psychological explanations to crime: differential association Flashcards
Sutherland suggested that crime is not something that is inherited but is what
something that is learned. An individual learns techniques, attitudes ect through association and interactions with pro crime individuals.
what does differential association mean
refers to the number of connections an individual has with a criminal
where will the largest social influence come from
intimate personal groups that an individual values + spends most time with eg. family and friends.
what kind of correlation is there between the number of associations with a criminal and the likelihood of someone becoming a criminal
positive
Does sutherland suggest that an individual is more likely to become a criminal based on their ethnic background or class
no, criminal behaviour is not exclusive to people who are deprived or undereducated, if a person is exposed to behaviour seen as acceptable by a group eg. fraud then they are likely to commit the crime.
how did sutherland believe we could mathmatically predict how likely it is an individual will commit a crime
we need to know the frequency, intensity and duration of exposure to deviant and non deviant norms.
based on attitudes, what will determine if an individual commits a crime
if the number of pro crime attitudes outweighs the number of anticrime attitudes when a person is socialised, then they will go onto offend.
give an example of a pro crime attitude an individual might believe
the benefit of commiting the crime outweighs the benefit of not engaging in the crime. For example the respect gained from commiting the crime outweighs the chance of being caught.
in addition to pro crime attitudes what other thing might an individual learn
particular techniques for commiting an offence (specific criminal behaviour) eg. how to pick a lock
(AO3) why might an individual go on to reoffend according to sutherland
whilst in prison they learn pro crime attitudes and techniques for offending from more experienced others.
outline a study that supports this as an explanation (AO3)
Farrington conducted a longitudinal study of development of offending and antisocial behaviour in 411 males aged 8-50 years. All came from deprived working class families
What did farrington find from his study (AO3)
41% of males had been convicted of at least one offence between age 10-50, 7% were chronic offenders
what could farrington conclude (AO3)
a key risk factor identified as leading to criminality was family criminality. An individual was more likely to become a criminal if they had a criminal parent.
How does farrington’s study support a differential association theory (AO3)
suggests we learn crime through the process of socialisation and being exposed to criminal attitudes which we then may go on to imitate. If a child is brought up by a criminal parent then they will be exposed to pro crime attitudes, view them as normal, internalise these values, and go on to imitate the behaviour.
(AO3) how could sutherland’s study be socially sensitive
suggests reoffending will continue to be high unless an individual can change the social group they are exposed to, this suggests prisons are not appropriate places for offenders as an individuals differential associations will inceease. May learn how to commit other crimes in prison with a new social group - this creates a new social dilemma - what should be done with convicts to reduce reoffending?
