Theories in Criminology

 

In Criminology, examining why people commit a crime is very important in the ongoing debate of how crime should be handled and prevented. Many theories have emerged over the years, and they continue to be explored, individually and in combination, as criminologists seek the best solutions in ultimately reducing types and levels of crime. Here is a broad overview of some key theories which would help to extract the reason why people chose anti-social behavior and some remain obedient to societal norms.

1.       Rational Choice Theory: the rational choice theory says that people generally act in their self-interest and make decisions to commit crime after weighing the potential risks (including getting caught and punished) against the rewards, if the reward and punishment or pain and pleasure factor is solved through overlapping the pain over the pleasure then it would create the sense of profitability among the offenders because their doing of crime would not bring them the pleasure they want instead it would become the reason of pain for them. naturally, it would create deterrence for the offenders.

2.       Social Disorganization Theory: A Person’s physical and social environments are primarily responsible for the behavioral choices that person makes. In particular, a neighborhood that has a fraying social structure is more likely to have high crime rates. Such a neighborhood may have poor schools, vacant and vandalized buildings, high unemployment, and a mix of commercial and residential property. and the well-established neighborhoods where the social responsibilities are taken seriously and the sense of community are strong then the space for the criminal behavior becomes diminishing. the reason behind that social difference is that the well-established society has the basic institutions of education, health, and security with proper functioning which impart the fear of law and a sense of discipline and belonging.

3.       Strain theory: Most people have similar aspirations, but they don’t all have the same opportunities or abilities. When people fail to achieve society’s expectations through approved means such as hard work and delayed gratification, they may attempt to achieve success through crime. it means this theory warn the society that if the basic goals which were created by the society as targets to be achieved by every member in order to be called a successful member of society have created troubles for those members who couldn't meet such goals through following the standards of society so they then indulge in anti-social behaviors which were deemed necessary by them to achieve those goals. countering such social phenomena from society it is imperative to create an environment that enables everyone to achieve the goals of society without involving in criminal activities.

4.       Social learning theory: People develop motivation to commit a crime and the skills to commit crime through the people they associate with. in more simple words, people learn behavior from the people they have close contact with. basically, this theory talks about the process of learning the anti-social behavior by the people from the other associated people. if the association with deviant groups is curtailed then the chance of involving in criminal activities becomes non-existent.

5.       Social Control Theory: Most people would commit crimes if not controlled by society through institutions such as schools, workplaces, churches, and families. this theory calls the importance of basic institutions in light and tries to establish the fact that without having a strong control mechanism by the above-mentioned institutions the chance of person accelerated in the context of involving with criminal groups.

6.       Labeling Theory: People in power decide what acts are crimes, and the act of labeling someone a criminal is what makes him a criminal. Once a person is labeled a criminal, society takes away his opportunities, which may ultimately lead to more criminal behavior.

7.       Biology, genetics, and evolution: poor diet, mental illness, bad brain chemistry, and even evolutionary rewards for aggressive criminal conduct have been proposed as explanations for crime.