Criminal Flashcards
(303 cards)
What is meant by Crime?
An offence against the public law. Usually leads to a felony
E.g. manslaughter, murder, rape, theft
What is meant by Anti Social Behaviour?
An offence that is not necessarily against the law, but causes distress + upset to others
E.g. Being noisy, Profanity, Vandalism
What is Criminal Psychology?
Criminal psychology involves applying psychological theories + methods to investigations of crime. Psychology can provide theories as to why people commit crimes, how to catch criminals (through offender profiling), the reliability of EWTs, factors affecting JDM, and techniques for treating criminals + preventing crime.
How can we apply Biological Psychology to Crime?
Certain negative behaviours, mental illnesses + abnormalities may be passed onto a child through their genes, resulting in them being more likely to commit crime
A person’s identity can be discovered through their DNA (e.g. hair samples + fingerprints)
How can we apply Cognitive Psychology to Crime?
By understanding a person’s mental processes, a psychologist is able to understand their behaviour
The memory of a person is susceptible to distortion
By perceiving a person’s perception, one may be able to predict their behaviour
How can we apply Learning Psychology to Crime?
SLT - watching criminal activity and developing behaviours through vicarious reinforcement
They may have learnt that criminal behaviour may result in positive reward (e.g. money)
Gender roles + stereotyping
How can we apply Social Psychology to Crime?
A persons attitudes and prejudices may affect their behaviour - e.g. authority
Peer pressure and conformity may affect a person’s behaviour – e.g. deinviduation and group dynamic
Societal values and culture may ultimately affect behaviour
What are Labels?
Broad terms are given/used to describe an individual, or a group of people with shared unique characteristics/interests
An inferior group has negative connotations around their labels, which are based on stereotypes, and may result in prejudice or discrimination
Once a label has been ascribed to an individual/ group of people, they may be treated according to that label.
What are Stereotypes?
An overgeneralised belief about someone or something, typically based on limited information
This can influence our attitude or behaviour towards others, which may result in prejudice and discrimination.
What is meant by Retrospective Labelling?
Using the past to explain current events/labels
E.g. if someone is labelled as a criminal, someone who’s known them since they were younger may say “he was always bad”
What is meant by Projective Labelling?
Using a label to say what will happen to that person in the future
E.g. someone may say “he will soon get into trouble with the law”
What is meant by Self Fulfilling Prophecy?
People give labels to an individual, which somewhat puts pressure on them to act in that expected way.
They then fulfill those ‘expectations’, leading to them acting in that way.
It changes their self-identity over time, which eventually makes them conform to those labels.
What was Becker’s 1963 Labelling Theory?
Refers to how someone’s view of themselves comes from the terms used to describe them; and how self identity is shaped by how someone is classified in society.
Explains that deviance is not a ‘thing’, but a label given too minorities by majorities to isolate them and show their behaviour is outside cultural norms.
This is where the negativity of labelling comes from.
What is meant by ‘Stigma’?
A negative powerful label that affects someone’s self-concept.
What is Official Bias?
Refer to the way the justice system looks more at criminal families, resulting in a higher chance of conviction for those families as they’re more focused on.
What are the Gender Differences regarding Labelling + SFP?
Girls are more likely to be supervised//controlled, and are expected to be more ‘caring and disciplined’
Boys’ behaviour is generally seen as being less disciplined, and they are more risk takers. There’s also a “boys will be boys” connotation around certain careless acts.
Therefore, boys are seen as more likely to commit criminal behaviour.
What are the evaluation points for Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?
Jahoda (1954)
Madon et al (2004)
Rosenthal + Jacobson (1968)
Evaluation of each Research Evidence
Individual Differences
Credibillity
Ethical Issues
How does Jahoda’s study Support Labelling +Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB?
The Ashanti tribe has expectations for the personality of boys, depending on the day of the week they were born.
Jahoda found Monday boys are considered quiet + easy-going, and 6.9% of violent criminals are born on Monday.
Wednesday boys are considered aggressive + short-tempered, and 22% of violent criminals are born on Wednesday.
This shows they conformed to the labels given to them.
(The study only used Ashanti (Ghanaian) boys)
How does Madon’s study Support Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB?
Those children whose parents expected them to drink more alcohol did actually drink more. They did not find a similar significant difference in outcome when one nor both parents underestimated their child’s alcohol used.
This suggests negative SFP may have greater effect on behaviour than positive ones
(Findings are mainly used for parental relationships
How does Rosenthal + Jacobson’s study Support Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB?
They found that pupils labelled ‘spurters’ (bright) by a false IQ test significantly improved in their next IQ performance, compared to those who weren’t labelled as ‘spurters’.
This supports the idea that labels/expectations can results in the prophecies coming true.
(Finding are mainly used in school environments)
What Individual Differences may affect Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB?
SFP doesn’t take into account how an individual learns the anti-social or criminal behaviour they are expected to carry out.
(an alternative theory to explain crime/ASB is SLT which does ASB/Criminal behaviour on the individual)
What are the Ethical Issues surrounding Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB?
Deterministic:
Some argue it is deterministic to explain criminal/ASB through labelling + SFP, as it suggests individuals have little free will, and are programmed to become criminals or demonstrate ASB, according to labelling.
Reductionism:
SFP fails to account for factors that may influence an individuals behaviour. It excludes the interconnected of biological and social factors.
We cannot experimentally test the effects of SPF/Labelling due to ethics - to create criminal by treating them differently would be immoral.
Why is Labelling + Self-Fulfilling Prophecy as an explanation of Criminal/ASB not Credible?
We cannot physically test whether Labelling/SFP is the sole reason for criminal/ASB, as based on beliefs
What is Self-Denying Prophecy?
Labelled individuals can go against labels related to criminal/ anti-social behaviour