Psychological Explanations Of Offending Behaviour - Cognitive

Question 1

What is Kohlberg’s theory

Answer 1

a stage theory of moral development in which some individuals do not progress past certain levels.

Question 2

The higher the stage of moral development ______

Answer 2

the more sophisticated the moral reasoning.

Question 3

What did Kohlberg base his theory off of

Answer 3

people’s responses to a series of moral dilemmas, such as the Heinz dilemma.

Question 4

What did Kohlberg claim

Answer 4

that crimes may be committed by individuals who have a lower level of moral reasoning than non-criminals.

Question 5

What is level 1, stage 1 of kohlbergs theory?

Answer 5

obedience and punishment. If punishment is not definite, a crime is likely to be committed.

Question 6

What is level 1, stage 2 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 6

instrumental orientation or personal gain. Meaning that if the potential gains are good then the crime is more likely to occur.

Question 7

what is level 1 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 7

Pre-morality

Question 8

What is level 2 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 8

Conventional morality

Question 9

What is level 2, stage 3 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 9

‘good boy/girl’ orientation. If the closest people are criminals then the crime is more likely to occur.

Question 10

What is level 2, stage 4 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 10

law and order orientation. If the act is ilegal then someone is less likely to commit it.

Question 11

What is level 3 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 11

Post-conventional morality

Question 12

What is stage 3, level 5 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 12

social contract legalistic orientation and is when the offender commits a crime in a circumstance where they feel the law should not apply.

Question 13

What is level 3, stage 6 of kohlbergs theory

Answer 13

universal ethical principles orientation. The individual has their own moral codee and may commit a crime if they feel the law is unjust.

Question 14

Evaluation for kohlbergs theory

Answer 14

1. Kohlbergs study that supports
2. Proved useful in treatment for criminal behaviour
3. Minimisation may be more relevant to certain types of crime
4. It has beta bias

Question 15

Evaluation: What was kohlbergs study that supports his theory

Answer 15

Kohlberg conducted a study that supported his theory, where he found that 10% of adults reach the post-conventional level, so the most common level is the conventional level of moral reasoning. Adults at the conventional level of moral development who break the law would feel that their behaviour was justified because it helps maintain relationships or society. Therefore this supports kolhbergs theory.

Question 16

Evaluation: how did cognitive distortions prove useful in treating criminal behaviour.

Answer 16

The theory of cognitive distortions has proved useful in treating criminal behaviour. Through CBT, offenders can be encouraged to confront the seriousness of their actions, and research has found that successfully overcoming denial is correlated with lower rates of re-offending. This gives the cognitive explanation a useful real-world application.

Question 17

Evaluation: how is Minimisation more relevant to certain types of crimes

Answer 17

Minimisation may be more relevant to certain types of crimes. There is more evidence for minimisation in some criminal populations than others. For example, the relationship between minimisation and sex offence is strong but is weaker between that of tax evasion. This suggests that the influence of minimisation on offending behaviour may depend upon the type of crime committed.

Question 18

Evaluation: What is a limitation of kohlbergs research

Answer 18

A limitation of Kohlberg’s theory is that the research done by Kohlberg has beta bias and candy considered androcentric the sample he used consisted of men and boys in the overlooked female Moira reasoning and just generalised male findings on to them. When women were finally tested using his frame work, they tend did to school lower implying that woman inferior. Therefore this theory is limited to boys and men offending behaviour. This is likely dure to the time the theory was created (1960s), when women were less likely to commit crimes and be convicted. This means that the findings also lacks temporal validity.

Question 19

What is hostile attribution bias

Answer 19

When a person automatically attributes malicious intentions to another

Question 20

What is moral reasoning

Answer 20

Thinking in a consistent and logical way about right and wrong, with reference to socially agreed principles