Control theories

1. Control theories Nye’s theory Social Bond Theory

2. Control Theories • Control theories take the opposite approach from other theories • Instead of asking what drives people to commit crime, they ask why do most people not commit crime • There is no problem explaining why people commit crime since all human beings suffer from innate human weaknesses which make them unable to resist temptation

3. Control Theories: Main points • Focus on restraining or "controlling" factors that are broken or missing inside the personalities of criminals • Control theory investigate the ways in which our behavior is regulated, including the influences of family, school, morals, values, beliefs, etc. • It is this regulation that is seen as leading to conformity and compliance with the rules of society

4. Control Theories: Main points • Temptation is before us all but why do only some of us give in to temptation • Crime is the result of a loss of social control normally imposed through social institutions such as the family, faith, education, and the community or one’s neighborhood • If such informal social control is weakened, formal means of social control may be imposed - the juvenile- and criminal justice systems.

5. Forerunners of Control Theory • Emile Durkheim (late 19th century) • The nature of “man”=Homo Duplex concept • Social self – product of socialization, a civilized member of society • Egoistic self- is comprised of animal urges not controlled by society’s rules • Through proper socialization, the egoistic self could become integrated into social self • Without this integration, deviance results

6. Influence of Classical school • Free will (view individuals as active rather than passive agents) • Criminal behavior, like any type of behavior, is a result of rational choice • Internal controls (well-developed conscience) • External Controls (parental discipline, parental monitoring, laws)

7. Early Control Theories • Nye’s theory • Personal controls are internalized (through socialization) • Social controls operate through the external application of legal and informal sanctions

8. Nye’s (1958) three main categories of social control that prevent delinquency • Direct control, by which punishment is imposed for misconduct and compliance is rewarded • Indirect control, by which a youth refrains from delinquency because a particular act might cause pain/disappointment for parents or significant others • Internal control, by which a youth’s conscience or sense of quilt prevents him/her from engaging in delinquent acts

9. Nye’s theory • Family is the most important agent of socialization • The more adolescent's needs for affection, security, and recognition are met within the family, they less they will deviate (direct and indirect controls will be strong)

10. Social Bond TheoryTravis Hirschi • Social Control Theory • Causes of Delinquency (1969) • Social Bond Theory- Delinquent acts result when an individual's bonds to society are weak or broken • Attachment • Commitment • Involvement • Belief

11. Social Bond TheoryTravis Hirschi • Attachment refers to a person’s sensitivity to and interest in others • Measurement: • There's always someone to turn to in time of need • I have a lot of close friends • I am not eager to move out from my parents • My parents are good role models

12. Social Bond TheoryTravis Hirschi • Commitment involves the time, energy, and effort expended in conventional lines of action, such as getting an education and saving money for the future. • Measurement: • 1.Haven't drinked2. Haven't skipped school3. Haven't missed much church4. Have participated in school activities

13. Social Bond TheoryTravis Hirschi • Heavy involvement in conventional activities leaves little time for illegal behavior • Measurement: • 1. Haven't been wasting time2. Have spent time with family3. Have participated in extracurricular school activities4. I generally keep busy

14. Social Bond TheoryTravis Hirschi • Beliefs - degree to which person thinks they should obey the law • Measurement: • 1. It is important to own a home2. It is important to respect police3. Teachers are good people4. Generally, the law should be obeyed

16. Empirical validity of the theory • Theory suggests that attachment to parents (even delinquent ones) and friends (even delinquent ones) would decrease delinquency • Research has shown the opposite • Whose who are strongly attached to delinquent parent/friends are more likely to be delinquent

17. Empirical validity of the theory • Krohn, Massey (1980)have found that social bonding variables are moderately related to delinquent behavior (minor delinquency rather than serious) • Attachment and commitment to school are negatively related to delinquency (Giordano, 1992)

18. THE ROLE OF THE FAMILY • Divorce/Stepfamilies • Adoption • Punitive parenting • Incompetent parenting • Single parenting

19. Divorce • Gender-specific effects include females tending toward status offending and males leaning toward felony offending (Datesman & Scarpitti 1975; Canter 1982) • Austin (1978) concludes that white females are the most affected by the broken home • Meta-analyses of the literature on divorce (Loeber & Stouthamer-Loeber 1986; Wells & Rankin 1986) reveal a consistent statistical relationship between parental absence and delinquency, and interpret this finding as support for a lack of supervision explanation

20. Punitive parenting • Punitive parenting is most strongly related to violent delinquent behavior • Violence breeds violence • Males with punitive parents tend to become murderous, while females under the same conditions tend to develop depressive mental disorders (Bryer et al. 1987) • Punitive parenting, of course, correlates highly with runaway behavior (Gutierres & Giovannoni 1981)

21. Stepfamilies increase delinquency • Johnson (1986) reports that male stepchildren, in particular, are more involved in serious crime than those raised in other types of broken homes • The effect of a stepfather on drug dependence by white males is also indicated by the literature (Blechman, Berberian & Thompson 1977) • In fact, the majority of studies show a greater effect of stepfamilies on drug dependence than for other forms of behavior (McCarthy et al. 1982; Flewelling & Bauman 1990) • Other studies have linked stepfamily influence to runaway behavior (Rankin 1983) and antisocial personality disorder (Steinberg 1987)