1. Social Learning Theories
Differential Association Theory
Akers’ Social Learning Theory

2. Differential Association Theory
Edwin H. Sutherland (1939)
Sutherland's theory departs from the psychological perspective and biological perspective by attributing the cause of crime to the social context of individuals

3. Differential association

4. Differential association
“Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are.. “

5. Diagnose Your Network
You can map the connections you have with other people to determine the network you currently have
Write down the names of the most important contacts in your network—people you rely on for the exchange of private information, specialized expertise, advice, and inspiration/emotional support

6. Diagnose Your Network
After you identify your key contacts, think about how you first meet them (make sure to write down the names of someone who introduced you to this contact) + who they are and where they are from.

7. Two things to look at
Self-similarity principle –we tend to choose people who resemble us in terms of experience, training, worldview, and so on.
Proximity principle- people with similar background, experience, etc tend to live in the neighborhood, go to the same school, work at the same department, etc.

8. Differential Association Theory
Criminal behavior is learned.
Criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other persons in a process of communication.
The principal part of the learning of criminal behavior occurs within intimate personal groups.

9. Differential Association Theory
4. When criminal behavior is learned, the learning includes
(a) techniques of committing the crime, which are sometimes very complicated, sometimes very simple;
(b) the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes.

10. Differential Association Theory
5. The specific direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal codes as favorable or unfavorable.
6. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violations of law.

11. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of the law
If DFC/DUC > 1.0,
DFC = weighted definitions
favorable to crime
DUC = weighted definitions
unfavorable to crime

12. Differential Association Theory
7.Differential associations may vary in
frequency,
duration,
priority,
intensity.

13. Differential Association Theory
8. The process of learning criminal behavior and anticriminal patterns involves all of the mechanisms that are involved in any other learning. 9. While criminal behavior is an expression of general needs and values, it is not explained by those general needs and values, since noncriminal behavior is an expression of the same needs and values.

14. Ronald Akers: Central concepts of Differential Reinforcement Theory
Differential association (groups provide major social context for learning)
Definitions (attitudes/meanings)
Differential reinforcement (anticipated/actual rewards and punishments)
Imitation

15. Main Concepts
Differential association refers to direct association and interaction with others who engage in certain kinds of behavior or express norms, values, and attitudes supportive of such behavior, as well as the indirect association and identification with more distant reference groups .

16. Inner city

17. Suburb

18. Main Concepts
Definitions are one’s own orientations, rationalizations, justifications, excuses, and other attitudes that define the commission of an act as relatively more right or wrong, good or bad, desirable or undesirable, justified or unjustified, appropriate or inappropriate.

19. Definitions
General Definitions - include religious, moral, and other conventional values and norms that are favorable to conforming behavior
Specific Definitions orient the person to particular acts. Thus, one may believe that stealing is bad, but stealing from bad people/drug dealers is O.K.

20. Definitions Unfavorable to Crime
“Crime doesn’t pay.”
“Marijuana causes brain damage and leads to cocaine and heroin.”
“Turn the other cheek when insulted.”
“Always be a law abiding citizen and you’ll be respected.”
“Don’t drink and drive – you can hurt someone.”
“Don’t throw your life away by breaking the law!”
“Sinners will be damned for eternity.”
“Never rat on a fellow criminal or hold out on them.”

21. Definitions Favorable to Crime
“The Justice Department should be going after real criminals, not me!”
“It’s technically not sex if there isn’t penetration and if you don’t touch her!”
“I can drive after five beers, no problem.”
“If someone questions your manhood, you have to
stand up for yourself.”

22. Main concepts
Differential Reinforcement refers to the balance of anticipated or actual rewards and punishments that follow
Whether individuals will refrain from or commit a crime at any given time depends on the balance of past, present, and anticipated future rewards and punishments for their actions.

23. Main concepts
Imitation refers to the engagement in behavior after the direct or indirect (e.g. in media depictions) observation of similar behavior by others
Whether or not the behavior modeled by others will be imitated is affected by the characteristics of the models, the behavior observed, and the observed consequences of the behavior

24. White-collar crime
Introduced by Edwin H. Sutherland during his presidential address at the American Sociological Society Meeting in 1939
White-collar crime “may be defined approximately as a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation” (p. 9)

25. Occupational Crime
Occupational crime occurs when crimes are committed to promote personal interests
Crimes that fall into this category include altering books by accountants and overcharging or cheating clients by lawyers

26. Sutherland’s explanation
College graduate without history of criminal behavior
High level aspirations/ambitions
Aren't in deviant peers groups, and aren't poor
They live well-ordered lives for the most part;
They are well respected at work and in community
Cheating clients by lawyers
New attitudes, drives, and rationalizations

27. Sutherland’s explanation
Many major corporations require their employees to lie, cheat, steal and betray customers, competitors, inspectors and other employees
If the company steals from customers; if the company violates pollution laws; if the company converts pension plans to corporate purpose, the moral base is lost and, being lost, renders the company fair game to the dis-enchanted employee
 Follow the group/ leave/outlier

28. Crime Rates Predicted by Differential Social Organization

29. Distribution of Definitions of Crime

30. Question to think….
Where did the first criminal come from?