Social Learning Theories: Differential Association Theory

In criminology, differential association is a theory developed by Edwin Sutherland proposing that through interaction with others, individuals learn the values, attitudes, techniques, and motives for criminal behavior. The differential association theory is the most talked about of the learning theories of deviance. (DAT). (Sutherland) (Sociological Theories of Crime and Their Explanation on Crime , 2007) Theories of criminality are most commonly derived from human behavior. I chose the movie American history X and the theory is Sutherland’s differential Association theory (DAT).

A comparison between the Due process model and crime control model Within the criminal justice system, there are two competing models: the crime control model and the due process model. These two models were constructed by Robert Packer and each represents a particular school of thought. In managing crime, there is the individual i.e. the suspect and there is the society. The due process model is seen to focus on the suspect whereas the crime control model focuses on the society.

Fourth, When criminal behavior is learned, the learning includes (a) techniques of committing the crime, which is sometimes very complicated, sometimes simple; (b) the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes. Fifth, the specific direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal codes as favorable or unfavorable. Sixth, a person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of the law. Seventh, Differential associations may vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity. Eighth, the process of learning criminal behavior by association with criminal and anti-criminal patterns involves all of the mechanisms that are involved in any other learning.

Furthermore, the psychology of criminal behavior, psychology, and criminology all have a primary objective of achieving an understanding of the variation in the criminal behavior of individuals (Andrews and Bonta , 2010). Empirically, the study of variation in criminal behavior is done by the studying of covariates (Andrews and Bonta , 2010). The primary covariates that PCC studies are biological, social, and psychological (Andrews and Bonta , 2010). Although, criminology tends to assess criminality at an aggregate level, in comparison to the psychology of criminal conduct’s focus on an individual level. Additionally, a psychology of criminal conduct involves applying what is learned by the studying of psychological information and methods to the predicting and influencing the propensity of criminal behavior on an individual

(Young, 1981). Classicism Enhancing informational knowledge is the purpose of its punishment, which allows people to conduct rational decision. Therefore, the proportional penalty is suggested to launch when they devoted violation that harms the society, which promoted equality that offenders need to be aware of. Positivism Positivist focused on the background of the criminal, who believed people committed crime because of the environment influence. Treatment is a preferable than punishment to offenders(Young, 1981).

The main object of criminal law is to protect society against offenders and law-breakers. To fulfil this object law holds out threats of penalties to prospective lawbreakers and also make the actual offenders suffer the prescribed punishments for their crimes. Criminal law consists of both the substantive criminal law and the procedural criminal law. Substantive criminal law gives the definition of offences and also prescribes punishments for the same, while the procedural law prescribes the procedure to administer the substantive law. The principal statues which deals with administration of criminal justice in our country are criminal procedure code i.e.

It is assumed, that crime is having a purpose behavior designed to meet the offender’s common place needs for such things as money, status, sex and excitement, and that meeting these needs involves the making of decisions and choices, constrained as these are by limits, ability, and the availability of relevant information. In addition, (Alkers, R. 1990) rational choice literature takes a strong quantitative modeling approach derived from econometric modeling, which advances our ability to test complex models of criminal behavior and the criminal justice system, Rational choice also has inspired some empirical work on decision making in specific crime and crime events as well as in criminal justice policy, both of which were projects that might not otherwise have been

Bandura describes an agent as someone who intentionally influences one’s functioning and life circumstances; “In this view, people are self-organizing, proactive, self-regulating, and self-reflecting. They are contributors to their life circumstances not just products of them” (Bandura, 2005, p. 1). Self-Efficacy was developed by Albert Bandura’s as part of a larger theory, the Social Learning Theory (Ashford & LeCroy, 2010), which has progressed into the Social Cognitive Theory (Levin, Culkin, & Perrotto, 2001). Social Cognitive Theory was presented by Bandura in

Social Learning Theory Social learning theory differs from Skinner’s learning theory as it recognises the importance of cognition as Albert Bandura believed that we aren’t ‘passive’ learners or accidental learners, we use mental processes to select what we imitate and watch. Social learning theory proposes that we learn through different types of ways which allow us to learn how to behave, the proposals are that we learn through observation as we observe the people around us when they behave in various ways, we learn through modelling or imitation as we think about the relationship between other people’s behaviour and the consequence that it brings, and we also learn through both direct and indirect reinforcement. Effects of other individuals

Through the methods of surveillance those who deviate from the law can be identified, and these law-breaking actions are punished. This punishment is “disguised as discipline” (Lorentzen, 2). This process is established in our institutions and how we carry out