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    Psychological Theories

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    Syakir Che Saruji
    Psychological theories of crime propose that criminal behavior stems from differences in thinking and mental processes. There are four main ideas of these theories: 1) failures in psychological development, 2) learned aggression and violence, 3) inherent personality traits, and 4) links between criminality and mental illness. However, criticisms argue that psychological theories cannot fully explain why some individuals with issues become criminals while others do not, are difficult to test conclusively, and treatments based on them are not always effective in preventing future criminal behavior.

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    Psychological Theories

    Uploaded by

    Syakir Che Saruji
    2K views3 pages
    Psychological theories of crime propose that criminal behavior stems from differences in thinking and mental processes. There are four main ideas of these theories: 1) failures in psychological development, 2) learned aggression and violence, 3) inherent personality traits, and 4) links between criminality and mental illness. However, criticisms argue that psychological theories cannot fully explain why some individuals with issues become criminals while others do not, are difficult to test conclusively, and treatments based on them are not always effective in preventing future criminal behavior.

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    PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES

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    Psychological theories of crime propose that criminal behavior stems from differences in thinking and mental processes. There are four main ideas of these theories: 1) failures in psychological development, 2) learned aggression and violence, 3) inherent personality traits, and 4) links between criminality and mental illness. However, criticisms argue that psychological theories cannot fully explain why some individuals with issues become criminals while others do not, are difficult to test conclusively, and treatments based on them are not always effective in preventing future criminal behavior.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    2K views3 pages

    Psychological Theories

    Uploaded by

    Syakir Che Saruji
    Psychological theories of crime propose that criminal behavior stems from differences in thinking and mental processes. There are four main ideas of these theories: 1) failures in psychological development, 2) learned aggression and violence, 3) inherent personality traits, and 4) links between criminality and mental illness. However, criticisms argue that psychological theories cannot fully explain why some individuals with issues become criminals while others do not, are difficult to test conclusively, and treatments based on them are not always effective in preventing future criminal behavior.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 3

    PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES

    Psychological theories of crime say that criminal behavior is a result of individual


    differences in thinking processes. There are many different psychological theories, but they
    all believe that it is the person's thoughts and feelings that dictate their actions. As such,
    problems in thinking can lead to criminal behavior. Some believe that what he did was
    wrong, which was what led him to act out in the first place.

    There are four basic ideas when it comes to psychological theories of crime. These general
    assumptions are that crime is a result of:

    1. Failures in psychological development


    Some people run into trouble because they didn't develop, or grow, the way that others
    normally do. For example, Rory has an underdeveloped conscience. Whereas Amy hears a
    little voice inside her reminding her what is right and wrong, Rory just does what he wants
    and doesn't think about right or wrong. This is an example of what happens when someone
    has an issue with psychological development.

    2. Learned behaviors of aggression and violence


    If someone is surrounded by violence and aggression, they are more likely to become violent
    and aggressive themselves, because they have learned that those behaviors are okay. For
    example, Rory comes from a very abusive household, and his violent parents taught him that
    it's normal to work out your frustrations by being violent against others.

    3. Inherent personality traits


    There are some characteristics that criminals tend to share with each other, and some
    psychologists believe that there are certain personality traits that predispose someone towards
    criminal behavior. For example, even as a baby, Rory liked to seek out dangerous and
    exciting activities. Amy is happy to stay at home with a book; that's enough excitement for
    her. But, Rory likes danger, which could lead him to act recklessly and perhaps in criminal
    ways.

    4. Relationship of criminality to mental illness


    Some people with psychological disorders end up committing crimes. While this isn't the
    case for all people with mental illness, there are a higher-than-normal percentage of criminals
    with mental illness. For example, Rory has been diagnosed with a personality disorder, which
    means that he feels less empathy than other people.
    All of these psychological factors could have an effect on someone like Rory, who then ends
    up a criminal.

    Criticisms
    Amy is wondering if psychological theories of crime could explain why her friend Rory
    ended up a criminal, whereas she ended up a law-abiding citizen. There certainly seems to be
    a lot of psychological differences between the two of them. Could that explain the differences
    in their behavior?

    Though there is much support for psychological theories, there are also some criticisms. For
    one thing, opponents point out that psychological theories can't explain why some people are
    criminals and others aren't. For example, not everyone with mental illness ends up a criminal,
    and not everyone who was abused ends up a criminal. But, Rory, who was abused and has a
    psychological disorder, ended up a criminal. Psychological theories can't tell us why that is
    true.

    Another issue with psychological theories of crime is that they are difficult to test. Amy can't
    open up Rory's head and see his psychological issues carved on his brain. All a person can
    see are the symptoms of a psychological problem, not the underlying issue. This could lead to
    misdiagnoses, and even lead to some people faking psychological disorders in order to get a
    lighter sentence.

    Finally, treatment plans based on psychological theories are not always effective. There is
    still a high rate of criminals who commit crimes even after being treated for psychological
    issues. Thus, even though psychological theories might be correct in judging why people
    become criminals, they haven't yet figured out how to prevent people from becoming or
    continuing to be criminals.
    Lesson Summary

    Criminology is the study of crime and punishment. Psychological theories of crime look at


    how differences in people's thoughts and feelings can lead to criminal behavior. There are
    four basic aspects of psychological theories of crime, which say that crime is a result of
    failures in psychological development, learned behaviors of aggression and violence, inherent
    personality traits, and the relationship of criminality to mental illness. Though there is a lot of
    support for psychological theories of crime, there are also some criticisms, including the idea
    that they can't explain why some people are criminals and others aren't, even when they have
    the same issues; they are difficult to test; and that treatment plans based on psychological
    theories are not always effective.

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