THEORIES(JUVENILE DELINQUENCY)

STRAIN THEORY
Strain theory is a sociology and criminology theory developed in 1938 by Robert K. Merton. The theory
states that society puts pressure on individuals to achieve socially accepted goals, though they lack the
means. This leads to strain which may lead the individuals to commit crimes.

It is defined as the deformation to external loading

Example:

 being selling drugs or becoming involved in prostitution, to gain financial security.

Types of strain

Structural: this refers to the processes at the societal level which filter down and affect how the
individual perceives his or her needs. if particular social structures are inherently inadequate or there is
inadequate regulation, this may change the individual's perceptions as to means and opportunities.

Individual: this refers to the frictions and pains experienced by an individual as he or she looks for ways
to satisfy his or her needs. if the goals of a society become significant to an individual, actually achieving
them may become more important than the means adopted.

Sources of strain

There are various sources of strain:

 Social sources of strain

 Community sources of strain

 Strain and criminal careers.

The Basic components of Strain Theory

 Poverty

 Maintenance of conventional rules and norms

 Strain

 Formation of gangs and groups

 Crime and delinquency Ø Criminal careers

Robert K. Merton

 He was an American sociologist

 He is considered a founding father of modern sociology.

Theories:

 1. Middle range theory

  2. Strain Theory

 3. Dysfunctions

Ø Books:

 1. Social Theory and Social Structure (1949)

 2. The Sociology of Science (1973)

 3. Sociological Ambivalence (1976)

 4. On the Shoulders of Giants: (1985)

 5. On Social Structure and Science (1996)

Albert K. Cohen

 American criminologist

 Theory: Subcultural Theory of delinquent urban gangs.

 Book:

1.Delinquent Boys: Culture of the Gang.

Cohen's Theory

 Gang delinquency is an attempt on the part of juveniles to acquire status among the delinquent
peers. These gangs are the subculture of a society.

 Robert K. Cohen concluded that most delinquent behavior occurred in gangs and most of them
were non- utilitarian, malicious and negativistic.

 Strain is most pronounced upon the youth. Strain causes crime to our society.

Cohen termed two ideologies:

 Status Frustration

Status frustration is directed mainly to the young people of lower classes. There is no parallel
between their own social realities and the rest of society's promoted goals. They become frustrated at
the disadvantages and inequalities that they face, and this leads to Cohen's second principle; reaction
formation.

 Reaction formation

Reaction formation is the reaction from status frustration, and the young men of the lower classes
find themselves replacing their society's norms and values with alternative ones.

 Strain causes for being failure at gaining status not for material wealth.

 Failing to achieve status, the youths are left with 'status frustration' where they suffer a
'problem of adjustment' caused by failure at school. This problem has been solved by the
delinquent subculture.
  Cohen saw the gang delinquency as non- utilitarian. He also include that serious delinquents
commit crime for money. They generally crime for "fast cars, fancy clothes, swell dames," and
others.

LABELLING THEORY
NEO CLASSICAL THEORY
 Freewill can be diminished or may not exist like in children and lunatics.
 It is started that “classical doctrine” is correct in general but should be modified is some
model. ( it is the modification of classical theory)
 States that since insane and minors do not know the consequences of their acts, they
must not be liable for the crimes they may commit.
 Children and lunatics can’t calculate pleasure from pain but should not be regarded as
criminals to be punished
CONTRIBUTION
Due process and legal rights
 Right not to be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law
 Right against unreasonable searches and seizure
 Right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty
 Right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him
 Right against self- incrimination
 Right to be informed of the reason of arrest
Alternative imprisonment and conditional sentence
 It includes pardon, parole and probation.
Aggravating and mitigating circumstances
Gabriel Tarde
 Founder of neo classical school
 Wrote a book entitled penal philosophy which says “ punishment should focus not only
on freewill but also in individual circumstances.”
-Means that age/gender/ social class are the other bases not only freewill.

BIOLOGICAL THEORY OF JUVENILE DELIQUENCY

Early Biological Theories

Phrenology
2. Lombroso’s “born criminal”
3. Physical deficiencies
4. The XYY “supermale”
5. Somatotype theory

Phrenology
• Exterior of the skull reflects the mind
• Bumps on the head indicate criminal tendencies

Lombroso’s “Born Criminal”

Cesare Lombroso
▪ 19th-century Italian physician
▪ Led the movement from classical school to scientific positivism
 Major contributions
▪ Study of the individual offender and crime conditions
▪ Application of statistical methods to data collection and analysis, as well as
multiple-factor analysis
▪ Use of typological methods to classify and study criminals and examine criminological
phenomena
Atavism
▪ Criminals as evolutionary “throwbacks”
▪ Physical traits (Stigmata)
 Peaked nose (as bird of prey)
 Sloped forehead, large jaws
 Strong canine teeth (as with carnivores)
  General hairiness of the body
 Low foreheads
Physical Deficiencies

• Charles Goring
 Criminal behavior related to defective intelligence
• Earnest Hooten
 Criminals physiologically inferior
 Physical traits
1. Low foreheads
2. Pinched noses
3. Compressed faces
4. Narrow jaws
Somatotype Theory

• Developed by William Sheldon (supported by the Gluecks at Harvard)

• Body build (somatotype) linked to:
▪ Behavioral tendencies
▪ Temperament
▪ Life expectancy
▪ Susceptibility to disease
• Explanations
▪ Those with muscular builds tend to enjoy the physical activity involved in crime.
▪ Mesomorphic body type may have an advantage in the rough-and-tumble activities of
street crime.
▪ Mesomorph is perceived as a threat and is therefore more likely to be arrested and/or
incarcerated.

The XYY “Supermale”

Chromosomal abnormality (extra Y chromosome)

▪ May be more likely to engage in criminal behavior (but not violent behavior)
▪ Extremely rare chromosome structure (less than 0.1% of total male population)
Modern Biological Approach

1. Behavioral genetics
2. Biological correlates of criminal behavior
3. Biosocial theory
4. Evolutionary theory (sociobiology)
Behavioral Genetics
Can criminality be inherited?
Trying to separate nature (genes) from nurture (environment)
▪ Family studies
▪ Twin studies
▪ Adoption studies
▪ Molecular genetics
Family studies
▪ Early studies traced family history (Jukes)
▪ Modern studies look at parent’s crime (Sampson and Laub)
▪ Findings: Parental crime consistently predicts children’s criminal behavior.
▪ Criticism: Environment (poor parenting, shared environment) could easily explain this
finding.
Twin studies
▪ Compare monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins
▪ MZ twins have higher concordance rates than DZ twins: Danish Study (Christiansen,
1979)
 MZ=52%
 DZ=22%
▪ Criticism:
▪ People may treat MZ twins more similarly
▪ MZ twins more likely to share friends (including delinquent peers)
Adoption studies
▪ Compare criminal record of adopted children with their biological and adoptive parents.
▪ Findings: Children’s criminal behavior relates more to biological parents.
▪ Criticism: Adoption agencies might have biased placements.
Molecular genetics
▪ Isolates particular genes that may relate to crime
▫ DNA
▫ Bases (A,T,C,G)
▫ Gene
Ex.
▫ Hans Brunner Case
Physiological differences exist between criminals and noncriminals.
▪ A wide range of factors potentially contribute to criminal behavior.
1. Neurological factors
2. Autonomic nervous system
3. Biological harms
4. Hormones
Biosocial Theory
Combinations of environmental and biological risk cause criminal behavior
1. Life-course-persistent offending
2. Personality-based theory
3. Female delinquency
Personality-Based Theory
Hans Eysenck
▪ Personality traits driven by underlying biology cause crime.
▪ Children with low arousal will be difficult to socialize.
▪ In criminal families, low arousal might prevent children from learning criminal behavior.
Female Delinquency
Early onset of puberty is linked to criminal behavior.
▪ Caspi et al. = This is true for girls in coed schools, but not for those in all-girls schools.
▪ Conclusion: Girls who start puberty early attract the attention of older, crime-prone
males, which may lead to delinquency. Good example of a biology x environment interaction.

Evolutionary Theory
Uses principles of evolution to explain modern human behavior
▪ Research
▪ Rape
▪ “Cads and dads” theory
▪ Criticism
▪ Difficult if not impossible to test
▪ Evidence sometimes runs counter to predictions
Rape
▪ Evolutionary processes allow males who are pushy and aggressive in the pursuit of sex
to pass on their genes successfully.
▪ “Cads and dads” theory
▪ Alternative strategies for reproductive success
▪ Cads—pretend caregivers who really want to reproduce with as many females as
possible
▪ Dads—invest time and energy to help nurture and raise offspring
Summary
Many biological factors appear to be related to criminal behavior:
▪ Inherited
▪ Results of biological harm
▪ Biological factors contribute to criminality in certain environmental circumstances.
▪ Humans may be partially driven toward crime by natural forces beyond their control.
Rational Choice as a Criminology Theory
Rational choice theory was first introduced by economists and later adopted by criminology
studies in the late 1970s. Rational choice theory in criminology grew out of same utilitarian
philosophy as deterrence associated with the classical school of criminology developed by
Cesare Beccaria. Working from the classical school of criminology and the theoretical
framework of utilitarianism Jeremy Bentham discuss the concept of calculus of pleasure or
hedonistic calculus. Hedonistic calculus states that people will weigh the possible pleasures
from committing the crime against the possible pain from punishment, and act accordingly.
DEMONOLOGICAL THEORY
Demonology
 Is the study of demons of beliefs about demons, they be nonhuman separable
souls.
 A person did not commit crime of his own freewill
 Is one of the earliest theory in criminology.
 The first school of criminology was the demonological school of criminology
 Basis of these theory is religious beliefs
  In ancient times, people believed that evil spirits or demons entered the human soul
and made people commit sins.
 Terms like; demons, witches and wendigo.
 they believed that there are two kinds of forces in the world and that is the Gods forces
and the satanic forces
Example:
under trial by ordeal (trial by water)
Conclusion:
 An early explanation of crime is theological or religious. Crime has been viewed as a
violation of religious doctrine. It is called a sin - a violation of sacred obligation. An
individual who commits a crime has been viewed as possessed by evil spirits or under
divine wrath. Criminal acts were considered as indicia of basically evil human nature
suggesting adherence to Satan or under the spell of the prince of darkness.
The causes of crime have been based in superstitious belief in which criminals were
allegedly perceived as controlled by other worldly forces – the devil.