Lecture notes
booklet
- Module
- Criminological Theories
- Institution
- WJEC
Lecture notes of 17 pages for the course Criminological Theories at WJEC (booklet)
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Topic 1.1- Criminal Behavior and DevianceValues- General principles or guidelines for how we should live our lives, what's right/wrong
good/bad
Norms- Specific rules or socially acceptable standards that govern behaviour in particular
situations
Moral Code- Basic rules, values and principles held by an individual, group or organisation
as a whole
Code of Ethics- Set of guidelines or principles that individuals should obey by, guide for
decision making/actions.
Moral Code- Basic rules, values and principles held by an individual, group or organisation
as a whole which may be written down.
Value found in all societies- Respect in human life
Individualistic Culture:
- Needs of an individual over group.
UK or USA- Accumulation of personal wealth
Collectivistic Culture:
- Needs and goals of the group.
- Respect for elders
- Sharing wealth
- Everyone works as one
How are norms linked to values?
- Cultures who place a high value on respect for elders usually have specific rules
(norms) about how elders are to be approached or addressed eg. forbidden to look
directly at them/ interrupt them/ disobey them.
Police Code of Ethics:
● Accountability
● Integrity
● Openness
● Fairness
● Leadership
● Respect
● Honesty
● Objectivity
● Selflessness
,Deviance
Deviance- behaviour that violates social norms and is severe enough to warrant disapproval
from majority of society, behaviour out of the ordinary
Crime- Rule breaking behaviour failing to conform to norms of society, deliberate act against
the law
Formal Sanctions- Penalties laid down by the law that can be imposed on those convicted
of a crime, by courts or police
Informal Sanctions- Actions in response to someone's behaviour that may serve to
discourage non conformity eg. sarcasm or criticism
Positive Sanctions- Social approval/ praise/ awards/ congratulation
Social Control- the idea that people's relationships, values and norms encourage them to
not break the law
● Deviance is any behaviour that differs from the normal, it is unusual, uncommon or
out of the ordinary in some way.
1) Behaviour that is unusual and good- heroically risking one’s own life to save
someone else.
2) Behaviour that is unusual and eccentric or bizarre- talking to trees in the park or
hoarding huge quantities of old newspapers.
3) Behaviour that is unusual and bad or disapproved of (criminal)- physically attacking
someone for no reason, this behaviour is most relevant for criminologists as
4) it is a type of deviance involving something forbidden or regarded as unacceptable,
involving breaking a rule or norm of some kind. It leads to critical, hostile or
disapproving reactions from others.
Formal Sanctions Informal Sanctions
● Punishments for formal written rules ● Used where the rules are not
or laws. formally written down and are
● Ones imposed by official bodies perhaps ‘unspoken’ of.
such as the police, courts, schools ● When someone breaks the rules,
and other institutions. others show their disapproval in
● Example: courts may fine an informal ways.
offender for theft, schools may ● Example: refusing to speak to them,
exclude pupils for bullying. telling them off or slapping them on
the wrist.
Positive Sanctions:
Rewards for behaviour that society approves of.
● Medals
● Praise from a teacher or parent
● Sporting achievement
, Social Control:
- All sanctions informal/formal positive/negative
- Ways in which society seeks to control our behaviour and ensure that we conform to
its norms and behave as others expect us to.
Defining criminal behavior
Actus Reus- guilty act
Mens Rea- guilty mind
Strict liability- in some cases mens rea is not required, the wrongful act alone is enough to
convict someone
- It is a form of deviance that involves serious, harmful acts that are wrong against
society. These acts are regarded as so disruptive that the state must intervene on
behalf of society to forbid them and to punish them by law. There is a legal definition
and a social definition of criminal behaviour.
Strict liability- mens rea is not required it is a wrongful enough act on its own and is enough
to convict someone eg. speeding or watching TV without a licence
- They are offences even if you didn't intend on doing wrong
- Most small liability offences are ‘regulatory’
How may self defence mean an act is not a crime?
- Assaulting someone (actus reus) with the deliberate intention to harm them (mens
rea) is usually a criminal act
- However if done in self defence it is not considered a crime so long as force used
was unreasonable in the situation.
Social definition of criminal behaviour:
- Although the law does define many harmful acts as crimes, not all harmful acts are in
fact criminal
- Eg. anti pollution laws specify how much of a pollutant a firm can legally emit even
though this may still harm the environment
What acts are trivial but nethertheless against the law?
● Sounding a horn through anger
● Being drunk in a pub
● Gambling in a library
● Paying with phone at a drive through whilst car is still running
Differing Views Law Enforcement Law-making
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