Deviance as Rational Choice

 Enlightenment (18th Century): Philosophical/Cultural Movement  Humans as creatures of Reason/ Rationality ◦ decline of religious cosmology ◦ birth of modern science

 Population  Urbanization  Decline of church authority  Nation-state ◦ individual as primary political "unit" ◦ state as will of the people ◦ social contract

 Essay on Crimes and Punishments (1764)  Key principles of classical theory ◦ Naturalness of the social contract ◦ Rational rule of state law ◦ Belief in free will ◦ Goodness of reason/rationality

 The need for rational punishments to preserve the social contract  Legislative Determination of Law, Judicial Determination of Guilt  Deviance is Hedonistic and Rational: Maximize Pleasure, Minimize Pain  Punishment is Rationally Calculated Social Control  Deterrence is the Goal of Social Control  Control acts, not actors

 To be determined by legislatures ◦ Those acts which violate the public good  Beccaria: "demonstrable social harm"

 Premeditation ◦ criterion of intentionality ◦ free will is implied in planning  Mitigating Circumstances  Insanity

 Deviance is rational choice  Fixed and mandatory punishments  Warn all that offenders will be punished  Reduce judicial discretion  Strengthen police powers  Cut back on individual rights  Treat juveniles as adults  Eliminate parole

 Special Deterrence: ◦ prison experience will prevent offenders from committing future crimes on release  chronic offenders chronic offenders  General Deterrence: ◦ threat of prison will deter others from becoming criminals  severity and certainty (Gibbs, 1968)  severity versus certainty  certainty >> severity (Tittle)  overload effect overload effect

 (Delinquency in a Birth Cohort, by Marvin Wolfgang, Thorsten Sellin, & Robert Figlio)  N = 9,945 ◦ All boys born in 1945 ◦ Residing in Philadelphia from at least 10 through 18 years

 Police contact ◦ None ◦ One ◦ 1<>5 (non-chronic recidivists) ◦ Chronic recidivists

 65% (6,470): No contact  35% (3,475) At least one contact ◦ 46% (of the offenders): One-time offenders (1,598) ◦ 48% (of the offenders): 1<>5 offenses (Non-chronic recidivists: 1,668) ◦ 6% (of the offenders): More than 5 offenses (Chronic recidivists)

 Mean = 8.5 delinquent acts apiece ◦ 52% of all offenses ◦ 71% of homicides ◦ 73% of rapes ◦ 82% of robberies ◦ 69% of aggravated assaults

 Common Traits: ◦ Began delinquency earlier ◦ 77% of them from low SES ◦ 9% of them H.S. grads  Vs. 24% 2-4 offenses; 58% 1-timers; 74% non- delinquents ◦ Lower IQ ◦ Poor school performance ◦ High proportion from “broken homes”“broken homes”

 Assumes high apprehension  Assumes public knowledge  Assumes rationality