Theories of Crime: Comparisons and Contrasts

The causes of crime are still really not known. There are many different theories and perspectives on why crime exists. However, even with all of the studies and perspectives on crimes committed, it appears to me that the causes of crime are only speculative. Biological Theory The biological theories primarily study the physical constitution and endocrinology. They are a very good example of the theories that have not really received any practical support. The misunderstanding of these theories has caused a stereotype that if a person is a criminal then he or she was born as a criminal and any steps taken in order to change or to influence them are useless. Biological theories are only a part of and one of the interpretations of criminality but not the only ones. In the present time, there is no assertive evidence of the fact, that the physical constitution and other biological factors cause criminality. Nevertheless, these theories have a right to exist and there has been a lot of important information that is used in terms of the development of criminology as a science. The most vivid example of the biological determinism is the theory of Cesare Lombroso. Lombroso based his theory on the assumption that criminals have certain physiognomic features or abnormalities. The origin of scientific criminology is usually traced to the research of Cesare Lombroso (1836-1909). Behavioral Crimes While some may not agree with me, I believe some people just commit crimes. A lot of these people were brought up in violent homes, had parents who were not good examples such as, taking harsh drugs, abusing their children, leaving their children alone for long periods of time and so on. True fact: I grew up with a very abusive father, who ended up killing our mother. I was one of nine children, all of whom were beaten grotesquely everyday and for no known cause. Certainly, we all grew up being adults as children (i. e. , protecting each other, always living in a â€Å"survival mode†) and we were terrorized on a daily basis. However, that having been said, my brothers and sisters and I tried, and for the most part, succeeded in actually growing up, getting sociably acceptable jobs, and we never committed a crime. We were blessed in the fact that, after we were older and were making our own money, we were able to seek out counseling and other avenues to overcome the terror that we all grew up with for 18 years. Our mother died at the very young age of 49 and because of that, she was taken away from us on September 1, 1980. Looking back on it, we all know that our father was basically mentally ill, denying or even thinking, he had an illness and he was just a very angry person and very jealous of our mother, who was a very beautiful, kind, loving (of all people) person. He resented the fact that he had children (which he let us know practically every day). I believe his violence and temper where a cause of possibly some form of schizophrenia and just plain selfishness. Nothing was ever positive to him. However, when he got drunk, which wasn’t very often, he became the nicest person on the planet. We children used to say to each other that – we wished we could keep him drunk all of the time. I believe his actions were based on a biological and behavioral imbalance. The Cognitive Theory Another true event. In July of 1991, while attending law school, I was on my way to classes and had to take the train to get there. While parking in an outside space, a young man (who was 6’ 3† tall and built just like a grown man) came up and put a gun to my head and told me to drive the car. He beat me brutally, and kept telling me to start the car and drive. Skipping over a lot of detail, it came down to where he almost choked me to death and I knew I was dying. Not to sound fanatical, but I said a prayer as I was dying and somehow, I got this superhuman strength and beat the heck out of his head and was able to escape from my car. In the end, he was caught within 10 minutes and had seven (7) felonies against him. He was sentenced to a Maryland State Penitentiary for 20 years and had to serve each felony on a concurrent basis. The reason for his attack on me was that he was being initiated into a gang and that was his initiation. He had to kill a female. As he came up clean on all drug and alcohol tests, it turned out that he was the son of the drug cartel Noriega’s chauffer. He was very angry at his mother for divorcing his father and therefore, decided to become a gang member. He may have been looking for acceptance, or just a way to vent his anger. That would be another speculative case. However, I believe his crime was based on the cognitive theory.