CRIM 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Reticular Formation, Child Neglect, Anti-Social Behaviour
24 Jun 2018
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Chapter 8:
Key Takeaways
• Intelligence (IQ) may an important crime correlate, indirectly influencing the likelihood of
criminal behavior by affecting school performance and interpersonal interactions.
o Low IQ (feeble mindedness) – poor school performance, negative labelling – behavioural
problems, future employment problems – delinquency and crime
• Psychoanalytic theories are based of Freud’s psychoanalysis. They propose the imbalances in
personality components (i.e. ego, superego) produce personality traits conductive to criminal
behaviour.
• Psychological learning theories argue that behaviour is shaped through a trial and error process
(conditioning) through which people learn what is sociably acceptable and what is not. People are
more likely to perpetrate crimes if this process leads to believe that illegal behaviours are
acceptable or is the possess traits that makes it hard to learn.
• Some theories have tried to create integrated explanations of criminal behaviour. Some remain
within the realm of psychology and, others, incorporate other perspectives.
• Classical conditioning
o Eysenck theory of criminal personality
o Personality traits:
§ Extraversion
• Outgoing, sociable, action-oriented; cortical arousal
§ Neuroticism
• Emotionally unstable, and overreact to minor problems
§ Psychoticism
• Aggressive, lack empathy, and are tough minded
o People high in E, N, and P are more likely to become criminals, as they are less receptive
to conditioning
• Operant conditioning
o Skinner (1953)
o Organism “operates” on it environment, learning what works (and what doesn’t work)
through reward and punishment
§ Jeffery (1976)
• ↑ Reward + ↓ likelihood of punishment = ↑ chances of crime
§ Wilson & Hernstein (1985)
• Behaviour is determined by its consequences.
• Biological, constitutional, and personality factors affect the capacity of
individuals to perceive and respond to punishment
• Frustration-aggression
o Dollard, Miller, Doob, Mower, and Sears (1939)
§ Earlier behaviourist approaches + “pleasure principle” in Freudian
psychoanalysis
§ No achieving goals – aggression – crime
§ Crime committed in pursuit of pleasurable stimuli. If pleasurable stimuli/outcome
is achieved, the behaviour is likely to be repeated in the future
• Social cognitivism
o Albert Bandura
§ Bobo Doll experiment. Children physically assaulted toy clown after observing
adults do it
Document Summary
Some remain within the realm of psychology and, others, incorporate other perspectives: classical conditioning, eysenck theory of criminal personality, personality traits: Extraversion: outgoing, sociable, action-oriented; cortical arousal. Neuroticism: emotionally unstable, and overreact to minor problems. Jeffery (1976: reward + likelihood of punishment = chances of crime. Wilson & hernstein (1985: behaviour is determined by its consequences, biological, constitutional, and personality factors affect the capacity of individuals to perceive and respond to punishment, frustration-aggression, dollard, miller, doob, mower, and sears (1939) Earlier behaviourist approaches + pleasure principle in freudian psychoanalysis. No achieving goals aggression crime. Crime committed in pursuit of pleasurable stimuli. If pleasurable stimuli/outcome is achieved, the behaviour is likely to be repeated in the future: social cognitivism, albert bandura. Children physically assaulted toy clown after observing adults do it. Observational or vicarious learning (don"t have to engage in the behaviour in order to learn) Watch others perform the behaviour and see whether behaviour is rewarded or punished.
