CRJ499: Undergraduate Capstone in Criminal Justice
Week 7 Discussion Question
Part 1: For this discussion, complete the following:
CRJ499: Undergraduate Capstone in Criminal Justice
Week 7 Discussion Question
Part 1: For this discussion, complete the following:
· Select a case from and discuss the criminology theory that best describes why they became criminals.
Be sure to respond to at least one of your classmates’ posts.
Part 2: Student Response (Respond kindly to the below student post)
Felicia Mitchell
RE: Week 7 Discussion
· 5
Greeting Classmates and Dr. Egunjobi,
The case that I selected from Four Kids, Four Crimes , would be Jose, he was tried as an adult, he served his sentence in Juvenile Hall, I believe that he chose to be in a gang is because of low poverty, lack of attention from his parents (divorced), physical and mental abuse, also needed money to support himself. In my opinion, during the time Jose was serving his time, he had learned a lot by attending group meetings, earning a GED, taking up a trade, while being incarcerated Jose realized that the people who he thought was his friends really wasn’t. Jose decided t change his life around because he has a chance to have a job once he get released from Juvenile Hall. Anyone can change as long as they have an opportunity with no one judging them because of their criminal background.
According from the article, Social Structure Theories believe that the key elements to criminal behavior are the dominance of social and economic influences that are prominent in rundown neighborhoods where the population is primarily lower-class citizens (Siegel,2010) Social disorganization theory, strain theory, and culture deviance theory all fall under the social structure theory. Each of these three sub-theories attempt to explain what causes people to join violent gangs.
(1) Social disorganization theory concentrates on the circumstances in the inner city that affect crimes. These circumstances include the deterioration of the neighborhoods, lack of social control, gangs and other groups who violate the law, and the opposing social values within these neighborhoods (Siegel, 2010) . The fact that youth in the lower class are raised in such dilapidated neighborhoods is a primary reason that they choose to participate in violence and become associated with gangs.
(2) Strain theory suggest that crime is brought on by the overwhelming strain that people feel when they have the personal aspirations but no way to reach reach them. Strain theories believe that wealth and power are allocated disproportionately between economic classes and the frustration of not being able to achieve goals and strain of not having opportunities are what influence a person’s choice to commit crime (Featherstone & Deflem, 2003). According to the strain theorist, the youth feel that the only chance to obtain the things that they desire is to join gangs. They see other gang members in the community with money from things such as drug sales and feel that joining the gang will benefit them in the same way.
(3) Cultural deviance theory combines parts of disorganization and strain theories. They believe that criminal behavior is the result of the strain people feel and the social isolation that the urban environments put them under. These two things form subcultures within the lower class that adopt values that are much different from the rest of the population (Siegel, 2010). A cultural deviance theorist would say a combination of growing up in deteriorated neighborhoods as well as the strain of seeing no other way out is the reason that people participate in gangs. They believe that it would take both factors to push a person to the point at which they felt they needed to take part in this kind of potentially violent behavior.
I hope everyone will enjoy reading my discussion, have a blessed day.
Be sure to respond to at least one of your classmates’ posts.
Part 2: Student Response (Respond kindly to the below student post)
Felicia Mitchell
RE: Week 7 Discussion
· 5
Greeting Classmates and Dr. Egunjobi,
The case that I selected from Four Kids, Four Crimes , would be Jose, he was tried as an adult, he served his sentence in Juvenile Hall, I believe that he chose to be in a gang is because of low poverty, lack of attention from his parents (divorced), physical and mental abuse, also needed money to support himself. In my opinion, during the time Jose was serving his time, he had learned a lot by attending group meetings, earning a GED, taking up a trade, while being incarcerated Jose realized that the people who he thought was his friends really wasn’t. Jose decided t change his life around because he has a chance to have a job once he get released from Juvenile Hall. Anyone can change as long as they have an opportunity with no one judging them because of their criminal background.
According from the article, Social Structure Theories believe that the key elements to criminal behavior are the dominance of social and economic influences that are prominent in rundown neighborhoods where the population is primarily lower-class citizens (Siegel,2010) Social disorganization theory, strain theory, and culture deviance theory all fall under the social structure theory. Each of these three sub-theories attempt to explain what causes people to join violent gangs.
(1) Social disorganization theory concentrates on the circumstances in the inner city that affect crimes. These circumstances include the deterioration of the neighborhoods, lack of social control, gangs and other groups who violate the law, and the opposing social values within these neighborhoods (Siegel, 2010) . The fact that youth in the lower class are raised in such dilapidated neighborhoods is a primary reason that they choose to participate in violence and become associated with gangs.
(2) Strain theory suggest that crime is brought on by the overwhelming strain that people feel when they have the personal aspirations but no way to reach reach them. Strain theories believe that wealth and power are allocated disproportionately between economic classes and the frustration of not being able to achieve goals and strain of not having opportunities are what influence a person’s choice to commit crime (Featherstone & Deflem, 2003). According to the strain theorist, the youth feel that the only chance to obtain the things that they desire is to join gangs. They see other gang members in the community with money from things such as drug sales and feel that joining the gang will benefit them in the same way.
(3) Cultural deviance theory combines parts of disorganization and strain theories. They believe that criminal behavior is the result of the strain people feel and the social isolation that the urban environments put them under. These two things form subcultures within the lower class that adopt values that are much different from the rest of the population (Siegel, 2010). A cultural deviance theorist would say a combination of growing up in deteriorated neighborhoods as well as the strain of seeing no other way out is the reason that people participate in gangs. They believe that it would take both factors to push a person to the point at which they felt they needed to take part in this kind of potentially violent behavior.
I hope everyone will enjoy reading my discussion, have a blessed day.