THEORIES OF CRIME

CAUSATION
CRIM.PROF 214
 OVERVIEW
WHY PEOPLE COMMIT CRIMES?
APPROACHES IN THE EXPLANATIONS OF
CRIME
• SUBJECTIVE APPROACH-deals mainly on the BIOLOGICAL
explanation of crimes, focused on the forms of abnormalities
that exist in the individual crime BEFORE, DURING, and
AFTER the commission of the crime.
Anthropological approach-study on the physical
characteristics of an individual offender with non-offenders in
the attempt to discover differences covering criminal
behavior(Hooton).
Medical Approaches- application of medical examinations on
the individual criminal explain the mental and physical
condition of the individual prior and after the commission of
the crime(Positivist).
Biological Approach-the evaluation of genetic influences to
criminal behavior. It is noted that heredity is one force pushing
the criminal to crime(Positivist).
Physiological Approach-study on the nature of human being
concerning his physical needs in order to satisfy his
wants(Maslow).
Psychological Approach-it is concerned about the deprivation
of the psychological needs of man, which constitute the
development of deviations of normal behavior resulting to
unpleasant emotions(Freud, Maslow).
Psychiatric Approach-the explanation of crime through
diagnosis of mental diseases as a cause of the criminal
behavior(Positivist).
Psychoanalytical Approach-the explanation of crimes based on
the Freudian Theory, which traces behavior as the deviation of
the repression of the basic drives(Freud).
• OBJECTIVE APPROACHES-study of groups, social
processes and institutions as influences to behavior.

Geographic Approach- considers topography, natural

resources, geographical location, and climate lead an
individual to commit crime(Quetelet).
Ecological Approach-concerned with the biotic grouping
of men resulting to migration, competition, social
discrimination, division of labor and social conflict as
factors of crime(Park).
Economic Approach-deals with the explanation of crime
concerning financial security of inadequacy and other
necessities to support life as factors to criminality(Merton).
Socio-Cultural Approach-those that focus on institutions,
economic, financial, education, political, and religious
influences to crime(Cohen).
• CONTEMPORARY APPROACH- modern days emphasis on
scientific modes of explaining crime and criminal behavior. This
approach is focused on the psychoanalytical, psychiatric and
sociological explanations of crime in an integrated theory-an
explanatory perspective that merges concept drawn from
different sources(Schmalleger,1997).
IMPORTANCE OF THEORY
• Ability to explain a facts about some particular phenomenon
• To answer “Why we are doing what we do”
Early Beginnings
• DEMONOLOGICAL THEORY- accdg. To this theory,
individuals were thought to be possesed by good or evil
spirit, which caused good or evil behavior.
PRE-TWENTIETH CENTURY
Classical School
Neo-Classical School
Positivist
CLASSICAL SCHOOL- use of torture to extract confession
and a wide range of cruel punishment
-FREE WILL(no excemption)
Prominent members of the classical theory
• CESARE, MARQUIS DE BECCARIA-best known for his treatise on
crimes and punishments which condemned torture and the
death penalty and was founding work in the field of criminology.
• JEREMY BENTHAM-founded the theory of UTILITARIANISM
-He claimed that it was possible to decide by scientific means what
was morally justifiable by applying the principle of utility. He said
that actions were right if they tended to produce “the greatest
happiness for the greatest number of people”. He thought that
happiness was equivalent to pleasure.
Arguments against Classical Theory
1. Unfair- it treats all men as if they were robot without regard to
the individual differences and the surrounding circumstances
when the crime is committed.
2. Unjust- having the same punishment for first and recidivist.
Recidivist- one who, at the time of his trial for one crime shall have
been previously convicted by final judgement of another crime
embraced in the same title.
Quasi-recidivism- any person who shall commit a felony after
having been convicted by final judgement, before beginning to
serve such sentence, or while serving the same, shall be punished
by maximum period of the penalty prescribed by law for the new
felony.
3. The nature and definition of punishment is not individualized
4. It considers only the injury caused not the mental condition of
the offender.
Neo-classical school
a. That children and lunatics should not be regarded as criminals
and free from punishment
b. It must take into account certain mitigating circumstances
Positivist or Italian School
-study of crime that emphasis should be on scientific treatment of
the criminal. Not on the penalties to be imposed after conviction.
- Search for other multiple factors as the causes of human
behavior.
Some defining features of a Positivist
1.The demand for facts, for scientific proof(determinism)
2. There are body and mind differences between
people(reasons of committing crime)
3. Punishment should fit the individual criminal, not the
crime(indeterminate sentence)
4. The criminal justice system should be guided by scientific
experts
5. Criminals can be treated, rehabilitated, or corrected
POSITIVIST TRIO
Cesare Lombroso- father of MODERN CRIMINOLOGY
Classifications of Criminals accdg.to Lombroso
1. Born Criminals- the belief that being criminal behavior is inherited.
2. Criminal by Passion- easily influenced by great emotions like fit of
anger.
3. Insane criminals-due to abnormalities or psychological disorders. They
should be exempted to criminal liability
4. Criminoloid-due to less physical stamina/self control
5. Occasional criminal- due to insignificant reasons that pushed them to
do at a given occasion
6. Pseudo-criminals- those who kill in self—defense.
 Enrico Ferri- he believed that criminals could not be held morally
responsible for their crimes because they did not choose to commit
crimes but, rather, were driven to commit them by certain
conditions in their lives.

Raffaele Garofalo
Types of Criminals accdg. To Garofalo
1. Murderers-satisfied from vengeance/revenge
2. Violent criminals- commit very serious crimes
3. Deficient criminals- commit crimes against property.
4. Lascivious criminals-commit crimes against chastity
Early 20th Century
David Emile Durkheim-advocated ANOMIE THEORY
- framed the early development of the CONSENSUS
THEORY(Social life)
Anomie theory- focused on the sociological point of the
positivist school which explains that the absence of norms in a
society provides a setting conductive crimes and other anti-
social acts. ANOMIE-describe the lack of social regulation in
modern societies as one manner that could elevate higher
suicide rates.
Propose the ff.principles
• Crime is a natural thing in the society
• The concept of wrong is necessary to give meaning to right
• Crime help society for changes-it means that a society to be
flexible to permit positive deviation must permit negative
deviations as well.
SIGMUND FREUD-father of psychoanalysis
3 elements of personality
1. Id- driven by pleasure principles
2. Ego- deals with reality
3. Superego- internalized moral standards
-begins at age 5
Psychoanalytical theory accdg. To Freud
• Criminal behavior is a form of neurosis, that criminality may result
from over active conscience.
• Crimes is the result of the compulsive need for punishment to
alleviate guilt and anxiety
• Criminal behavior is a means of obtaining gratification of need
• Criminal conducts represent a displaced hostility. Criminality is
essentially a representation of psychological conflict.
 Robert Ezra Park-Human Ecology Theory
• Human Ecology Theory- study of interrelationship of people and their
environment. This theory maintains that crime is a functional of social
change that occurs along with environmental change.
Middle 20th century
Ernest Kretschmer-idea of Somatotyping
3 Principal types of Physique
1. Asthenic-lean, slightly built, narrow shoulder
2. Atletic- medium to tall, strong, muscular, course bones
3. Pyknic- medium height, rounded figure, massive neck, broad face
 William H. Sheldon-Somatotyping Theory
• Classification Of Body Physique
1. Endomorphy - soft body, underdeveloped muscles, round shaped. Over-
developed digestive system
- love of food, tolerant, evenness of emotions, love of
comfort, sociable, good humored, relaxed, need for affection
-proneness to crimes involving deceit and fraud.
2. Mesomorphy-hard, muscular body, overly mature appearance, rectangular
shaped, thick skin, upright posture
- adventurous, desire for power and dominance, courageous,
indifference to what others think or want, assertive, bold, zest for physical
activity, competitive, love of risk and chance
- routinely active and prone to violent crimes and prone to
sexual assault
3. Ectomorph- thin & flat chest, delicate build,
young appearance, tall but lightly muscled, stoop-
shouldered and large brain
- self-conscious and preference for
privacy, introverted and inhibited, socially
anxious, artistic and mentally intense and
emotionally restrained
- proneness to crimes against property
Walter Reckless- Containment Theory
Containment Theory- a series of both external and internal
factors contributes to criminal behavior.
---external factors-poverty, unemployment and blocked of
opportunities.
---internal factors- self control
Karl Marx, Frederick Engel, Willem Bonger-Social Class
Conflict and Capitalism Theory
-underpriviledge
-unemployed-underemployed
Late 20th Century
Robert King Merton- Strain Theory
Strain Theory- maintains a failure of man to achieve a higher ststus of life
caused them to commit crimes in order for that status/goal to be attained.
5 Modes of Adaption
1. Conformity- people will attempt to achieve goals set before them with the
most socially acceptable means they have at their disposal.
2. Innovation- they have begun to perceive socially acceptable means of
achievement as either being ineffectual or closed to them.
3. Rebellion-they advocate the complete overthrow of the system
4. Retreatism- escapist mode.(drug addicts, alcoholic etc.)
5. Ritualism-
Albert Cohen- Sub-Culture Theory( lower class vs middle class)
Gresham Sykes- Neutralization Theory(feeling of security-to
abide)
Lloyd Ohlin- Differential Opportunity Theory(lower class-more
deviant acts0
Robert Agnew- agree with the strain theory by Merton he added
3 sources of Strain
1. Failure to achieve positively valued goals
2. Removal of positive stimuli(negative life-altering event)
3. Confrontation with negative stimuli(routinely deal with
negative activity like child abuse and peer pressure to do
something illegal)
 Frank Tennenbum, Edwin Lemert, Howard Becker-
Labeling Theory
• Other Theories
Charles Darwin’s Theory-animalistic behavior
Charles Goring’s Theory-criminals tend to be shorter and have less
weight than non-criminals
Earnest Hooton’s Theory- “Tall thin men” tend to commit Forgery and
Fraud, “Undersized men” are thieves and burglars, “short heavy person”
commit assault, rape and other sex crimes, were “mediocre(average)”
physique flounder around other crimes.
Adolphe Quetelet-crimes against persons increased during summer and
crimes against property tends to increase during winter
QUIZ # 2
CHAPTER 1
• THEORY- defined any system of ideas arranged in rational order that
produce general principles which increase our understanding &
explanations
-derived from, and representative, of particular facts, but
those principles are not dependent upon the particular thing
to be explained
- Foundation of criminology and of criminal justice
ROUTINE ACTIVITY THEORY-theory of crime
problems
• -provides a simple and powerful insight into the causes of
crime problems. At its heart is the idea that in the absence of
effective controls, offenders will prey upon attractive targets.
THREE THEORIES OF CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR

• A. Psychological
• B. Sociological
• C. Biological
Psychological Approach
Fundamental assumptions of psychological theories of criminality

1. The individual is the primary unit of analysis in psychological theories

2. Personality is the major motivational element that drives behavior within
individuals
3. Normality is generally defined by social consensus.
4. Crimes then would result from abnormal, dysfunctional, or inappropriate
mental processes within the personality of the individual.
5. Criminal behavior may be purposeful for the individual insofar
as it addresses certain felt needs.
6. Defective, or abnormal, mental processes may have a variety
of causes.
EXAMPLE:
Diseased mind, inappropriate learning or improper conditioning,
the emulation of inappropriate role models, and adjustment to
inner conflicts.
Sociological Approach
-attempting to connect the issues of the individual’s criminality with the
broader social structures and cultural values of society, familial, or peer
group.
-how the contradictions of all of theses interacting groups contribute to
criminality.
-the ways these structures cultures and contradictions have historically
developed.
-the current processes of change that these groups are undergoing.
-criminality is viewed from the point of view of the social construction of
criminality and its social causes.
Biological Approach
• 1. Heredity
• 2. Neurotransmitter dysfunction
• 3. Brain abnormalities that were caused by either of the
above, improper development, or trauma.
Methods of crime control that are specific to
biological theories
1. PSYCHOSURGERY
lobotomies -were used to treat a wide range of problems from
depression, to schizophrenia.
-an operation in which part of the brain is
cut in order to treat some mental disorder
DEPRESSION-serious medical condition in which a person feels very sad,
hopeless, and unimportant and often is unable to live in a normal way.
SCHIZOPHRENIA-characterized by gross distortions of reality, withdrawal
of social interaction, disorganization and fragmentation of perception,
thoughts and emotions.
2. CHEMICAL METHODS OF CONTROL
-used of pharmacological treatments to try to
control crime has been ongoing in two major
areas: Chemical castration for sex offenders

-removing of testes
Pharmacological interventions for drug or alcohol
addicts
CHAPTER 2
Early General Theories on the causes of crime
• DEMONOLOGY-the study of demons or beliefs about demons,
especially the methods used to summon and control them. The
original sense of “demon, from the time of Homer(between 12th and
8th centuries BC) onward, was malevolence.
-Demons, when regarded as spirits, may belong to either of the classes
of spirits recognized by primitive animism(believe that all plants,
animals and objects have spirit)
• The word demonology is from greek δαίμων, daimōn, “divinity,
divine power, god”; and –λογία,-logia
1. DEMONOLOGICAL THEORY
-people believed that evil spirits or demons entered in human
body to commit sins.
Terms: demons, witched, windigo
- The society thought that it happened due to evil
influence(SUPERNATURAL)
- People commit crimes under demonic or evil influences.
2. Positivist Theory-study of criminal behavior based upon
the external factors.
• Johann Lavater- a physiognomist, thought that the shape of the
skull and some facial features had an impact on a human
behavior and actions.
• Cesare Lombroso- an anthropologist, took the idea of Lavater
and began to exploring other physical traits of a body. He
compared traits like: ear size, hair length and other.
• Charles Goring- main critics of Lombroso, conducted the research
on crime heredity, but didn’t find any differences in facial
features or other human physical trait between prison inmates,
asylum inhabitants and non-criminals. The only physical
difference Goring found between an experimental and control
group was the significant dissimilarity in body weight and stature.
3. Neo-classical Crime Theory-considers age, gender, and
social class of the perpetrators
4. Classical Theory-free will
5. Conflict Theory- propounded by Karl Marx that claims society is
in a perpetual conflict due to competition for limited resources.
Accdg. To this theory, those with wealth and power try to hold on
to it by any means possible, chiefly by suppressing the poor and
powerless.
• Marx’s conflict Theory focused on the conflict between two
primary classes. The BOURGEOISIE represents the members of
society who hold the majority of the wealth and means. The
PROLETARIAT includes those considered working class or poor.
With the rise of capitalism, Marx theorized that the bourgeoisie,
a minority within the population, would use their influence to
oppress the proletariat, the majority class.
4 Primary Assumptions of Modern Conflict Theory
1. Competition- over scarce resources(money, leisure, sexual
partners and so on) is at the heart of all social relationship.
2. Structural inequality- inequalities in power and reward are
built into all social structures. Individuals and groups that
benefit from any particular structure strive to see it
maintained.
3. Revolution- change occurs as a result of conflict between
social class competing interest rather than trough
adaption.
4. War- it may set an end to whole society
6. Critical Theory
- A belief that a small few, the elite of the society, decide laws and
the definition of crime; those who commit crimes disagree with
the laws that were created to keep control of them.
Core Concept of Critical Theory
1. That critical social theory should be directed at the totality of
society in its historical specificity(how it came to be configured
at a specific point in time)
2. That critical theory should improve understanding of society by
integrating all the major social sciences, including geography,
economics, sociology, history, political science, anthropology
and psychology,
Critical theory(German: Kritische Theore)
was first defined by MAX HORKHEIMER of
the Frankfurt School of sociology in his 1937
essay Traditional and Critical theory: Critical
theory is a social theory oriented toward
critiquing and changing society as a whole in
contrast to traditional theory oriented only
to understand and explain it.
Chapter III
Biological theories
• XYY chromosome syndrome- the called “macho men” who
have an extra Y chromosome are predisposed to commit
crimes.
• Hormones-have an important impact on the existence of
aggression. Based on research conducted on animals it was
found that elevated levels of hormones in women or men
affect the emergence of aggressive behavior. Elevated
testosterone levels will affect the increase in aggressive
behavior.
1. Lombrosian theory
• He believed that criminals are throwbacks to a more primitive stage of
human evolution and that the criminal tendency is inherited.
• Biological traits of Born Criminals
-unusual size or shape of the head
-strange eyes
-facial asymmetry
-extended jaw and jaw bone
-too big or too small ears
-full lips leaned forward-
- Abnormal teeth
- Wrinkled skin
- nosed curled up(thieves have a flat nose and murderers have a beak
nose
- Too long, too small or flat chin
- Dark skin
- Too long arms
Born Criminal’s Traits
1.Hypersensitivity to pain and touch
2. Use of special criminal slang
3. Grotesque expression of thoughts
4. Tattoos
5. unemployment
Changes of theory and develop a new theory
3 categories
1. Born criminals 30% of all criminals
2. Abnormal criminals( idiots, imbeciles, paranoids,
melancholics, paralytics, epileptics, demented persons,
alcoholics and hysterics)
3. Occasional criminals
a. criminoloids
b.pseudo criminals
c. criminals out of habit
5 Key Principles of Classical Theory
1. Rationality- people have free will and that they choose to
commit it.
2. Hedonism- people seek pleasure and try to avoid pain.
3. Punishment- works as a deterrent to crime
4. Human Rights- all individuals have rights, and society
needs to respect the rights of individuals.
5. Due process- people accused of a crime are considered
innocent until proven guilty, and that they have the chance
to go to trial and face the judicial system.
ATAVISM
-That criminal behavior was innate and only partly caused by
psychological and environmental conditions(Lombroso)
Victim Precipitation- how a victims interaction with an
offender may contribute to the crime being committed.
2. William Sheldon’s Theory
 Body types could define personality
3 Categories Of Body Types
1. Ectomorph
2. Endomorph
3. Mesomorph
3. Biochemical Theories of delinquency: The
Aggressive Behavior caused by Diet
• Crime and sugar- there is a causal connection
between blood sugar levels, anti-social behavior and
delinquency. Excessively low levels of blood
sugar(hypoglycemia) can cause the development of
negative behavior, nervous behavior, mental
confusion, physical weakness, delirium and violence.
Excessive consumption of alcohol can cause
hypoglycemia and increase behavior.
• Cholesterol and crime- low levels of cholesterol are associated with
persons who have difficulties with internalization of social norms and
have the tendency to be irresponsible. Low cholesterol levels can cause
hypoglycemia.
• Vitamins and crime- theory states that law intake of vitamis and
minerals can cause delinquent behavior.
4. General Inferiority Theory/ Hooton’s theory
Earnest Albert Hooton- suggesting that criminals have inferior
characteristics compared to people who do not commit crimes.
For Example:
• Criminals are less often married and more often divorced
• Criminals often have tattos
• Criminals have thinner beards and body hair, and their
hair is more often reddish-brown and straight
• Criminals often have blue-gray or mixed colored eyes,
and less often dark or blue eyes
• Criminals have low sloping foreheads, high nasal
bridges, and thin lips
• Criminal’s ears often have rolled helix and a
perceptible Darwin’s poimt
QUIZ #3