Criminology

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  • Created by: rachel.m
  • Created on: 04-12-14 11:06
Define Crime
An act that is against the law
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Define Criminal Psychology
The application of psychological principles to all aspects of crime
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Define Recividism
When someone repeats a crime or a behavious for which they have either been punished or recieved treatment
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Define Anti-Social Behaviour
Any behavious that affects other people badly, often means aggressive behavious but may not always be a crime
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Define Eye Witness Testimony
An account people give of an incident they have witnessed (seen)
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Define Token Economy
The programmes used to obtain desirable behavious in closed institutions, e.g prisons. They are a form of behaviou modification used for juvenile and adult offenders
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Define Modelling
Refers to the behavious eing demonstrated as well as produced (ARRM)
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Describe SLT
- Attention = py attention to model (those we percieve to be attractive etc) // Retention = Remebering what has been observed // Reproduction = Memories translated into actions // Motivation = needed to continue reproduction E.g Vicarious Reinf.
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Summarise the findings of one piece of supporting evidence for SLT
B,R+R (1961) / most aggression seen in children shown an agg. model / Boys more likely to copy male model for phys,verb,non-imit+gun play - SIGNIFICANT / Girls more likely to copy a female model for verb/non-imit. - NOT SIGNIFICANT
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Describe the procedure of Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961)
Boys and girls observed models of both sexes modelling aggressive and non-aggressive behaviour towards a bobo doll (and a control group that saw no model)
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How does B,R+R (1961) support SLT? (Fred West)
Explainscriminal behaviour / A = father - agg. model - same sex | mother - agg. model (rabbit beater/gun use) / R = remembered + learned how they acted to the point where it was 'normal' / Repeated this / M = Got attention form parents - V.R
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Strengths of SLT as an explanation for criminal behaviour
Application - understnads causes and therefore uses the right intervention (+ve role models) / Supporting evidence = B,R+R (1961) - procedures, findings, why its a strength
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Weaknesses of SLT as an explanation for criminal behaviour
Criticism = criminal activity that hasnt been observed? Individual Differences? Biology? / B,R+R - Lacks ec.val, Hard to generalise, Demand C's, Limited sample // Alt. Theory = Criminal Pers. + description
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What is Desensitisation?
One explanation for how watching violence on t.v. might lead to vilent actions that assumes we et so used to watching violence that intitial feelings of shock + emotion diminish so we no longer have such a strong reaction to violence
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What does Disinhibition assume?
That watching actions that are so far away from normal social norms reduces our inhibitions and leads us to do things we wouldn't otherwise do
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According to Eysenck's Criminal Personality Theory, ASB is caused by what?
An interaction between genetic factos associated wiht personality and environmental influences
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A particualr nervous system causes what..?
A predisposition to criminality that can be pased on through genetics
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Personality types respond to environmental stimuli differently. Give two examples
Extroverts = dampened RAS so seek external stimulation e.g risk-taking/ASB to restore the balance /// Introverts = high levels of internal arousal so seek to reduce stimulation levels e.g. sit quietly
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Descirbe the features of a neurotic individual
unstable // neuroticism is linked to ANS as sympathetic division is quick to turn on and parasympathetic division is slow to turn off - criminality is linked to impulsivity and violent response (fight)
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What combination of personality types are more likely to seek out anti-social activity and resist social-conditioning?
High neuroticism and extroversion
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Why are psychotic individuals the most dangerous?
They lack empathy so can harm or distress others without guilt or remorse
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Describe one piece of evidence supporting Eysenck's theory
He found himself that amongst convicted prisoners there was a sig. no. of high E+N scores and significantly more high E+N amongst criinals than amongst non-offenders
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Describe another piece of evidence supporting his theory
He also found that most serious criminals, murderers, rapists etc. had the crucial combination of high E+N+P scores
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Descrive the third piece of supporting evidence for his theory
Rushton & Christjohn (1981) compared E+N scores with self-reports of delinquency in school children and found the self-confessed "delinquents" were the highest E+N scores
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Describe one piece of evidence against the theory
Farrington et al (1982) reviewed 16 studies whihc had looked at the association between E,N+P scores and criminal convictions found that in the majority of cases there was a clear association with P and N but not necessarily on E
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Describe another piece of evidence against the theory
Hollin (1989) agrees that the E score is not so closely associated as N&P
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Describe the final piece of evidence against the theory (following on from the previous point)
Putwain & Sammons (2002) point out that this could be that E measures both sociability and impulsiveness. Criminality may be associated with the latter, but not the former. Thus, the E scale may need to be re-thought.
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Give two weakness of his theory
Most of the studies have compared E,N,P scores between convicted criminals and the general population // This leaves out criminals who haven't been caught - perhaps this theory can only explain ineffective criminals' personalities
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Give two more weaknesses of his theory
Eysenck's theory tells us that rapists and child abusers are high E,P+N scorers but DOESNT TELL US WHY // Therefore his theory is mroe decriptive than it is explanatory
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Give two strengths of his theory
It is useful when trying to prevent crime as it suggests that pre-criminal tendencies can be detected and measured during childhood
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Give two more strengths of the theory
It may be possible to modify socialisation for potentially high-risk individuals, to prevent them developing into offenders // Eysenck saw this as a real possibility and advocated social engineering for this purpose
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Give five similarities between SLT and Eysenck
They both provide explanations for criminal behaviour // both see the env. as having a role / both use criminal personalities in their research (SLT - Farrington/ Eysenck - Rushton and Christjohn (1981) / Neither can tell cause and effect /Prevention
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Give three differences
Eysenck has a biological point of view whereas SLT has a social view // Eysenck take sinto account the role of the CNS and RAS // Eysenck has more supportive evidence outside the theory e.g Raine et al
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Define Criminal Psychology

Back

The application of psychological principles to all aspects of crime

Card 3

Front

Define Recividism

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

Define Anti-Social Behaviour

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

Define Eye Witness Testimony

Back

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