Professor's question:
What criminal justice policies and practices are suggested by the theories you've been discussing for the past several weeks? How have they been evaluated, and how might they most effectively be implemented and evaluated?
My response:
The criminal justice policies that I have familiarized myself with during the last weeks of class and on are based on the justice or the punishment for those who are dishonest and justice for those who are not involved in any crime, such as , biological theory of crime, social learning theory, social disorganization theory, psychological theories of crime and others.
All these theories share a main focus on the most common crimes and their punishment and how we can avoid these acts. These policies and theories also teach us the lesson to be honest, faithful and trustworthy in society otherwise we may have to spend out life in prison.
They have been evaluated in different ways, such as, on the basis of crimes, ratio, and age percentage in the specific areas.
These theories might be most effectively implemented in areas of crime such as murder, robberies, and other street crimes in general. However, in areas like White Collar crime, the end results may fluctuate in comparison with street crimes. The more the street crimes can be stopped, the easier it becomes for the authorities and all forces applied to lower the ration in which these crimes occur.
The higher the crime rate, the more necessary it becomes for these theories to be applied in order to stop or at least decrease the crimes. From a theoretical perspective, these policies ensure that the criminal receive the punishment they deserve once they get caught and do not feel the need to become repetitive criminals once they serve their sentence.
Discussion 1: Reply to Jordan's response to my response.
Jordan's response:
There are plenty of theories that hold validity and allow us, as researchers, to focus on a particular area of crime and incorporate countermeasures to improve. When examining the cause, it becomes a much easier task to find remedies for the effect in a causal relationship, as many of these theories outline.
I find that many of the theories that deal with social influence are a good focal point for research and making positive change in crime rates. Which criminological theory or theories based in social behavior do you find to be most relevant and what do you think would be best as an outcome of interpreting those social factors?
Discussion 2: Reply to Cameron's response to professor's question:
Cameron's response:
There are many theories that were talked about over the 7 weeks we have been in class. For example, there is social control theory, classical theory, positivist theory, rational choice theory, or another theory could be determinism. Social control theory is a huge example of how crime is prevented.
It is said, social control theory is when people avoid crime because they are too afraid of the consequences. With many of the criminal policies and practices, this is why this theory exists. Incarceration, jail for life, and sometimes death, can be a reason for people not to commit a crime.
In some cases, it could also have the opposite effect, but in some cases the death penalty, jail, and fines are what cause people not to try and commit felonies. In this theory, social control theory, police officers could be a huge example as to why people do not commit crimes as well. The fear of a police officer arresting them, shooting them, etc. is something that could easily scare a person.
Social control theory is most likely a tactic that the government tries to use in today's society. Trying to scare society, keep them under control, and also keeping them "on a tight leash," are some examples that the government probably uses to try and prevent crime from occurring. Just having a legal system, criminal laws, incarceration, and death, are ways that criminal policies are used to help social control theory be in effect.
Discussion 3: Reply to Evan's response to professor's question:
Cameron's response:
There have been quite a few theories we have learned in this class and others ranging from being born a criminal to how your environment may play a part in your behavior. The theories are important because it gets people talking and discussing the possibilities for how crimes may be committed. In regards to studying the childhood of a criminal we can see similarities in the upbringing that may be common. For example, a child neglected by their parents may harbor certain feelings that may result in a criminal act.
To understand the potential signs of a criminal can help that individual before an event may occur. That I think is one of the most important understanding about theories and is preventive measures. As in cybersecurity you would rather be preventive than reactive, the same with criminal justice. If we are constantly just reacting to the crimes that are happening, we will never be able to stop them.