Criminology - Lecture notes 1-22 PDF

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Full lecture notes for Criminology....

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Science of Crime  Criminology – the scientific study of crime o Areas of study: criminal statistics, sociology of law, theory construction and criminal behavior, penology, victimology o Interdisciplinary: sociology, criminal, justice, political science, psychology, economical, engineering and the natural sciences o Crime – violations of criminal law

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Not Criminology  Criminal justice – the practical and applied concerns of policing and corrections  Criminalistics – the scientific evaluation of physical evidence Criminal Justice System  Criminal justice system – the agencies of government – police, courts, and corrections – that are responsible for apprehending, adjudicating, sanctioning, and treating criminal offenders o Police o Courts o Corrections

Emergence of Criminology  Classical criminology (18th century) o “Progression of knowledge” – theological to metaphysical to 

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scientific Positivist criminology (19th century) o Scientific method o Logic o Empirical verification o Value-free Sociological criminology (19 th century) Developmental criminology (20 th century)

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Contemporary criminology o Classical theories  Rational choice o Biological and psychological theories  Trait theory o Sociological mainstream theories  Social structure, social process o Critical and integrate thinking 

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Labeling theory, feminist criminology Crime and Deviance  Deviance – behavior that is outside the limits of societal toleration o Assault, joining a cult, winning a Nobel 

A deviant act becomes a crime when it is deemed socially harmful or dangerous and punished under the criminal law Sumner’s Types of Norms  Norms – prescribed rules of conduct o Folkways – customs, traditions, less serious norms o Mores – more serious informal social controls o Laws – codified rules that are more serious norms containing sanctions 

Social Change and the Emergence of Law  Gemeinschaft – a communal or folk society  Gesellschaft – an associational or heterogeneous society  Manifest functions – intended or planned consequences of social arrangements  Latent functions – unexplained or unanticipated consequences of social activity 

Effects of Megan’s Law – sex offenders

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Concepts of Criminal Law  Consensus view – the belief that criminal law originates in the will of the majority  Conflict view – the belief that criminal law reflects the conflicts of interest groups and that the most powerful groups define the law (EX. “affluenza case”) 

Interactionist view – the belief that crime is defined by abstract meanings and symbols and is a label assigned by society (EX. Porn)

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Characteristics of Criminal Law  See page 11

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Contemporary Criminal Law  Criminal law – violations of law that are enforced by the state in order to protect victims including the state and society o Misdemeanor – less serious crimes that result in less than 1 year in jail o Felony – more serious crimes generally punished by at least a year in jail

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Sociological Examination of Crime  Includes the criminals as well as the social structural contexts that define them, not just those convicted of a crime in the legal sense  Costs of crime – include financial and other costs, such as psychological and health costs o $1.7 trillion per year o

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The Research Enterprise of Criminology  Theory – plausible explanation of reality  Methodology – the attempt to gather data that is accurate  Objectivity – the ideas that researchers should be neutral or unbiased in examining their subject matter

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Research Ethics  Basic behavior that is expected in moral and ethical research o Code of Conduct  Between researchers  Between researchers and subjects

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Institutional Review Board (IRB)  Safeguard human subject research participants in accordance with the DHHS federal regulations 45 CFR 46  Comply with MU IRB SOPs  Comply with the ethical principles outlined in the Belmont Report 

Comply with MU Institutional Policy Chapter 410: Research Involving Humans

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Comply with applicable State or Local laws Notable Studies  Milgram’s Experiment of Authority (1961)  

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Laud Humphrey’s Tearoom Trade (1970) Stanford Prison Experiment (1971)

Studying Crime and Criminal Behavior  Official statistics: numerical tabulations compiled by government officials and employees of social service agencies  Survey research: the gathering of information about behavior by social scientists 

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Field research: the direct observation, interviewing and analysis of subject(s) by the researcher

Methodological Pros and Cons (See Picture)

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Sampling/Data Collection  Where to go for statistics? o Finding the numbers for the information you want 

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How to write a bad survey? o Expect the unexpected answers  Bogardus social distance scale (Are you willing….)  Thurstone scale (1-5)  

Likert scale (agree, disagree) Semantic differential (opposites)

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Guttman scale (Very much, somewhat) Typology

What is/is not the field? o Objective vs. Subjective distinctions

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Measuring What?  Operationalization – describing how a concept is being measured  Variable – the measuring of that concept o Dependent o Independent

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Primary Sources of Crime Data  Uniform Crime Report (UCR)  National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)  National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)

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Uniform Crime Report  Part I Crimes (Violent Crimes)

o Criminal Homicide o Forcible rape o Robbery o Aggravated Assault 

Part I Crimes (Property Crimes) o Burglary o Larceny-theft o Motor vehicle theft o Arson

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Part II Crimes – all other crimes no included in Part I crimes

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Cleared Crimes o When at least one individual is arrested, charged, and turned over to the court for prosecution o By exceptional means, when some element beyond police control precludes the physical arrest of an offender

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Indexing Crimes o Index crimes – Part I crimes in the Uniform Crime Reports that are used in construct the violent crime and property crime indexes o Crime Index – a measure of crime that results in the calculation of the crime rate o Crime Rate – the number of index crimes divided by the population times 100,000

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Validity and limitations o Only reports known crimes o Only the most serious crimes are reported o Fails to differentiate between attempted and completed crimes o Many crimes are not reported by UCR

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National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)  The future of UCR o Requires more data o Includes more crimes o Has yet to be fully implemented o Been trying to implement since 1982

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Survey Reports  Survey Research o Sampling – selecting a limited number of people for a study as representative of a larger group o Population – All people who share a particular characteristic

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National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)  Annual survey of victims o Includes information regarding victims, offenders, and crimes o Addresses “non-reporting” issue  Fewer than half of all violent crimes are reported  1/3 of all property crimes are reported 

Validity and Limitations o Over-reporting o Under-reporting o Inability to record personal criminal activity o Sampling errors o Inadequate question format

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Self-Report Surveys  A research approach that requires subjects to reveal their own participation in delinquent or criminal acts

o Given in groups o Anonymous o Additional questions about attitudes, values, and behaviors 

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Validity and Limitations o Self-incrimination o Exaggeration o Missing cases

Evaluating Data  UCR and NIBRS o Provides data on the number and characteristics of people arrested 

NCVS o Includes unreported crime and personal characteristics of victims

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Self-reporting o Provides information on personal characteristics of offenders

Experiments  Equivalence  Pretests and posttests  Experimental and control groups Participant Observation  A methodology that involves the observation of a group by participating in varying degrees of activities Policing Race and Class in Urban America (2013)  What matters given this research to determine police force size  See last slide

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International Variations in Crime  Varying definitions  Recording practices  

Operating practices Factual inequalities

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Recorded crime U.S. Crime Trends  Total crimes on the increase  See photo on photo for list of most frequent crimes resulting in arrest  From 1999 to 2008, crime trend somewhat downward – see spike in 2008 because economy 

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Prison rate going up Crime Patterns  Ecology of Crime o Day, season, and climate o Temperature o Regional differences  Environment o Crime rates higher on first of month o Murder, theft higher in winter o Overall crime higher in summer o Crime rate increases as it gets warmer until 85 degrees o Urban places have highest violent crime rate o West/South have more crime than Midwest/Northeast 

Urban vs. Rural

o Crime is highest in urban areas and lowest in rural areas  Population density  Subcultures of violence o 2004 property crimes were higher for smaller than for larger cities o Rural and suburban rates are increasing 

Age and Crime o See photo on phone o Features of adolescence  Reduction in supervision  

Increase in social and academic demands Participation in a larger, more diverse, peer-oriented social world

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Increased desire for adult privileges

Reduced ability to cope legally o Age-Crime Debate  There is a disagreement among criminologists as to whether all “mature out of crime” or whether some remain career criminals 

Sex/Gender/Sexuality o Sex – the scientific determination a bodies status as male, female and intersexed o Gender - the socially defined roles expected of different sexes  Cisgender 

Transgender o Sexuality – the expression of attraction on a physical, emotional, or social level as well as fantasies, sexual behavior, and self-identity  Heteronormativity 

Bodies and Crime o Men commit more than 80% of violent crimes

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Male to female arrests 4:1  5:1 for serious crimes  8:1 for murder o Prostitution is committed more by females than men o Women on the rise  Arrests increased by 6%  

Violent crime increased 1% Property crime increased 20%  Robbery up 19%  Burglary up 22%

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Result of how women are treated Socioeconomic Status o Social class – a segment of the population whose members are at a relatively similar economic, occupational, and education level o Habitus – a structure of the mind characterized by a set of acquired schemata, sensibilities, thoughts and taste o Economy – management of the household o Measuring Class Difference  Wealth – the total amount of valuable goods a person possesses  Income – wages and salaries from earnings and investments 

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Social stratification – a system of structured inequality in which people receive different amounts of society’s valued resources  World wide 62 = 3.6 billion

Social Class and Crime o Instrumental crimes – offenses designed to improve financial or social position of the criminal o Expressive crimes – offenses committed not for profit or gain, but to vent rage, anger, or frustration o More Crime vs. More Cops o

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Race and Ethnicity

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Race – denotes a group of people who perceive themselves and are perceived by others as possessing distinctive hereditary traits o Racial formation

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Ethnicity o Denotes a group of people who perceive themselves and are perceived by others as sharing cultural traits such as language, religion, family customs, and dietary preferences

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Racial threat theory – as the size of the minority population increases, the perceived threat to the white population increases, resulting in a greater amount of social control imposed on minorities o Petit apartheid realities

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Race and Crime  Crime is intraracial  Nonwhites make up less than 25% of U.S. population but 58% of prisoners  Blacks are more likely to be arrested, indicted, convicted and imprisoned  Blacks are less likely to receive probation, parole, or pardon and commit white-collar crimes  

Murders of white people are more likely to get the death penalty Native Americans rate of victimization is greater than all other races for assault and robbery

National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (Kerner Commission 1968)  Four reasons for the differences between immigrant and black experiences o The maturing economy o The disability of race o Entry into the political system o Cultural factors 

Institutions and Crime  Institutions – organizations that serve a broad range of interests in society o Family o Education

o Religion o War o Economy o Mass Media o Government 

Institutional Violence  Catharsis hypothesis – the belief that the observation of violence serves as an emotional release and lessens violence  Precipitation hypothese – the belief that the observation in violence increases the propensity to violence

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Firearms and Crime  20% of robberies  10% of assaults  

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5% of rapes 66.6% of murders

Gun deaths (2009)  Gun’s don’t kill people, people kill people vs. people with guns kill people with guns vs. people with a desire to kill people can do so with guns 

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Firearm homicides: 11,078 – 68% of all homicides Homicides without firearms: 5,181 Suicides: 38,364 with guns :19,392

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Total firearm deaths: 30,470 Total bazooka deaths: 0

Career Criminals  The chronic 6% o Responsible for 52% of criminal offenses  71% of homicides  73% of rapes  

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82% of robberies 69% of aggravated assaults

The Victim’s Role  Victimology – the study of the victim’s role in criminal events  Victimologists – criminologists who focus on the victims of crime 

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Typical Victim

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Less than half of all victimizations experienced by individuals in the NCVS are reported to the police o Gender – except for rape, males more likely o Race and Ethnicity – blacks, Native Americans, two or more races more likely o Age – young more likely o Household characteristics – bigger size makes more likely to be victimized

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Costs of Victimization  Individual costs o Direct property losses o Medical care o Mental health care o Losses in productivity o Quality of life 

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System costs o Criminal justice o Social losses

Theories of Victimization  Victim Precipitation – the extent to which a victim is responsible for their own victimization o Victim facilitation – the victim’s status makes it easier for a n offender to commit a crime o Victim provocation – when a person does something that incites another person to commit an illegal act against them 

Routine Activities Theory o Suitable targets o Capable guardians o Motivated offenders

o Lack of capable guardians: o Police officers o Homeowners o Security systems 

Suitable targets: o Costly jewelry o Expensive cars o Easily transported goods

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Lifestyle Theory o Principle of homogamy - the idea that people who share characteristics of offenders are most at ricks of victimization  associations  

work school

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leisure activities  Deviant Place Theory - the view that victimization is primarily a function of where people are located  hot spots  Victim's Bill of Rights  

To be notified of proceedings and the status of the defendant To be present at criminal justice proceedings

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To make a statement at sentencing and to receive restitution from a convicted offender

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To be consulted before a case is dismissed or a plea agreement is entered

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To a speedy trial

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To keep victim's contact information confidential Victim-witness assistance program (VWAP)

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Victim compensation Victim advocates Victim impact statements Public education Crisis intervention Victim- offender reconciliation program Victim notification Legal protection for victims

Caring for the Victim  Family justice centers - places providing a wide range of services to crime victims and their families  Mediation programs - third party led sessions in which the victim and offender meet to come to an agreement on what should happen to the offender 

Restorative justice - the recognition that crime is harmful for everyone involved and seeks to use all entities in response to crime in order to repair the harm caused by the offender

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Test Prep  50 multiple choice and true/false questions  Chapters 1-4 and lecture material   

Quiz questions "Triangulation" - didn't go over but may see

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08/30/2016 Theories of Criminology  Theory – plausible explanation of reality  Demonological  

Classical/Neoclassical Ecological/Geographic

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Economic Positivistic biological

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Psychological Sociological  Demonological theory – assumes that supernatural forces cause and control crime commission  Salem Witch Trials  

Spanish Inquisition ISIS

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Classical theory – assumes that criminals are rational actors who weigh the pleasure and pain of an activity  Responding to the cruel, uncertain and unpredictable administration of criminal justice 

On Crimes and Punishments (Beccaria, 1764)  Laws should be made by legislatures and they should be specific  Judges should not interpret the laws 

Seriousness of crime determined by the harm it inflicts on society, based on the pleasure/pain principle

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Punishment should be based on seriousness of the crime and ability to deter future violations

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Punishment should not exceed that necessary for deterrence – punishment can be excessive

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Punishment should be sure, swift and certain Against capital punishment and torture

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Better to prevent crime than punish it

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Equal treatment under the law  Neoclassical theory – the view that crime is influenced by criminal opportunities to commit crime  Rational Choice Theory – crime is a function of a decision-making process in which the potential offender weighs the potential costs and benefits of an illegal act  Evaluating the risk of crime: o How great are the rewards of crime? What is the perceived risk of getting caught? o What is the level of excitement? 

Offense-specific crime – a c...