psychological explanation to crime: psychodynamic Flashcards
what does a psychodynamic explanation suggest about crime
An imbalence/conflict in the Id, Ego or Superego can cause delinquent and deviant behaviour in a person.
give a brief summary of the Id, Ego and Supergo
id represents our most basic desires and impulses, the superego represents morality- punishes the ego for wrongdoing through guilt and rewarding through pride, and the ego is the understanding of societal norms, balences the needs of the Id and Superego.
what did Blackburn suggest results in crime
if the superego is somehow deficient then offending behaviour is inevitable as the Id is given free rein and not controlled.
What are the 3 types of inadequate superego
weak superego
deviant superego
over harsh superego
Outline the weak super ego and how it could lead to crime.
if same gender parent is absent during phallic stage, there is a lack of a role model with good morals for the child to identify with therefore cannot fully internalise a fully formed superego. As a result the Id is more in control, functioning on pleasure principle and offending behaviour is more likely
Outline the deviant superego
occurs when a child identifies with a criminal same sex parent, resulting in internalising criminal morals. Therefore less likely to associate guilt with wrong doing and more likely to lead to offending behaviour
outline an over harsh super ego
Result of overly harsh parenting style where transgressions are not forgiven. The child internalises a super ego crippled by guilt and anxiety, which could unconsciously drive an individual to perform criminal acts in order to satisfy the death drive and superego’s overwhelming need for punishment. In addition the ego may not be strong eneough to balence and stop bad actions.
what is the effect of an inadequate superego
primitive emotional demands become uppermost in guiding moral behaviour
How might the defence mechanism ‘denial’ be related to crime
implicated in minimislisation - criminals downplaying their actions in order to justify their crime, the ego is skewing perception in order to make consciousness feel better
how might the defence mechanism ‘displacement’ be related to crime
related to violent crime, criminal redirects anger onto a more socially acceptable source as determined by the ego. eg angry and commiting vandalism.
how might the defence mechanism sublimation relate to crime
a criminal commits an act to satisy the Id’s impulses that are deemed to be more socially acceptable, this will depend on the morality of each person. Eg engaging in violent sport to satisy the Id’s drive.
How can maternal deprivation relate to a psychodynamic explanation to crime
Failure to establish a warm continuous relationship with a mother figure can result in several damaging and irreversible consequences later in life, one of these is affectionless psychopathy. The deprivation means unable to internalise good morals during the phallic stage resulting in an underdeveloped superego, resulting in little control over antisocial behaviour.
Outline 44 thieves study as support that an absence of same sex parent could lead to increased chance of committing crime.
Bowlby found through interviews with thieves and their families that 14 of the sample showed affectionless psychopathy , 12 of this 14 had experienced prolonged separation from their mothers during infancy.
