1. Theories of Criminal Behavior Class 1

2. Administrative Return remaining journals and paper proposals Papers – Folders – Electronic submission – Late papers

3. Review Elements that make an act a crime When the offender is not responsible for the crime Constitutional rights of suspects and defendants Supreme Court Decisions – Right to counsel, Exclusion of illegal evidence, and exclusion of coerced confessions

4. Today I. Myths of the causes of crime II. Overview of Theories III. Biological Theories IV. Psychological Theories V. Sociological Theories VI. Political/Economic Theories VII. Conclusions

5. I. Myths of the causes of Crime Can we prevent crime by figuring out who will be the criminals before they commit their crimes? Myth of crime having a single cause Since crime is a social construct, so is the criminal

6. II. Overview of Theories Theological Theories Biological Theories Psychological Theories Sociological Theories Political/Economic Theories

7. III. Biological Theories Natural born criminals – Cesare Lombroso – late 19 th century – Approach to crime – Didn’t claim to explain all crime

8. III. Biological Theories Later biological explanations Environmental factors IQ and crime

9. IV. Psychological Theories Are certain personality types more prone to crime? Also studies of personality disorders Can psychological trauma in childhood cause crime?

10. V. Sociological Theories Social Control Theories Differential Association Theories

11. V. Sociological Theories Family Relationships Hard to use this to explain where one sibling becomes criminal and another is perfectly law abiding

12. VI. Political and Economic Theories Rational Choice Theory Conflict theory

13. VII. Conclusions There is no one explanation of crime Many of the explanations have some validity

14. Next Time Begin discussion of law enforcement agencies