)
wrote/dreamed about/fascinated w/ image of death; joined military; rocky relationship w/ brother; struggled w/ sexual identity; joined law enforcement - only last 1 year; alcoholic - visited bars to pick up men; drowning, suffocation and strangulation wer
Donald Harvey
Killer Nurse"; killed victims that were his patients; poisoned many of his victims; poisoned his partner and partner's family; has one of the largest gaps in killing; 34 convictions, 70+ victims
Reliving the Murder
serial killers want to relive the crime - they'll watch the news and read the newspaper (increases their ego); they think they're smarter because they haven't been caught; usually take something from the crime as a trophy
Etiological (Origins) Characteristics
animal cruelty, strained relationships with parents, some pornography consumption
MO of Killing
very few kill with a gun; strangulation is most common method of killing; victim may willingly or be forced to use alcohol/drugs before killing