SOCI 2520 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Differential Association, Reinforcement, Labeling Theory
15 Nov 2016
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Basic premise: criminality is a function of socialization, everyone has the potential to be criminal, we need to examine the agents of socialization. Deviance is rationalized by techniques of neutralization: denial of responsibility, denial of injury, denial of the victim, condemnation of the condemners, appealing to higher loyalties. Criminal attitudes and skills are learned just like any other behavior: through interaction, with significant others. Significant others give definitions favorable or unfavorable to law-breaking. Neighborhoods vary re definitions favorable/unfavorable to breaking the law. Associations vary in priority, frequency, duration and intensity. Differential reinforcement theory akers and burgess (1966) Combines differential association theory with operant conditioning. Is reinforced by rewards or absence of punishment (negative reinforcement). Is weakened by punishment (negative stimuli) and loss of reward. Main influence groups that control reinforcement and punishment. Akers" resear(cid:272)h of tee(cid:374) drug (cid:271)eha(cid:448)ior: kids who believe they will be rewarded for deviance by those they respect are most likely to be deviant.
