Understanding Crime and Deviance: Control Theories, Slides of Sociology of Deviance

Download Understanding Crime and Deviance: Control Theories and more Slides Sociology of Deviance in PDF only on Docsity! Control Theories docsity.com Fundamentals of Control Theory • The Issue: Why are most people not deviant? • Hirschi’s views on society and human nature: – Humans are “naturally-motivated offenders.” – Society is built on consensus on “rules”; in social settings, people give up their “human nature.” • Hirschi on the nature of crime and deviance – It’s solitary. – It’s self-interested. – It’s opportunistic. – It’s easy. docsity.com Self Control Theory (cont.) • Causes of low self control: – Lack of nurturance in infancy and early childhood – “Poor child monitoring,” ie, lack of discipline – Dysfunctional family structures, eg, big families, single-parent households • Crime prevention starts at home. docsity.com Empirical Support for Control Theories • Studies in schools suggest that bonds (commitment and involvement) to conventional activities do prevent delinquency. • Studies of prisoners support SCT: Robbers are impulsive and self-centred, not “rational.” docsity.com Criticisms of Control Theories • Unsupported basic assumptions • Avoidance of situational/structural factors (aside from families) • Bizarre arguments regarding “at-risk” persons • Reliance on self-reports • Tautology: the result of low self-control is also operationalized as an indicator of low self-control: Being deviant makes one deviant. docsity.com