Origin: Many Sociological Theories of Crime Causation Stem From The Work of Emile Durkheim

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Origin: Many sociological theories of crime causation stem from the work of Emile Durkheim
who rejected the idea that the world is simply the product of individual actions. Durkheim
believed that laws and institutions are “social facts” and all people can do is submit to them. The
sociological theory was shaped by the Chicago School in 1920s.
Characteristics or Beliefs of Theory
1. Social Environment as the cause of criminal behavior.
2. Weak, broken bonds with family, school, religion as catalyst to human behavior.
3. People engage in criminal behaviour because they do not see the benefits of adhering to
conventional social values and believe that crime is a way to improve their social,
financial conditions.
4. Positive alternatives divert people’s actions away from criminal activity and create a
sense of belonging, competence, and empowerment.
5. Social programs that change the cultural and social conditions that lead people to crime.
6. Government programs with funding to alleviate poverty.
Ideas: In a nutshell, sociologists emphasize that human beings live in social groups, thus it is
such groups and the social structure that create influence behavior. Most sociological theories of
crime causation assume that a criminal’s behavior is determined by his or her social
environment.
· A criminal and criminality is a product of the society. Durkheim argued that crime is a
social fact, and the cause of crime is anomie.
· Individuals do not simply become criminals by rational choice/free will, neither do they
commit crimes just because they were born criminals or out of being abnormal.
· Criminality occurs as a result of group interaction and socialisation process. Crime is a
result of an individual’s location within the structure of society (socio-economic forces) –
poverty, peer and family relation, neighbourhood, socialisation, and group interaction.
· In short, the theory attempts to show the relationship between social factors and crime.
Crime Control:
· Crime/criminality is a social phenomenon that can be reduced by improving socio-
economic conditions.
The three major sociological theories of crime and delinquency:

1. Social structure theory
2. Social process theory
3. Social conflict & critical crim
1. Social Structure Theory

Sociological theories explore relationships among groups and institutions and envision crime as
the result of social processes, as the natural consequence of aspects of social structure, or as the
result of economic and class struggle. Social structure theories has mostly been concerned, are
only one of three types of sociological explanations for crime. Social structure theories
emphasize poverty, lack of education, absence of marketable skills, and sub cultural values as
fundamental causes of crime.
Three subtypes of social structure theories can be identified:
1. Social disorganization theory: This theory given by Chicago school arose in the early
twentieth century, through the work of Robert E. Park, Ernest Burgess and other urban
sociologists at the University of Chicago. He propounded that a person’s physical and
social environments are primarily responsible for the behavioural choices that person
makes. In particular, a neighbourhood that has fraying social structures is more likely to
have high crime rates. Such a neighbourhood may have poor schools, vacant and
vandalized buildings, high unemployment, and a mix of commercial and residential
property.
2. Strain theory: This theory was given by Robert Merton. His view is most people have
similar aspirations, but they don’t all have the same opportunities or abilities. When
people fail to achieve society’s expectations through approved means such as hard work
and delayed gratification, they may attempt to achieve success through crime.
3. Culture deviance theory: The major tenet of cultural deviance theory is that conformity
to the prevailing cultural norms of lower class society causes crime. Lower class
subculture has a unique set of values and beliefs, which are invariably in conflict with
conventional social norms. Criminality is an expression of conformity to lower class
subcultural values. Members of the working class commit crimes as they respond to the
cultural norms of their own class in an effort to deal with problems of social –middle
class- adjustment.
2. Social process theory

Social processes theory shows criminality as a function of peoples interaction with various
organizations, Institutions, and process in society; people in all work of life have the potential to
become criminals if they maintain destructive social relationships.
Social process theory has three main branches:

1. Social learning theory emphasizes people to learn how to commit crime.
2. Social control theory analysis the failure of society to control criminal tendency.
3. Social Reaction (Labeling) theory maintains the negative labels produced by criminal careers
1. SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:-

The social learning theory is one of the type of social process theory. It shows that people learn
to be vigorous by perceiving other acting aggressively to achieve some goal or being rewarded
for violent Acts.
There are two types of social learning theory:-

Differential association social learning theory:- In criminology, Differential association theory is
developed by Edwin Sutherland. People learn to commit from exposure to antisocial definition.
# Explain the presence of crime in all elements of social structure.
# Explain why some people in high crime area refrain from criminality
# Can apply to adults and juveniles.
Principles of Differential Association

1. Criminal behavior is learned as a by-product of interacting with others.
2. Learning criminal behavior occurs within intimate personal group.
3. Learning criminal behavior involves assimilating the techniques of committing crime.
4. The specific direction of motives is learned from perception of various aspects of legal court
as favorable or not.
5. A person becomes a criminal when he/she perceives more favorable than the unfavorable
consequences to violating the law.
6. It may vary in duration frequency intensity and priority.
7. The process of learning criminal behavior involves all of the mechanisms involved in any
learning process
Drawbacks of Differential association

1.Fails to account for the origin of criminal clarity.
2. Presume criminal and Lawbreaking Acts are rational and systematic
3. Circular in reasoning
Neutralization Theory
It shows that law violators learn to neutralize conventional values and attitudes enabling them to
push back and forth between criminal and conventional behavior. It explains why many
lawbreaking doesn’t become adult criminals it also explains why youthful law offender can
participate in ordinary behavior.
Basics of neutralization theory

1.Criminals sometimes voice their regret over their illegal acts.
2. Offenders frequently respect and admire honest law-abiding persons.
3. Criminals define whom they can victimize.
2. Social control theory

This shows that people commit crime when the process binding them to society are weakened or
broken. It explains onset of crime; can apply to both lower and middle classes, has been
empirically tested.
What forces some people to obey rules

1.Self-control
2.Commitment conformity
Self-control
A strong moral sense that renders someone incapable of hurting others and violating social
norms
Commitment of conformity
Develops with a strong commitment to conventional institutions, individual and processes.
Contemporary social control theory

Joins the onset of criminality to the incapacitate of the ties that bind people to society. There is
four main elements of the social bond according to contemporary social control theory
1.Attachment
2.Commitment
3.Involvement
4.Belief
3. Social reaction (Labeling) Theory

The social labeling theory one of the type of social process theory. Social labeling shows that
people become criminals when labeled as such and when they accepted the labels as a personal
identity. It explains society or surroundings role in creating aberrant. it also explains why ;some
juvenile offenders/criminals do not become adult.
Main elements of social labeling theory

1. Behaviors that are considered criminal are highly subjective
2. Crime is defined by those in power.
3. Not only are Acts labeled, so too are people
4. Both positive and negative labels involve subjective interpretation of behavior.
Contributions of social reaction theory

1. Identifies the role played by social control agents in crime causation.
2. Recognizes the criminality is not a disease or pathological behavior
3. Distinguishes between criminal acts and criminal careers.
4. Contributes to understanding crime because of its focus on interaction as well as the situation
surrounding the crime.
3. Social conflict and critical theory:
In this theory the main causes of crime are economic, social and political disparity. These
theories further divided in to three sub-theories are:
1. Left Realism
Left realism is just one political ideology that focuses on the causes of crime and
deviance. Left realists believe that living in a capitalistic society, a society where private
entities control trade and industry instead of the state, is the main cause for crime. In a
capitalistic society, there is cultural inclusion, meaning that everyone who lives within
this society can pursue the ideals and concepts under capitalism.
Essentially, they are consumers; however, most are economically excluded, meaning that
they can't afford the things that others can to be relevant in a capitalistic society.
Therefore, those who are economically excluded resort to crime and deviant behavior to
fill the void left by not being able to buy all the crap that advertising tells them they
should.
Reasons for Crime
 Relative deprivation The rise of social media has made this factor the frontrunner for
developing a criminal perspective. More people are exposed to advertising and
consumerist propaganda, and at the same time, they are continually exposed to how much
they don't have or can acquire by seeing all the tings everybody else does. This constant
bombardment of the unattainable is economic exclusion.
 Marginalization Essentially, this is what happens when groups and demographics of
people are left without a voice. Consider the Black Lives Matter movement. This was
started because African-Americans felt that they were not being treated as fairly as
whites.
 Subculture This is an acceptance of resorting to illegal means to attain desires. Theft,
drug dealing, robbery all become a way of life in some of the communities that are
suffering from economic exclusion.
2. Critical Feminism
Gender inequality is a result of exploitation of women in a male dominated society. Feminist

criminology emphasizes the subordinate position of women in society. According to feminist
criminologists, women remain in a position of inferiority that has not been fully rectified by
changes in the law during the late twentieth century. Feminist criminology also explores the
ways in which women's criminal behavior is related to their objectification as commodities in the
sex industry. Women’s role with in society and families results in criminal behavior.

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SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY

The three major sociological theories of crime and delinquency:

1. Social Structure Theory

Three subtypes of social structure theories can be identified:

2. Social process theory

Social process theory has three main branches:

1. SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:-

There are two types of social learning theory:-

Principles of Differential Association

Drawbacks of Differential association

Basics of neutralization theory

2. Social control theory

What forces some people to obey rules

Contemporary social control theory

3. Social reaction (Labeling) Theory

Main elements of social labeling theory

Contributions of social reaction theory

3. Social conflict and critical theory:

Gender inequality is a result of exploitation of women in a male dominated society. Feminist

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