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Criminal Behaviour :check: (Social Learning Theory (Observaton, Role-Model…
Criminal Behaviour
:check:
Key Concepts
Defining crime problems
Age
Era
Country
Measuring problems
Not always reported
Wrongly convicted
Count number of criminal acts not criminals
Criminal personality
Pleasure-Seeking
Over-Optimistic
Lack of guilt
Self-importance
Impulsiveness
Biological Theory
Heritability
Criminal Gene
Brain Dysfunction
Pre-frontal cortex=decision making
Underactive
Assicates anti social behaviour and fear
Facial Features
Lots of hair
Asymmetrical face
Handle like ears
Glassy eyes
Criticisms
Not one criminal gene - crimes so varied (e.g. theft, rape).
Brain dysfunction NOT present in ALL criminals so can't be cause of criminality
Some brain dysfunction caused by injury /illness so not genetic
No evidence for criminal facial features
Ignores social environment
Social Learning Theory
Observaton
Role-Model
Vicarious Reinforcement
Imitation
Direct Reinforcement
Mednick et al Study
PROCEDURE:
IV
-whether adopted, biological or both parents had criminal records.
14,000 males from Denmark
DV
- Whether child had criminal record
Adoption study
analysing criminal records
RESULTS:
Criminal records in BOTH BIOLOGICAL and ADOPTIVE parents led to
highest rate (24.5%)
Children with
convicted adoptive but not biological parents
had LOWER rates of criminality
(14.7%)
than children with
convicted biological but not adoptive parents
(20%)
Rates for children where neither set of parents had criminal records were the lowest: 13.5%
Limitations
Sample was unrepresentative
Gender biased
Culturally biased
Potentially Unreliable Records
Contamination Effect
- 90% adopted before 2 years many still lived with bio parents for big part of sensitive period
AIM
: to see whether
nature
or
nurture
plays a greater role in passing on criminal behaviour
CONCLUSION:
Nature/Biology has BIGGEST EFFECT
Nurture still has an effect (hence adoptive parents still having an impact
Applications
PRISONS
Rehabilitation of Criminals
Social Skills Training
Token System
Rewards desired behaviours therefore reinforcing these behaviours in future
Vicarious punishment to deter other criminals
TV & FILM
Watershed
9pm start to films unsuitable for younger viewers
Rating system
to prevent imitation from too young viewers