Chapt 2

Question 1

What is the consensus view of crime?

Answer 1

The majority of citizens in a society share common ideals and work toward a common good. Crimes are acts that are outlawed because they conflict with the rules of the majority and are harmful to society.

(p. 30)

Question 2

What is the conflict view of crime?

Answer 2

The law is controlled by the rich and powerful, who shape its content to ensure their continued economic domination of society. The criminal justice system is an instrument of social and economic repression.

(p. 30)

Question 3

What is the interactionist view of crime?

Answer 3

Criminal law reflects the values of people who use their social and political power to shape the legal system.

(p. 30)

Question 4

Who are moral entrepreneurs?

Answer 4

People who wage moral crusades to control criminal law so that it reflects their own personal values.

(p. 30)

Question 5

What is crime?

Answer 5

A violation of societal rules of behavior as interpreted and expressed by a criminal legal code created by people holding social and political power. Individuals who violate these rules are subject to sanctions by state authority, social stigma, and loss of status.

(p. 31)

Question 6

What are Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)?

Answer 6

The FBI’s yearly publication of where, when, and how much serious crime occurred in the prior year.

(p. 31)

Question 7

What are official crime statistics?

Answer 7

Compiled by the FBI in its Uniform Crime Reports, these are a tally of serious crimes reported to police agencies each year.

(p. 31)

Question 8

What are Part I crimes?

Answer 8

The eight crimes for which, because of their seriousness and frequency, the FBI reports the incidence in its annual Uniform Crime Reports. The Part I crimes are murder, forcible rape, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, arson, larceny, and motor vehicle theft.

(p. 31)

Question 9

What is murder and nonnegligent manslaughter?

Answer 9

The willful (nonnegligent) killing of one human being by another.

(p. 31)

Question 10

What is forcible rape under common law?

Answer 10

The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.

(p. 31)

Question 11

What is the FBI’s definition of rape?

Answer 11

The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.

(p. 31)

Question 12

What is robbery?

Answer 12

The taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.

(p. 32)

Question 13

What is aggravated assault?

Answer 13

An unlawful attack by one person upon another, accompanied by the use of a weapon, for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury.

(p. 32)

Question 14

What is burglary?

Answer 14

The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft.

(p. 32)

Question 15

What is larceny?

Answer 15

The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another.

(p. 32)

Question 16

What is motor vehicle theft?

Answer 16

The theft of a motor vehicle.

(p. 32)

Question 17

What is arson?

Answer 17

Any willful or malicious burning or attempting to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, or personal property of another.

(p. 32)

Question 18

What are Part II crimes?

Answer 18

All other crimes except the eight Part I crimes. The FBI records all arrests made for Part II crimes, including race, gender, and age information.

(p. 32)

Question 19

What is the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)?

Answer 19

A program that requires local police agencies to provide a brief account of each incident and arrest within 22 crime patterns, including incident, victim, and offender information.

(p. 33)

Question 20

What is the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)?

Answer 20

The ongoing victimization study conducted jointly by the Justice Department and the US Census Bureau that surveys victims about their experiences with law violation.

(p. 33)

Question 21

What is self-report survey

Answer 21

The research approach that requires subjects to reveal their own participation
in delinquent or criminal acts. (p. 34)

Question 22

What is racial profiling

Answer 22

The practice of police targeting minority groups because of a belief that they
are more likely to be engaged in criminal activity. (p. 41)

Question 23

racial threat hypothesis

Answer 23

The view that the percentage of minorities in the population shapes the
level of police activity. (p. 41)

Question 24

What is relative deprivation

Answer 24

The view that extreme social and economic differences among people
living in the same community exacerbate criminal activity. (p. 41)

Question 25

What is a chronic offender

Answer 25

A delinquent offender who is arrested five or more times before he or she is 18 and who stands a good chance of becoming an adult criminal; these offenders are responsible for more than half of all serious crimes. (p. 42)

Question 26

Broken window hypothesis

Answer 26

The view that deteriorated communities serve as a magnet for criminals and attract criminal activity. (p. 43)

Question 27

What is rational choice theory

Answer 27

People will engage in delinquent and criminal behavior after weighing the consequences and benefits of their actions. Delinquent behavior is a rational choice made by a motivated offender who perceives the chances of gain as outweighing any perceived punishment or loss.

Question 28

What is general deterrence

Answer 28

The theory that crime rates are influenced and controlled by the threat of criminal punishment. If people fear being apprehended and punished, they will not risk breaking the law

Question 29

What is biosocial theory

Answer 29

Human behavior is a function of the interaction of biochemical, neurological, and genetic factors with environmental stimuli. (behaviors is caused by biological things)

Question 30

conduct disorder (CD)

Answer 30

A pattern of repetitive behavior in which the rights of others or social norms are violated

Question 31

psychodynamic view

Answer 31

Criminals are driven by unconscious thought patterns, developed in early childhood, that control behaviors over the life course.

Question 32

bipolar disorder

Answer 32

A psychological condition marked by mood swings between periods of wild elation and deep depression

Question 33

social learning theory

Answer 33

Behavior patterns are modeled and learned in interactions with others

Question 34

antisocial (sociopathic, psychopathic) personality

Answer 34

Individuals who are always in trouble and who do not learn from either experience or punishment. They are loners who are emotionally immature, and lack responsibility, judgment, and empathy.

Question 35

social structure theory

Answer 35

A person’s position in the social structure controls his or her behavior. In their environment, whereas those in the highest tier enjoy social and economic advantages that insulate them from crime-producing forces.

Question 36

culture of poverty

Answer 36

The crushing lifestyle of slum areas produces a culture of poverty, passed from one generation to the next, marked by apathy, cynicism, feelings of helplessness, and mistrust of social institutions, such as schools, government agencies, and the police.

Question 37

Subculture

Answer 37

A substratum of society that maintains a unique set of values and beliefs

Question 38

cultural transmission

Answer 38

The passing of cultural values from one generation to the next.

Question 39

social process theory

Answer 39

An individual’s behavior is shaped by interactions with key social institutions—family, school, peer group, and the like.

Question 40

social bonds

Answer 40

The ties people have to family, peers, social institutions, and significant others

Question 41

stigmatize

Answer 41

To characterize someone as disgraceful in order to make them feel shameful and ruin their reputation

Question 42

social conflict theory

Answer 42

Human behavior is shaped by interpersonal conflict, and those who maintain social power use it to further their own interests

Question 43

state (organized) crime

Answer 43

Criminal acts committed by state officials within the context of their jobs as government representatives.

Question 44

developmental theory

Answer 44

Social interactions that are developed over the life course shape behavior. Some interactions, such as involvement with deviant peers, whereas others, such as marriage and military service, may help people desist from crime.

Question 45

life course theory

Answer 45

Theory that focuses on changes in criminality over the life course brought about by shifts in experience and life events.

Question 46

cumulative disadvantage

Answer 46

The tendency of prior social problems to produce future ones that accumulate success

Question 47

propensity theory

Answer 47

The view that a stable unchanging feature, characteristic, property, or condition, such as defective intelligence or impulsive personality, makes some people crime prone

Question 48

latent trait

Answer 48

A hidden trait that guides human behavior.

Question 49

trajectory theory

Answer 49

The view that there are multiple independent paths to a criminal career and that there are different types and classes of offenders.