Cognitive Explanations Of Offending

Question 1

What are the two diff explanations

Answer 1

Moral reasoning
Cognitive distortions

Question 2

What does moral reasoning mean?

Answer 2

The process by which an individual draws upon their own value system to determine whether an action is right or wrong

Question 3

Kohlberg (1973) proposed that the quality of people’s judgements of right and wrong can be summarised by …

Answer 3

A stage theory of moral development

Question 4

What did kohlberg base his stages on

Answer 4

People’s responses to moral dilemmas

Question 5

What are the three levels of moral reasoning

Answer 5

1. Pre-conventional
2. Conventional
3. Post-conventional

Question 6

Pre-conventional individuals show concern for ?

Answer 6

Self interest
External rewards and punishments

Question 7

How do conventional individuals act

Answer 7

Do what is expected of them by others

Question 8

How do post conventional individuals act

Answer 8

They develop more autonomous decision making based on principles of right and justice

Question 9

What level of moral reasoning are offenders more likely to be classified at

Answer 9

Pre-conventional level

Question 10

What does it mean if someone’s moral reasoning is classified at pre-conventional (like what are they oriented about)

Answer 10

• punishment oriented (reasoning whether or not the act will lead to punishment)
• and reward oriented (reasoning based on what can be gained)

Question 11

What age does pre-con reasoning usually last from

Answer 11

3-7 years
Therefore teens / adults who still reason in this way may commit crime if they can get away with it and or gain rewards (money, respect)

Question 12

Pro of moral reasoning (palmer and Hollin comparing reasoning between offenders)

Answer 12

Palmer and hollin (1998) compared moral reasoning between 210 female non-offenders, 122 male non-offenders and 126 convicted offenders using 11 moral dilemmas such as not taking things that belong to others
The offenders showed less mature moral reasoning than the non offenders

Question 13

Con of moral reasoning (about how it may depend on the type of offence? What was found out about it)

Answer 13

Thornton & reid (1982) found that individuals who committed crimes for financial gain e.g. robbery, were More likely to show pre-conventional reasoning than those convicted of impulsive crimes (e.g. assault), where no reasoning was evident

Question 14

What’s the other explanation instead of moral reasoning

Answer 14

Cognitive distortions

Question 15

What are cognitive distortions

Answer 15

They are faulty & irrational ways of thinking that make people perceive themselves, other people & the world inaccurately and often negatively

Question 16

Hostile attribution bias is the tendency to judge what

Answer 16

Ambiguous situations or the actions of others as aggressive / threatening when in reality they are not

Question 17

When offenders misread non-aggressive cues what may be triggered

Answer 17

A disproportionate, often violent, response

Question 18

Hostile attribution bias can lead to the offender blaming who and why

Answer 18

The victim for having started it

Question 19

What’s minimalisation

Answer 19

When a criminal believes that their crime was trivial and downplays the impact of their crime on their victims

Question 20

Why feeling do people use minimalisation to avoid

Answer 20

Guilt

Question 21

How can offenders try downplay their offences

Answer 21

Using euphemisms for their offences e.g. a burglar might say they have been doing a job

Question 22

What offenders are prone to minimalisation

Answer 22

Sex

Question 23

Why is cognitive distortions a good theory (like how has the understanding of its nature proven beneficial)

Answer 23

• helped in treatment of criminal behaviour
  The dominant approach in the rehab of sex offenders is cognitive behavioural therapy.

Question 24

Why is cognitive behavioural therapy so effective

Answer 24

Encourages offenders to face up to what they’ve done and establish a less distorted view of their actions. A reduced incidence of cognitive distortions in therapy is highly correlated with a reduced risk of offending

Question 25

Cons of cognitive distortions

Answer 25

• whilst it explains thinking it cannot account for the source of these thoughts (nature / nurture)
• these cannot be observed or measured so the cognitive explanation is not scientific