Theories of Criminality, Aggression and Violence

Theories of Criminality, Aggression and ViolenceCriminal PsychologyGeorge C. WallCrime will affect e very(prenominal) one of us one counseling or another at more or less point in our life. We whitethorn not be the one who is victimized but it may be a family piece or neighbor, but we be still affected in some way. Criminals have many reasons why they choose that lifestyle, whether it is a mental defect or just a way to ferment it through life, they all have their reasons. If we tin find the reason for the law-breaking then we may be qualified to start combating it and help change those who commit crime.thither are many factors that cause a someone to choose the savage lifestyle. There are psychological factors as well as social chance factors when it comes to crime and these factors have different effects on people. When we examine the various psychological risk factors we enumerate at the cognitive and speech communication deficiencies, the individuals intelligence, co nditions such as perplexity deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 45). These psychological issues can affect the way a person learns proper behavior and affects the way they assimilate into society.The way a person learns and interprets what they are taught can make a difference in the way they behave. Cognitive and language impairments increase the risk of antisocial behavior, at least in boys (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 47). Antisocial behavior is a key item when it comes to the choice to violate the norms of society and the choice to become a criminal. These impairments can also lead a person to have a lower intelligence level. It is believed that if a person has a low intelligence level then they may be more apt to commit crime, ascribable to their strokes in school and these failures can lead to delinquency (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 47).Let us suffer a moment to look at how conditions such as at tention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder apply to criminal psychology. ADHD has three key behaviors, inattention, impulsivity and excessive motor control (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 50). ADHD can contribute to criminal behavior, some researchers estimate that about one-fourth of all children with ADHD engage in serious antisocial behavior during childhood and adolescence and criminal behavior as adults (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 51). Another serious condition is called conduct disorder, which is characterized by persistent misbehavior (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 52). This misbehavior can lead a person to take on the criminal lifestyle without looking back. The final condition we will look at is oppositional defiant disorder, which is a child who is negative, hostile, and defiant, more than is expected for his or her age, and lasting for at least six months (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 54). As with many psychological diagnoses, you can ha ve a person who suffers from any combination of disorders.We have this instant examined the psychological factors in criminal psychology now let us look at the social factors. The social factors include issues such as penury, equal rejection, despicable preschool child care, school failure, association with antisocial peers and the overleap of proper later on school care (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pgs. 31-37). The various social factors can be vex in any level of society from the wealthy to the poor. When we talk about those who live in poverty it is important to recognize that the great majority of poor children and adults are law-abiding citizens (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg 33). There is some connection between poverty and crime but it is not always the case, while people in poverty might commit crimes of desperation, white-collar criminals a lot commit crimes of opportunity (Vogel, 2008).Early peer rejection is a social factor that can cause a usually happy and compliant child to turn into a hostile antisocial child. One of the strongest predictors of later involvement in antisocial behavior is early rejection by peers (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 33). When a child is rejected by their peers they essential fulfill that need for acceptance somewhere, they tend to find from each one other and only interact with each other. During the adolescent years, involvement with antisocial peers shows a robust and consistent relationship to delinquency, drug use, and a range of other problematic behaviors (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 34).Poor preschool care and the lack of proper after school care can also contribute to antisocial and criminal behavior. Preschool is often a childs first prolonged interactions they have outside of their immediate family. Preschool is also where they begin to trail their social, language and learning skills. Poor-quality child care has been reported to put childrens development at risk for poorer language, poor cognitive development, a nd lower ratings of social and emotional adjustment (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 36). This poor development goes hand in hand with the psychological issues of inadequate cognitive and language development. Proper after school care can also help continue antisocial behavior. It is believed that children who are by themselves for large amounts of time after school tend to develop behavior problems (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 37). Organizations within the community can make a difference in a childs life, day-care centers that adequate to(p) their doors to children after school hours or community groups that offer after-school programs in troubled neighborhoods can make a positive difference (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 37).School failure also plays a role in the development of antisocial and criminal behavior. Again, we can see where school failure can affect the cognitive and language development of an individual. School failure eventually affects the community through higher rates of cr ime (Poole, 1997). In todays world the lack of reading limits a person on what jobs they can perform and who will hire them. This lack of employment can cause a person that normally would copy the law to become a criminal just to survive.In trying to understand the mind of a criminal we must consider all factors that created the person we are studying. These risk factors, rather they are psychological or social play a role in the development of antisocial and criminal behavior. In addition to risk factors we must also study humans ill will and violence. These risk factors will affect how a person handles aggression and violence since the way they develop coping methods can be affected by the way they learn to be a part of society.There are many theories on aggression and violence in humans. Some scientists believe that humans are born vulturous and naturally violent, or born relatively free of aggressive tendencies (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 111). The human being is able to dev elop the ability to control the aggression and violence through various learning methods. When the negative psychological and social issues develop we are unable to develop the proper methods to control ourselves.There have been many different theories and models developed over the years addressing aggression. The psychodynamic viewpoint assumes that humans, by their very nature, will always be prone to aggressive impulses and hence are likely to commit violent acts if these impulses are not appropriately managed or held in check (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 112). In addition to the psychodynamic viewpoint you have the ethological viewpoint, which is the study of animal behavior in relation to the animals natural habitat, and it compares that behavior to human behavior (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 112).In addition to these viewpoints there are various models associated with aggression and violence. The Cognitive-Neoassociation Model that thoughts and memories that are created through ou r early years are associated with aggression (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 115-116). There is also the Excitation Transfer Theory, which is a theory to explain how physiological arousal can generalize from one situation to another (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 116). This theory purposes that a person can be subjected to a negative event and because of that event they carry that anger or frustration to another event.Additionally, there is the Displaced Aggression Theory, aggression is displaced when the target is innocent of any wrongdoing but is simply in the wrong place at the wrong time (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 116). An example of this would be where a husband is angry at their wife and someone accidently bumps in to him and in turn they are assaulted. It is difficult to address all the theories to every incident, but we must keep every possibility in our minds when we are evaluating the cause of the aggression or violent act.We have theories to follow as well as some cognitive models of aggression. These models have hypothesized that, while observational learning is important in the process, the individuals cognitive learning is important in the process (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 122). The deuce models we will look at are the cognitive scripts model and the hostile attribution model. These models examine human behavior and the tendency to be aggressive and violent.The cognitive scripts model believes that social behavior in general, and aggressive behavior in particular, is controlled largely by cognitive scripts learned and memorized through daily experiences (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 122). This model states that behaviors and the responses a person has is based on what we all go through in life, our ups and downs. The hostile attribution model believes that people who are violent and aggressive often interpret ambiguous actions as hostile and threatening (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 123). These individuals may take a simple shoulder bump as an aggressive actio n and may become aggressive or violent towards the person.Exposure to violence in mass media has also been attributed to violent and aggressive behavior. Studies suggest that people, who play violent television receiver games, watch violent movies or television shows may be more prone to aggressive and violent behavior (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 131). These theories are often debated within the psychological community itself.There are different theories and approaches to aggressive and violent behavior. There are psychological and social factors that come into play as well. There are some environmental factors can lead to a person to make bad choices in life. Complications during birth, prenatal impression to nicotine, alcohol and drugs, faulty brain development, and exposure to toxins can all lead to antisocial and criminal behavior (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pgs. 69-73). Exposure to these environmental factors can cause the fetus to develop improperly, which can lead to antisocial b ehavior (Bartol Bartol, 2014, Pg. 69).The criminal mind is a difficult thing to understand. They each have their own reasons for committing crime and even though there are risk factors that can attribute to the choices that an individual may make. Along with all the theories, models and viewpoints we cannot ignore the person that commits the crime, while one of these may apply the end result is that crime was committed and a victim was created.ReferencesBartol, C., Bartol, A. (2014).Criminal behavior a psychological approach. (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ Pearson Education, Inc.Poole, D. L. (1997). The SAFE project Community-driven partnerships in health, mental health, and education to prevent early school failure. Health Social Work, 22(4), 282-9. Retrieved from http//search.proquest.com/docview/210556291?accountid=159007Vogel, S. (2008, Aug 24). Does poverty = crime? scholars disagree. McClatchy Tribune Business News. Retrieved February 16, 2014, from http//search.proque st.com/docview/464394103?accountid=159007