Crime Causation & Victimology

Cards · 53

Classical School of Criminology

Individuals possess free will and rationally calculate costs and benefits of crime; deter via swift, certain, and proportionate punishment. Key proponents: Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham.

Hedonistic Calculus (Utilitarianism)

Humans naturally seek pleasure and avoid pain, committing crime when anticipated pleasure outweighs perceived pain. Proposed by Jeremy Bentham.

Positivist Criminology

Behavior is determined by biological, psychological, or social forces rather than free will; emphasizes scientific empirical study. Key proponents: Cesare Lombroso, Enrico Ferri, Raffaele Garofalo.

Biological Positivism (Atavism)

Criminals are evolutionary throwbacks (atavists) identifiable by distinct physical stigmata and cranial anomalies. Formulated by Cesare Lombroso, considered the father of modern criminology.

Somatotype Theory

Body types correlate with personality; muscular mesomorphs are most prone to delinquency compared to ectomorphs or endomorphs. Developed by William Sheldon.

Social Disorganization Theory

Crime stems from neighborhood breakdown, poverty, high mobility, and weak social institutions rather than individual traits. Developed by Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay (Chicago School).

Concentric Zone Model

Cities expand outward in rings; Zone II (Transition) consistently displays highest delinquency due to social flux regardless of which ethnic group lives there. Developed by Ernest Burgess, applied by Shaw and McKay.

Collective Efficacy

Neighborhood social cohesion combined with mutual willingness to intervene prevents crime and disorder. Advanced by Robert Sampson, Stephen Raudenbush, and Felton Earls.

Strain Theory (Anomie)

Crime arises when a cultural emphasis on success goals exceeds access to legitimate institutionalized means to achieve them. Formulated by Robert K. Merton.

Merton's Adaptations: Innovation

Individuals accept cultural success goals but reject legitimate means, turning to illegal avenues like theft or drug sales to achieve wealth. Defined by Robert K. Merton.

Merton's Adaptations: Retreatism

Rejection of both societal goals and institutionalized means, leading to societal withdrawal into vagrancy or addiction. Defined by Robert K. Merton.

General Strain Theory (GST)

Crime results from negative emotions caused by strain: failure to achieve goals, loss of positive stimuli, or exposure to noxious stimuli. Formulated by Robert Agnew.

Institutional Anomie Theory

Unrestrained free-market capitalism dominates and weakens other social institutions (family, education, polity), driving high monetary crime rates. Developed by Steven Messner and Richard Rosenfeld.

Differential Association Theory

Criminal behavior is learned through social interaction; a person offends when definitions favorable to law violation exceed unfavorable definitions. Proposed by Edwin Sutherland.

Social Learning Theory (Akers)

Expands differential association by incorporating operant conditioning; behavior is acquired and maintained via imitation and differential reinforcement. Proposed by Ronald Akers.

Techniques of Neutralization

Delinquents use psychological justifications to temporarily suspend guilt and societal values before offending. Formulated by Gresham Sykes and David Matza.

Social Bond Theory

Individuals refrain from crime when connected to society through four bonds: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. Formulated by Travis Hirschi.

General Theory of Crime (Self-Control)

Low self-control, established in early childhood through ineffective parenting, is the primary individual cause of crime and analogous acts. Developed by Michael Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi.

Containment Theory

Inner controls (self-concept, frustration tolerance) and outer controls (social norms, family supervision) push back against criminal pressures. Developed by Walter Reckless.

Labeling Theory

Deviance is created when society tags, defines, and stigmatizes an individual, inducing a self-fulfilling prophecy of persistent crime. Proponents include Frank Tannenbaum, Howard Becker, and Edwin Lemert.

Primary vs. Secondary Deviance

Primary deviance consists of initial norm violations without identity change; secondary deviance is crime adopted in response to being labeled deviant. Concept by Edwin Lemert.

Marxist/Radical Criminology

Crime is an inevitable outcome of capitalist exploitation, and criminal law protects the ruling class by criminalizing the behaviors of the proletariat. Proponents include Willem Bonger and Richard Quinney.

Conflict Criminology

Society is composed of diverse groups competing for power; groups holding political influence use law to suppress rival interests. Key proponents: Thorsten Sellin and George Vold.

Feminist Criminology

Critiques mainstream criminology for male-centered bias; investigates how patriarchy, gender roles, and gender stratification drive female crime and victimization. Proponents include Kathleen Daly and Meda Chesney-Lind.

Left Realism

Argues that street crime seriously harms marginalized working-class communities and requires pragmatic reform, community policing, and social justice. Proponents: Jock Young and John Lea.

Peacemaking Criminology

Views crime as suffering caused by structural violence and social inequality; advocates for restorative justice, compassion, and reconciliation over retribution. Proponents: Harold Pepinsky and Richard Quinney.

Routine Activity Theory

Crime occurs when three elements converge in space and time: a motivated offender, a suitable target, and the absence of a capable guardian. Developed by Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson.

Rational Choice Theory

Offenders make strategic, purposive decisions to commit specific crimes based on assessments of risk, effort, and situational payoff. Formulated by Ronald Clarke and Derek Cornish.

Situational Crime Prevention

A crime prevention approach focusing on altering the immediate environment to increase effort, increase risks, and reduce rewards for offenders. Developed by Ronald Clarke.

Broken Windows Theory

Visible signs of minor disorder, vandalism, and incivility signal a lack of community oversight, inviting more serious criminal offenses. Developed by James Q. Wilson and George Kelling.

Life-Course Criminology: Dual Taxonomy

Distinguishes between adolescent-limited offenders (who age out of crime) and life-course-persistent offenders (driven by neuropsychological and environmental factors). Formulated by Terrie Moffitt.

Age-Graded Theory of Informal Social Control

Transitions and turning points (such as marriage, stable employment, or military service) can alter criminal trajectories and foster desistance. Developed by Robert Sampson and John Laub.

Biological Evolutionary Theories of Crime

Traits linked to criminality (e.g., aggression, risk-taking, mating effort over parenting effort) evolved as adaptive strategies for survival and reproduction. Proponents include Lee Ellis and Martin Daly.

Neurocriminology

Explores how brain structure abnormalities, particularly prefrontal cortex dysfunction, low resting heart rate, and neurotransmitter imbalances, correlate with violence. Key proponent: Adrian Raine.

Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R)

A clinical diagnostic tool assessing personality traits (superficial charm, lack of empathy) and behavioral deviance (impulsivity, criminality). Developed by Robert Hare.

Subculture of Violence Theory

Certain groups share normative value systems where violence is an expected, accepted, and prescribed response to minor disputes. Developed by Marvin Wolfgang and Franco Ferracuti.

Code of the Street

Inner-city youths adopt an informal system of rules demanding aggressive self-defense to maintain respect and protect oneself in a hostile environment. Developed by Elijah Anderson.

Victimology (Field Definition)

The scientific study of victims of crime, exploring victim characteristics, patterns of victimization, the justice system's response, and prevention strategies. Pioneer: Benjamin Mendelsohn.

Benjamin Mendelsohn's Victim Typology

Classified victims based on degrees of culpability, ranging from the completely innocent victim to the imaginary or fully guilty victim. Formulated by Benjamin Mendelsohn, considered father of victimology.

Hans von Hentig's Typology of Victims

Argued victims often shape their own victimization based on psychological, biological, or situational vulnerabilities (the young, female, old, depressed). Formulated by Hans von Hentig.

Victim Precipitation Theory

Suggests victims initiate the chain of events leading to crime through active confrontation or passive display of vulnerability. Introduced by Marvin Wolfgang (active) and Menachem Amir.

Active vs. Passive Victim Precipitation

Active precipitation occurs when a victim initiates physical violence or provocation; passive occurs when personal traits unknowingly threaten or antagonize the offender.

Lifestyle-Exposure Theory

Differences in victimization risk stem from variations in demographic lifestyles, which dictate routine associations and exposure to high-risk places. Developed by Michael Hindelang, Michael Gottfredson, and James Garofalo.

Repeat Victimization

The phenomenon where a specific person or household experiences multiple victimizations over a short time period; explained by boost and flag explanations.

Boost Explanation (Repeat Victimization)

Committing an initial crime against a victim provides the offender with knowledge and confidence to target the same victim again for another crime.

Flag Explanation (Repeat Victimization)

Certain enduring personal traits, locations, or situations act as risk flags that attract multiple, independent offenders over time.

Secondary Victimization

Trauma or harm inflicted on victims not by the criminal act itself, but through callous, skeptical, or bureaucratic treatment by criminal justice personnel.

Fear of Crime Paradox

The finding that groups statistically least likely to experience violent street victimization (e.g., elderly women) often report the highest subjective fear of crime.

Just-World Hypothesis

A cognitive bias leading people to believe the world is fundamentally fair, often causing observers to blame victims to preserve feelings of personal safety. Formulated by Melvin Lerner.

Restorative Justice in Victimology

An approach that addresses crime by actively involving victims, offenders, and communities in a process to repair emotional and material harms caused by offenses.

Victim-Offender Overlap

The empirical reality that many victims are also active offenders, and many offenders have substantial histories of criminal victimization.

Crime Victims' Rights Movement

Grassroots movement emerging in the 1970s and 1980s that secured statutory rights for victims: right to notification, right to be heard, and victim impact statements.

Victim Impact Statements (VIS)

Written or oral statements presented during sentencing explaining how a crime physically, emotionally, and financially affected the victim. Upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in Payne v. Tennessee.