CRIM 2650 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Differential Association, Juvenile Delinquency, Social Control Theory
Document Summary
Differential association theory assumes that criminals learn more pro- criminal definitions. Both neutralization theory and cultural deviance theory aims to explain juvenile delinquency. Examines how the structure of a particular society/neighbourhood determines the criminal culture of a society/neighbourhood. Value systems in neighbourhoods may privilege, or deter crime. Social structure theories were inadequate to explain why people engage in crime, and desist from crime. They center their theory on the social and psychological processes that underlie socialization. Social learning operates when it comes to learning about the techniques and attitudes when it comes to engaging in criminal behaviour. Cultural deviance theory fails to account for juvenile delinquent behaviour. Young offenders draw a line of distinction between those they can victimize and those they cannot victimize. They do not indiscriminately victimize, therefore they have a sense of what is moraly appropriate or morally wrong. No neighbourhood is completely delinquent, all neighbourhoods have some law- abiding role models.
