Social Psychological explanations of criminal behaviour Big Picture We have looked at biological theories and personality theories, could criminal behaviour be purely learnt in the environment? Objectives for topic To be able to describe two social psychological explanations of criminal behaviour Differential Association Theory Gender Socialisation To be able to identify evidence supporting each explanation and evaluate the evidence.

FLIPPED BIT Make some notes on this http://study.com/academy/lesson/differential-association-theory-definition-examples.html

Lesson 1 Objectives To understand the assumptions and aims of Social Psychology To be able to describe Edwin Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory of criminal behaviour Describe some supporting evidence for the theory

Some key terms and areas of interest within social psychology Watch rolling show for an intro to social psychology! Social influence Obedience, conformity, social facilitation, crowd behaviour. Social cognition social identity, attitudes, attribution, stereotyping. Social behaviour Attraction, aggression, discrimination, helping. Social development Gender, self, attachment, social expectations, cultural influences.

Differential Association Theory Some definitions Differential – a difference, gap, inequality, variance etc.People’s experiences are differential according to circumstances, social background, identity, genes etc. Associations – The people we spend time with, family, friends, colleagues, teachers. Socialisation – how we learn norms and values from others through role modelling and sanctions (rewards and punishments)

Differential Association Theory Main idea is.... The reason why some commit crime and some don’t is because of the differing people they associate with. Some of these people support the idea of crime and some don’t. Crime becomes more likely if these associations are frequent, over a long period of time and very close e.g family member. Therefore people are ‘socialised’ into criminal behaviour, it is learned socially. TASK – On pg 98 make a note of the following according to Sutherland’s theory. What is learned? Who is it learned from? How is it learned? Consider the nine key principles on pg 98.

FLIPPED BIT Edwin Sutherland was an American Sociologist and Criminologist who among other things wrote about White Collar Crime (changing the social view that the rich do not commit crime) In his book ‘The Principles of Criminology’ (1939) he first wrote about Differential Association Theory where criminal behaviours arise from associations with people who commit crime. Task – Read Sutherland’s nine key principles of differential association on page 98 and find a way to remember them.

Lesson 2 Objectives To be able to evaluate Differential Association Theory with supporting evidence To evaluate the theory using criticisms and comparisons to other theories

Differential Association Theory Evaluation task What positive contribution did this theory make to criminology? How does this evidence support DAT? Osborn and West (1979) Akers et al (1979) What kind of studies are these? How can they be criticised? Why is this theory insufficent to explain all types of crime? What other factors/explanations could be considered? Most crime is committed by young males – which theory could best explain this?

Flipped Bit Why are most crimes committed by males? Is it biology? Is it Socialisation/learning? Is it that the criminal justice system is lenient towards women? Google some statistics and find out Prison population male/female ratio Conviction rates for males and females for a particular crime e.g assault with a weapon Search the Office of National Statistics - Crime

Lesson 3 Objectives To describe the gender socialisation explanation of criminal behaviour To identify statistics and research evidence which supports the theory

Gender Socialisation Definitions Socialisation – process of passing on norms and values to others Social Learning Theory – We learn behaviour through role modelling and imitation Social Control – How behaviour is controlled through social expectations and sanctions Patriarchy – Social system where most power is held by males Chivalry – Action of being a ‘gentleman,’ treating women as the ‘fairer’ sex, as less threatening than males, in need of protection etc.

Task p. 100 Write a short paragraph explaining these ways that we are socialised differently. Explain in each how this could lead to more criminal behaviour. Include a theorist in each paragraph Patterns of socialisation Role Models Differences in social control

Lesson 4 Objectives To be able to evaluate gender socialisation as an explanation of criminal behaviour To consider the biology of males and females as an alternative explanation

Evaluation task p. 101 Consider our first lesson and how crime statistics are collected. What is the dark figure of crime? How may this relate to this explanation? How does the chivalry hypothesis contradict the theory of gender socialisation? How could Otto Pollak’s argument be criticised? Why might the gender difference in crime be even larger than statistics suggests? According to Pat Carlen what influences sentencing of women? Is the liberation of women affecting gender differences in crime?

Biology as an alternative explanation p.101 What evidence is there to suggest that higher levels of testosterone increases aggression? Is this good scientific evidence which can explain crime? Why would higher levels of oestradiol hormone found in women mean less criminal behaviour? Research independently – drinking alcohol and testosterone levels

A grade extension How could biological and social factors be combined to produce an explanation of criminal behaviour? How might the gender socialisation explanation be applied to the modification of criminal behaviour?

Essay plan Outline two social psychological explanations of criminal behaviour (10) Intro – Social Psychological approaches look at how criminal behaviour is learnt through socialisation rather than inherited through biology. This approach suggests that family and peers play a crucial role in whether people become offenders One explanation from Edwin Sutherland is Differential Association theory – explain features in brief (Include evidence from Osborn and West) Another explanation is that gender is a factor – explain some features of gender socialisation including gender norms, role models and social control (include Cohen, Oakley or Heidensohn)

Essay Plan ‘Analyse and evaluate two explanations of criminal behaviour (20) Intro Brief definition of criminal behaviour and outline assumptions of individual differences such as personality or cognitive factors can explain criminal behaviour. However an alternative is that criminal behaviour is learnt in the environment through socialisation. Individual Differences approach such as how cognitive distortions can affect how we react. Explain Hostile attribution bias and outline evidence from Schonenberg and Justye (2014) Evaluate the cognitive explanation Analysis – What does this explanation suggest about criminals? How might this behaviour be modified? Individual differences are not sufficient to explain all crime the social context should be considered. Explain Differential Association theory (sutherland) Evaluate the theory and evidence However this theory is also insufficent as it cannot account for all crime Conc – Which explanation has the most convincing evidence?