Criminology (CR302)

Discussion Questions

Below are the required questions for students in Criminology (CR302), Winter Quarter, 1997. Each student is to answer ten (10) sets of question. (Each chapter constitutes a set of questions.)

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CHAPTER 1
"Definition of Crime"
Gwynn Nettler

• What does Nettler mean when he says that "'Crime' is a word, not a deed."? Use both his and your own examples to illustrate the point being made.

• Why is it important to define "crime?"

• What are the necessary preconditions specified by Nettler that must be met before there is a "crime?" Elaborate. (Hint: Nettler identifies four broad preconditions, with a number of sub-issues associated with each.)

• Distinguish between "intent" and "motive." What does the issue of intent have to do with age, duress and insanity?

• What are the justifications that have been given for the application of criminal law? Do you agree with all of these justifications? Which justification has the most importance for you? Which justification is least credible?

CHAPTER 2
Moral Entrepreneurs: The Creation and Enforcement
of Deviant Categories
Howard S. Becker

• What/who are the "moral entrepreneurs" emphasized in the title of this article? Be specific, and use illustrations.

• Describe in sufficient detail the difference between "rule creators" and "rule enforcers."

• Drawing primarily from the text, but from your own and others' ideas as well, which are confronted by the greatest challenge--rule creators or rule enforcers?

• This short article presents, at least in part, the essence of "labeling theory". Using the text or your own prior knowledge of labeling theory:
  

• Describe in your own words what labeling theory is saying;

• How is labeling theory different from all of the other theories of crime we have studied so far?

CHAPTER 3
The Process of Criminalization:
The Case of Computer Crime LawsRichard C. Hollinger and Lonn Lanza-Kaduce

• Identify and describe the four broad categories of computer crime discussed in this chapter.

• Which of these types has made it necessary for several states, and eventually the federal government to enact special laws? Why this type and not the others?

• Describe the process by which the criminalization of computer crime took place at the federal level. Especially give attention to the following:
  

• a description of the law-making activity itself;

• the interest groups that participated, and how they participated;

• interest groups that might have been expected to participate but did not.

• After reading this article, why in your opinion was it so easy to get this piece of legislation passed?

CHAPTER 4
The Size of the "Criminal Population":
the Prevalence and Incidence of Adult Arrest
Robert Tillman

• Describe in one paragraph what the purpose of this article is.

• The author makes use of the terms "prevalence" and "incidence." What do these terms have reference to? Be precise in distinguishing between them.

• How does the author go about conducting this research? Give special attention to the following:
  

• What is the demographic nature of his sample/population?

• What is his source of data?

• What types of statistics does he compile?

• One of the purposes of this research is to compare findings with that of a series of studies conducted much earlier by a criminologist named Marvin Wolfgang.
  

• How is this study similar to Wolfgang's?

• How is this study different from Wolfgang's?

• Describe the findings of this study. Give special attention to:
  

• differences across race and gender lines

• proportion of crime accounted for by "chronic offenders" (be sure to specify how chronic offenders are defined);

• how these findings differ from those of Wolfgang.

• Wolfgang's earlier study was extremely important because it was the basis from sentencing reform in many states, calling for extremely harsh sentences for "chronic" or "career" offenders. Does this study support these recent reform efforts? Why or why not?

CHAPTER 5
Uniform Crime Reports as Organizational Outcomes:
Three Time Series Experiments
Richard McCleary, Barbara C. Nienstedt and James M. Erven

• Describe in general terms (but with sufficient detail to clearly explain) what the authors mean when they say that the Uniform Crime Reports are "organizational outcomes."

• Describe each of the "cases" that the authors examine. How does each case illustrate that the Uniform Crime Reports are organizational outcomes?

• Even though there are many problems with the Uniform Crime Reports, are there ways in which the Uniform Crime Reports are valuable. What are some of these ways.

CHAPTER 6
Sex-Role Attitude Change and Reporting of Rape Victimization, 1973-1985
James D. Orcutt and Rebecca Faison

• State and explain the four hypotheses that the authors are proposing in this study.

• This study is described as a longitudinal study of rape victimization. As discussed in the article and what you know about research methodologies, how is a longitutinal study different from a cross-sectional study? What sorts of information might it provide that cross-sectional studies do not provide?

• Discuss the methodology employed in this study. Specifically, address at least the following:
  

• Discuss the source(s) of the data that is used in this study.

• Identify and define the variables that are used in this study.

• What is the nature of the analysis (statistics used, etc.)?

• Describe the major findings of this study. Give special attention to how these findings support or fail to support the hypotheses.

• Why should sex-role traditionalism be linked more with non-stranger rapes than with stranger rapes? Why should male sex role attitudes be linked with female reporting of rape?

CHAPTER 7
Is Violent Crime Intraracial?
William Wilbanks

• What is the common perception about the relationship between race and violent crime? Is this common perception generally supported by the literature in this area?

• What is the method by which this author goes about to examine the question of whether violent crime is intraracial? Your response should include both a discussion the nature of the data used, types of crime examined, and especially how this author goes about examining this data.)

• How does Wilbanks examination of these data differ from the way most criminologists have interpreted the same data?

• What differences does Wilbanks find when looking at these data in alternative fashion, and what does his analysis suggest about the intra-racial character of violent crime?

• If Wilbanks is correct, respond to one of the following questions (you need not answer both).

• What theoretical perspective might best explain Wilbanks findings. Describe specifically how this theoretical perspective would apply to the intra-/inter-racial character of violent crime.

OR

• What policy implications are suggested by these findings. (Your policy suggestions might be addressed to the area of police, courts, corrections, treatment, education, or any other social policy. Be sure you draw its relevance to the issue of the intra-/inter-racial character of violent crime.)

CHAPTER 11
Historical Explanations of Crime: From Demons to Politics
C. Ronald Huff

• This article is, essentially, an historical overview of criminological theory. The theoretical traditions are presented in, roughly, chronological order. Develop a "time-line" of these theoretical traditions: on top of the time-line label the theoretical tradition; below the time-line indicate the approximate date for each tradition.

• For each of the theoretical traditions discussed, identify in three sentences or less what the main focus of that theoretical tradition is.

• On the basis of this general reading, identify the main points of difference between:
  

• supernatural theories and "naturalistic" theories (i.e., all non-supernatural)

• classical (rational) theories and deterministic theories

• biological/psychological theories and sociological theories

• traditional (earlier) sociological theories and labelling/conflict theories

CHAPTER 12
The Normal and the Pathological
Emile Durkheim

• The primary thesis of this article is that crime is normal--even healthy--for society. On what basis does Durkheim make such a seemingly ludicrous claim? Explain his position.

• Durkheim is considered to be the "founding father of modern sociology." Drawing from the knowledge you obtained reading Chapter 11, how is this piece by Durkheim "sociological?" That is to say, on what basis do we consider this to be a sociological theory?

CHAPTER 14
A Control Theory of Delinquency
Travis Hirschi

• In theoretical terms, what is "the social bond?"

• What are the four elements of "the social bond?" How does each act to "bond" an individual? Describe, using examples.

• Why is this called a "control" theory of delinquency?

• What might be some policy suggestions or even practical advice that you might give criminal justice experts, educators, religious leaders and parents based on Hirschi's theory?

CHAPTER 15
Techniques of Neutralization: A Theory of Delinquency
Gresham M. Sykes and David Matza

• What are the five "techniques of neutralization" described by Sykes and Matza? Describe, using examples.

• How do these techniques explain the occurrence of delinquent behavior in the first place? (Hint: to do this, you will need to be familiar with their more general theory of "drift" which you might be able to glean from your text or from Matza' expanded work, Delinquency and Drift.

• The authors suggest that these techniques represent "...an unrecognized extension of defenses to crimes, in the form of justifications for deviance that are seen as valid by the delinquent but not by the legal system or society at large." Explain what they mean by this statement. What are the "defenses to crimes" which these techniques represent?

• This is a sub-type of social process theory called "learning theory." Why is this considered to be a learning theory?

• How is this theory different from the "control" theory of Hirschi?

• Since both control theory and learning theory are "process" theories, what do they share in common that makes them both process theories (as opposed to structural theories)?

CHAPTER 16:
Lower Class Culture as a Generating Milieu of Gang Delinquency
Walter B. Miller

• Describe and illustrate (in your own words) the six focal concerns of the lower class.

• Why does Miller use the concept "focal concerns of the lower class" rather than "lower class values?"

• What is the relationship between the focal concerns of the lower class that Miller describes and delinquency? Stated differently, why and how do these focal concerns result in delinquent activity among juveniles?

• This theory is classified as a "cultural deviance" theory, a sub-type of structural theory in sociology. How is Miller's theory different than the "strain" theory of Merton or Cloward and Ohlin to justify it being placed in a different sub-type?

• Miller continually refers to delinquent boys in this article. Does his theory apply equally well to delinquent girls? Why or why not?

CHAPTER 17
Social Structure and Anomie
Robert K. Merton

• Merton identifies two broad cultural features which he says tends to explain criminal behavior. What are these two features?

• Merton's theory is a form of structural theory called "strain" theory, or "anomie" theory. Explain why both of these terms are used to describe this type of theory. (Hint: It is related to the two dimensions you described above.) You may need to consult your text or some other outside source for help.

• Identify and describe each of the five "adaptive responses" to the two cultural dimensions described above. Give special attention to how they relate to the cultural dimensions. Provide examples for each.

CHAPTER 18:
Differential Opportunity and Delinquent Subcultures
Richard A. Cloward and Lloyd E. Ohlin

• Cloward and Ohlin's study is understood by most criminologists to be an "extension" of Merton's earlier study (Chapter 17). How are Cloward and Ohlin similar to Merton?

• In what way(s) is/are Cloward and Ohlin different from Merton?

• A central part of Cloward and Ohlin's theory is their linking of strain to delinquent subcultures:

• What are the types of delinquent subcultures identified by Cloward and Ohlin? Explain and illustrate each.
  

• How are these subcultural types related to strain?

• What accounts for why some delinquent subcultures become "criminal" subcultures, others become "conflict" subcultures, and still others become "retreatist" subcultures?

CHAPTER 20
Definition and the Dramatization of Evil
Frank Tannenbaum

• Describe, in your own words, the process of the "dramatization of evil" depicted here by Tannenbaum.

• According to Tannenbaum, how is the "delinquent" child different from other children?

• How does a child's experience with the criminal justice system affect him or her?

• Classical theory suggests that people tend to engage in behavior for which they are rewarded, and to avoid behavior for which they are punished. Therefore, when children misbehave, we apprehend them and punish them through our juvenile justice system. What does Tannenbaum's article suggest about the effectiveness of this approach. Do you agree? Why or why not?

• Tannenbaum's work is considered to be a forerunner to labeling theory. With some of the ideaas of labelling theory in mind, develop your own policy recommendations for how we deal with delinquents and/or criminals.

CHAPTER 22
Criminal Homicide as a Situated Transaction
David Luckenbill

• What does Luckenbill mean when he says that criminal homicide is a "situated transaction?"

• Describe the method that Luckenbill employed in this study on criminal homicide.

• Describe the three features of the "social occasion of homicide."

• Luckenbill suggests that homicide is but the final result of a developing interaction between two or more people. Describe this interaction pattern. What are the stages of interaction involved?

• Based on your discussion above, what role does the victim play in his or her own demise?

CHAPTER 23
 Rape in Marriage: A Sociological View
David Finkelhor and Kersti Yllo

• Based on the literature cited, how prevalent is rape within marriage?

• Describe the methodology employed in this study.

• Identify and briefly describe the four types of coercion that take place within marriage. Which type is the focus of this study?

• The authors identify three types of forced sexual coercion within marriage. Identify and describe these three types of "rape."

• Why don't women resist their husband's forced sexual aggression, according to the authors?

• In your opinion, should husbands (or wives) be prosecuted for raping their spouses. Should there be a different legal standard for wives forcing themselves on their husbands than vice versa? Defend your answer.

CHAPTER 25
Drugs-Crime Connections:
Elaborations from the Life Histories of Hard-Core Heroin Addicts
Charles E. Faupel and Carl B. Klockars

• What are the hypotheses about the nature of the relationship between drug use and crime that can be found in the literature?

• Describe the methodology the authors employ in this study.

• The authors identify two broad dimensions which shape the career dynamics of heroin addicts. What are these dimensions. Describe how and why they are important in shaping heroin addict careers.

• Based on these two dimensions, the authors develop a four-fold typology of "career phases." Identify and describe each career phase. Give special attention to the following:
  

• What is the nature of the relationship between drug use and crime implied by each?

• Describe the typical lifestyle during each.

• How is each related to the two broad dimensions?

• What are the factors/events which may trigger or move an addict from one career phase to another?

• Having read the article, in its entirety, how do the authors describe the nature of the relationship between drug use and crime throughout the career of an addict?

• Assuming that Faupel and Klockars are correct in their understanding of the career dynamics of drug use and crime, what does this suggest for good policy in the areas of:
  

• drug legalization?

• law enforcement?

• treatment?