Biological
This theory suggests that inherited characteristics may increase a person’s tendency toward aggression, impulsivity, or offending.
What is Trait Theory?
According to this theory, criminal behaviour can be learned through rewards, punishment, repeated experience, and observation.
What is Behavioural Learning Theory?
This theory argues that crime may become more likely when people are encouraged to achieve success but lack legitimate opportunities to do so.
What is Strain Theory?
This theory says crime becomes more attractive when it appears rewarding, easy, and unlikely to result in punishment.
What is Rational Choice Theory?
This early school of criminology (1700s) argues that people have free will and may commit crime after weighing the costs and benefits of their actions.
What is Classical Criminology?
Testosterone and androgens would be studied under this type of biological explanation.
What is Gender Based Hormonal Differences?
This condition involves losing contact with reality and may include hallucinations, delusions, and severely disorganized thinking.
What is Psychosis?
This theory argues that criminal techniques, attitudes, motives, and justifications are learned through interaction with other people.
What is Differential Association Theory?
Locks, cameras, alarms, better lighting, and controlled entrances are all examples of this approach to preventing crime.
What is Situational crime prevention?
This school of criminology (1800s) argues that crime is influenced by biological, psychological, and social causes that can be studied scientifically.
What is Positivist Criminology?
Damage to the frontal lobe, neurotransmitter differences, and abnormal brain functioning would fall under this area of biological criminology.
What is Neurophysiology?
“Nobody really got hurt” and “They deserved it” are examples of this type of distorted thinking.
What is Cognitive Distortions?
Instead of asking why people commit crime, this theory asks why most people do not commit crime and focuses on bonds to society.
What is Social Control Theory?
A store improves security and shoplifting decreases there but increases at the store next door. This is known as what?
What is Displacement?
This approach examines how the physical, built, and social environment can create or reduce opportunities for crime.
What is Environmental Criminology?
This theory suggests that some behaviours developed because they helped humans survive, compete for resources, and reproduce.
What is Evolutionary Theory?
Freud’s theory argues that criminal behaviour may result when this part of behaviour/mind, responsible for immediate wants and impulses, becomes too dominant.
What is 'The Id'?
According to this theory, being called a “criminal” or “troublemaker” may alter a person’s identity, opportunities, and future behaviour.
What is Labelling Theory?
This concept argues that some offenders are attracted to crime partly because danger, adrenaline, and risk themselves are rewarding.
What is Edgework?
This approach argues that crime, laws, and punishment must be understood in relation to power, inequality, privilege, and social justice.
What is Critical Criminology?
This controversial evolutionary idea suggests that males may have developed tendencies toward sexual aggression as a reproductive strategy.
What is Cheaters Theory?
This theory suggests that differences in how people develop their understanding of right, wrong, rules, and ethical behaviour may influence offending.
What is Moral Development Theory?
“I had no choice,” “Nobody got hurt,” and “They deserved it” could all be used by offenders to temporarily excuse behaviour they know is wrong.
What is Neutralization Theory?
This controversial effect suggests that extremely harsh or violent punishment may actually increase violence by communicating that violence is an acceptable response.
What is the Brutalization Effect?
This perspective examines how gender, patriarchy, inequality, and unequal treatment shape experiences of crime, victimization, and the justice system.
What is Feminist Criminology?