Theoretical Dimensions Involving Criminal Behavior - Research Paper Example

Theoretical Dimensions Involving Criminal Behavior Crime is an international phenomenon, something that has been happening for centuries. Therehad been a lot of studies on criminality and criminal behavior. Are criminals born or made? What factors make a person a criminal? Is it something biological or psychological? For years scholars have been looking for answers to these questions, and some answers lead to other questions. Crime is a form of deviance, or the concept that describes actions or behavior that violate cultural norms or formal laws. Cultural norms are actions and practices that are well-accepted in society, while deviant actions are those that are not acceptable. All forms of crime are considered deviant. It is not acceptable for a person to break into the house of someone else and take everything. It is not acceptable for a person to randomly kill another person. Thus, deviants, most especially, criminals, need to be punished in order for them to be accepted again into society. Theories on Criminal Behavior One of the sociological theories that were applied to criminal behavior was Durkheim’s concept of anomie. Anomie is the mismatch between a person’s (or a group’s) beliefs and that of the majority. When a feeling of anomie exists, then the two groups can not exist in the presence of the other. One has to give way, usually, the smaller group adapting the norms of the larger group. When the smaller group decides to continue going against the norms, then conflict would occur. The concept of anomie was used by Robert King Merton and other sociologists to develop what they refer to as the Strain Theory. The strain theory states that social structures and norms within society may pressure citizens to commit crime. It follows Durkheim’s study of anomie and suicide. He believed that a person commits suicide due to a feeling of insignificance and alienation. Merton used Durkheim’s views to further explain deviance and criminal behavior. In order to further explain deviance, Merton explained the interaction between culture, structure and anomie. He defined culture as an "organized set of normative values governing behavior which is common to members of a designated society or group." Social structures are the "organized set of social relationships in which members of the society or group are variously implicated." Anomie, the state of normlessness, arises when there is "an acute disjunction between the cultural norms and goals and the socially structured capacities of members of the group to act in accord with them." (Merton, 1968) Merton then links all the three concepts and believes that discontinuities between culture and structure cause deviance. Source: Wikipedia.org If Merton’s theory would be applied to the social context at present, an example we can use is the common belief that crimes increase in times of economic crisis. People have certain cultural practices, and these practices are supported by the structure (government and economy). Once the structure breaks down, like in an economic crisis, the people would have to adjust their practices. Those who cannot adjust to the new structure, or those who does not want to adjust, tend to do crimes. It’s like a person who steals money from the bank so that he or she can buy food and other basic needs. Robert Agnew further explained Merton’s theory, believing that a theory should not be tied to social class or culture. He popularized the general strain theory, which focused more on an individual’s immediate social environment. He argued that an individuals actual or anticipated failure to achieve positively valued goals, actual or anticipated removal of positively valued behavior, and actual or anticipated presentation of negative behavior all result in strain. For example, if an individual fails to get the kind of attention that he or she expects from others, then that would cause that individual to feel bad about other people. These situations are more common among children, and if this kind of feeling builds up, then that individual can later on commit crime. Another theory on criminality was popularized by Edward Sutherland. His differential association theory states that criminal behavior is learned through interactions with others, be it with other criminals or non-criminals. He formulated this theory in rejection of the earlier theories on criminal behavior. He believes that if a person lives in an environment where criminal behavior is rampant, then that person is most likely to also do crime. If Sutherland’s theory is applied, then it is safe to say that the practice of putting criminals in jail, along with other criminals, would not help them change their ways. The prisoners’ interaction with other criminals can increase their criminal behavior, instead of helping them change their ways. Conclusion A lot of sociologists and scholars have spent their lives trying to explain and understand criminal behavior, in the hopes that by doing so, they can help prevent crimes. It has been a long time since the concepts of deviance and anomie were explained, and yet, crimes and criminals still exist. In the advent of technology, more variations of criminal acts have been committed. Until 30 years ago, the term “cyber-crime” was non-existent. Nowadays, however, cyber crime is well-known and is one of the most feared kinds of crimes. Cyber crimes involve copyright infringement, pornography, identity theft and espionage. However, since these kinds of crimes involve computers and networks, they are more difficult to resolve. As society progress, more crimes would be committed, and more theories on criminality will be developed by scholars. These scholars would continue studying patterns of crimes and criminal behavior, while at the same time, more and more people would be exposed to crime. Criminal behavior, like other psychological or biological problems, proves to be a very complicated topic, since the main area of study is human behavior. No one has fully understood human behavior, and thus, the scholar would have no choice but to continue theorizing on criminal behavior. The innocent citizens, on the other hand, should always be alert and on the look out for potential criminals, especially with the proliferation of information on the Internet. Baron, Stephen W. (2008) "Street Youth, Unemployment, and Crime: Is It That Simple? Using General Strain Theory to Untangle the Relationship." Canadian Journal of Criminology & Criminal Justice 50.4: 399-434.  Merton, Robert K. (1997) "On the Evolving Synthesis of Differential Association and Anomie Theory: A Perspective from the Sociology of Science." Criminology 35.3: 517-525.  Merton, Robert K. (1968) Social Theory and Social Structure. New York, NY, US: Free Press. Simons, Ronald L., & Callie Harbin Burt. (2011) "Learning to be Bad: Adverse Social Conditions, Social Schemas, and Crime." Criminology 49.2: 553-598.  Walters, Glenn D. (2007) "Correlations between the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles and World-View Rating Scale in male federal prisoners." Criminal Behaviour & Mental Health 17.3: 184-188.  Read More