PART A: Students must identify and show the supporting text from the article found below for the following types of theories:
- One biological theory (not his sex!) –
Social control process theory
“Although the neighborhood children considered Stephanie Rawlings-Blake as a “dad”, they were not his.”
- One psychological theory –
Cognitive theory- this theory is important because it assist in providing the foundation for evaluating and transforming cognitions as a way of altering how people behave, feel, or think.
“ Bailey said Gray told him, “I am trying to do right. I don’t want to go back out there [on the streets]. I’m trying, but I cannot get a job. I have a record.”
- One social structure theory -
Social disorganization theory – this theory tries to highlight how crime and the society are perceived. In this case, crime is considered to be a social pathology or disease while the society is considered to be a type of organism.
“At times, the criminal justice system was confusing for Gray”
- One social process theory
Social control theory – this theory is important because it tries to explain how behavior is related to what is generally anticipated in the society
“Nearby, an artist was finishing a two-story mural featuring a larger-than-life Gray, surrounded by images of young black men raising their hands in protest, police wearing riot gear and firefighters dousing flames”
- One social reaction theory
Labeling theory – this theory tries to illustrate the fact that individual behaviors and identity can be influenced or determined by some of the terms that are used to classify or describe them.
” He graduated from high school, but was convicted for robbery and second-degree assault in 2005 and 2006, respectively”
PART B: Students must also fill in the blanks/identify the requested theories for the following items related to programs/policies:
- The Job Center is a program developed in response to psychological and social structure theories.
- City Watch is a program developed in response to social control theory.
- The police presence in Freddie Gray’s neighborhood is in response to social reaction theory
PART C: After completing the above, write a 1 page reflection paper on the impact Criminology has on the field of Criminal Justice. Consider what has been discussed in class, the current state of CJ and the future of CJ. Is Criminology being used to its fullest? Cite examples from the readings and class to support your position.
Criminology is a field which takes into account the use of various mechanisms that are formulated and implemented by government, businesses, societies, individuals, and other organizations to target environmental and social factors that increases victimization, disorder, and crime. As much as criminal justice is concerned, understanding the various approaches or mechanisms for preventing crime is what the field of criminology seriously takes into account. This is because appropriate management and institutional arrangements are important in supporting specific strategies used for crime prevention. For instance, the environmental approaches used, including urban planning proposals and situational transgression prevention mechanisms are all directed towards modifying the physical environment. As a result if that, it becomes possible to reduce the occurrence of crimes.
Nonetheless, instead of basing the issue of crime on the physical environment, it is important to ensure that all the mechanisms used has the propensity of influencing economic and social issues being addressed. Ideally, it can be argued that criminology is been extensively used to enhance criminal justice because of how offenders are being treated.
