CRCJ 1000 Lecture 9: Individual-Focused Crime Theories- Psychological Theories and Crime Choice Theories – Lecture 9
10 Nov 2016
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Individual-Focused Crime Theories: Psychological Theories and Crime Choice Theories – Lecture 9
2016-11-10
Individually focused but are mostly interested in the process of nature
Psychological Crime Theories
1. Psychoanalytic theory
2. Trait-based theories
3. Psychological Learning theories
a. Classical conditioning
b. Operant conditioning
c. Frustration-Aggression theory
d. Social learning theory
Psychoanalytics
- Theories of the sub-conscious - driving element of who we are (through all actions of everyday life) – we manage
unconscious desires
- At the foundation of the Freudian psychoanalytic perspective is the assumption that the human personality is
driven by unconscious forces, many of them related to sexual desires.
o Id
o Superego
o Ego
- Freudian approach, and psychoanalytics in general, are/is not science. It is a paradigm.
Freudian Psychoanalytics
Freud said that personality has three components: the id, the ego, and the superego.
- The id is the instinctual, impulsive part of our personality, that contains out hidden urges, desires, and wishes
(ex. The subconscious). It acts in accordance with the pleasue piciple, which demands instant gratification
for our hidden urges, desires and wishes. – a little bit nature – mostly nurture (how we have been conditioned)
- The superego develops as we mature, and is our moral compass, or conscience. – system of morality –
right/wrong – understand the moral principles of our society
- The ego interfaces with reality, and regulates the demands of the id and superego. The ego operates in
accordance with the ealit piciple attepts the dela gatifiatio ad opeate i soiall aeptale
manner – rational calculation that tries to negotiate the id and superego (desires vs morals)
o Doest disout the old of atue – at poe/dispoe
Freudian Criminology – Not how we should as a society implement policy to stop things – does offer useful tool for
understanding why people have done things (clinical tool)
Freudian criminologist attribute criminality to problems with:
1. Lack of superego development: child-eaig poo paetig, eal hildhood deelopet. Lak of oal
opass. – can cause people not to care about the moral sanctity of others – often located in early childhood
(development)
2. Overactive superego: Individuals commit crimes in order to be punished (to lessen feelings of guilt). Referred to
as euoti offedes. Also ko as stupid ies. – people who are doing deviant things but their superego
is telling them that it is wrong (Ex. Crimes where people leave clues) – sub-conscious superego because they feel
guilty
3. Weak ego: Impulsive (pleasure-seeking or hedonistic) offenders have a weak ego, which fails to control
behaviour and regulate the demands of the id. Especially focused on sex crimes. – lack of development in the
reality principle and negotiating desires vs morals
Pschoaaltics ad seual deviace
- Patterned sex crimes/violence – escalating (2 cases of murder)
- Sexual disorders are a result of suppressed, latent, and unconscious desires; and the inability of the person to
effectively deal with their desires – Freudian: ist just a pshopath – has all kinds of sexual deviance that are
down to socialization – felt a eleet of guilt ad ated to get aught stupid ie
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- 90% of the time – caring individual – disorder that can be treatable
- Re. Russel William case
o Argument: not a heartless psychopath but possesses a sexual disorder.
o Preoccupation with sexual transgressions.
o Tophies as epessio of suppessed desie.
o Desire to get caught.
o Possible treatment: sexual disorders can be treated and managed.
Trait-based personality theories
- Also clinical
- Less subjective – been developed to isolate traits that are connected to forms of deviance
- Trait-based personality theories differ from psychoanalytics approach in that abnormal behaviour is said to stem
from abnormal or criminal personality traits rather than unconscious causes.
- Criminology theory has focussed on traits like impulsiveness, aggressiveness, extroversion, neuroticism,
psychoticism, thrill seeking, hostility, emotional volatility.
- Hervey Cleckly (1941) – Mask of “ait
- Psychopath vs psychotics
o Ex. Magnotta trial
Psychometrics
- Psychopaths are highly calculated individuals (actors) – dot hae epath/eose – they rationally know what
remorse is – rational actors and put on a mask of sanity
- Psychopathic checklists (estimated that 1% of population = psychopaths)
- Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), 556-item test consisting of 10 clinical scales, are said to
show relationship between measures of psychopathic deviance, schizophrenia and hypomania (unproductive
hyperactivity) and later delinquency – different scales, test for certain traits that denote forms of risk
- Numerous other trait-based tools for:
o Custody Rating Scales (Canadian prison)
o Anti-social behaviours
o ADHD
o Susceptibility to drugs and gang crime
o Juvenile delinquency
- Trait-based diagnostics are often check-list style clinical assessments
o Very popular tool
o Hare: Many psychopaths are not criminals – highly violent people – do not create causation – scoring
high on the checklist does not mean they will commit a crime – but those that have committed a crime
do usually score high on the checklist = no causation
o Psychopaths vs psychosis
▪ Ex. Magnotta case – was he NCR or was he a cunning actor – sick vs rational (checklist played a
prominent role in trial) – dueling expertise
- Challenge for this research is always: what is the correlation/causation of traits and/to crime? (Hare argues that
psychopathy is etiological in terms of anti-social behaviours, through those behaviours may not be criminalized).
- Often the research shows patterns and trends. But limited on personal applications. Always exceptions.
Predictive values are there, but need to be exercised carefully. High-risk i usig the pe-eptiel
- Agreement on core features (lack of empathy), but often contradictory traits – Ex. Some measures of
psychopathy privilege extrovert behaviours while others privilege introverts.
- Some checklist comprises many activities that are common and normal, particularly for young people: (breaking
rules, taking risk, drinking, not respecting parents and authorities)
‘ussel Willia ad the Mask of “ait – trait based theory
- Highly calculated – understanding discipline (military) – but are hiding the ulterior side – most likely to score
high on psychopathic checklist – produce and outcome that someone is at a high likelihood of reoffending –
geeall eas that teatet at e ehabilitative
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Individual-focused crime theories: psychological theories and crime choice theories lecture 9. Individually focused but are mostly interested in the process of nature. Psychological crime theories: psychoanalytic theory, trait-based theories, psychological learning theories. 2016-11-10: classical conditioning, operant conditioning, frustration-aggression theory, social learning theory. Theories of the sub-conscious - driving element of who we are (through all actions of everyday life) we manage unconscious desires. At the foundation of the freudian psychoanalytic perspective is the assumption that the human personality is driven by unconscious forces, many of them related to sexual desires. Freudian approach, and psychoanalytics in general, are/is not science. Freud said that personality has three components: the id, the ego, and the superego. The id is the instinctual, impulsive part of our personality, that contains out hidden urges, desires, and wishes (ex. It acts in accordance with (cid:862)the pleasu(cid:396)e p(cid:396)i(cid:374)ciple,(cid:863) which demands instant gratification for our hidden urges, desires and wishes.
