Criminal Justice: Hirschi Control Theory in US Context - Essay Sample

Introduction

Criminal theories and justice systems across the United States have undergone tremendous change in multiple years. As such, numerous crimes of different atrocities have been committed, needing the federal and local governments to come up with ideal measures to tackle these emerging issues. Moreover, their work is in line with multiple changes in theory use and criminal typologies.

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Hirschi Control Theory

The theory holds that criminal activities increases in a society when bonds attaching an individual to society are weakened, such as family bonds, loss of trust in government agencies, etc. The four elements are attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. To him, criminality occurs when the four elements are not met accordingly. In terms of attachment, children need affection and discipline without which they engage in crimes (Duff n.p). Commitment is attained when the family and community ensure that social ethics are maintained, limiting crimes. The involvement of the community and families in breathtaking activities leaves no time to engage in any deviant activities. For belief, there is a need to maintain a strict ethical standard on what is right from wrong.

Reintegrative Shaming

It entails disapproval of deviant acts while implementing forgiveness and the need to reunite an offender back into society. For example, when one is caught cheating in class, the teacher and fellow students would disapprove of any need for cheating aimed at eradicating the behavior while accepting the victim back to their program after seeking for forgiveness. The action of reacceptance brings about change in the individual and society view (Duff n.p).

Merton's Strain Theory

He states that lack of coordination between what a culture advocates for and what their social structure would permit is the cause of deviant actions. Not everyone denied legitimate means to access societal function become a deviant but their response, attitude, and modes of adaption can make them deviants. The five adaptation types involve conformist who accept laid out rules and moves one, innovators who reject but accepts the rules hence seek other means, ritualists accept but rejects norms given, retreats reject the rules and resort to addiction, and rebels who create newer rules for themselves (Duff n.p). The theory is still of relevant till today as it shows how life transpires daily.

Compare and Contrast Both Functionalist and Conflict Theory

Functionalism approach focuses on how social parts of a society work as a whole for maximum benefit while conflict theory holds that power domination is key thereby undermining needy ones. To functionalist, benefits are communal while conflict theory only those in power benefit. Conflict theorist exaggerate need for excessive tension and division of labor in the society while functionalists support existing structures. In functionalism, social change is not a measure while conflict theorists consider it so (Duff n.p). The United States can be viewed as a functionalist states due to importance placement on need for collective effort to better their lives. An example would be how the government came up with the Pandemic Response Assessment Committee to undertake relief actions against the Coronavirus pandemic as it was not the case in earlier millenniums.

Feminism

Feminism was important back in the 1960s to end atrocities against women during that time period and even today. It is an important feature for today due to changing times and need for equitable share of resources between community members (Duff n.p). Racism begets sexism hence possess a significant threat across the globe due to inequality promotion, and violation of human rights based on their ethnicity, religious claims, and cultural beliefs.

Marxism

It is a body doctrine that encompasses social, political, and economic philosophy that studies the effect of capitalism, division of labor and power struggles influenced multiple revolutions in the world (Duff n.p). In the United States, people fear that extreme use of Marxist ideologies can bear significant damage to the country's economy leading to poor living standards and promotion of rights violation. The violation is particularly through intimidation and brutal use of force as in the case of the Soviet Union which fell due to such extreme measures.

Labeling Theory

Attachment placed on an individual by a society can make them to be deviants. Labeling theory explains how certain aspects of human behavior becomes organized enabling people to make ideations of such actions (Duff n.p). It has a concept of symbolic representation which is human behavior that is influenced by the principle and construct of word usage impacts on general wellbeing of individuals in the society.

Cohen's Status Frustration theory

Cohen focuses on how working-class boys tend to join delinquent groups after failing to achieve proper grading in school resulting to lower status acquisition. Cohen focuses solely on working-class boys neglecting girls and the rich of the society in the process. He does this, aiming at showing how low-status acquisition for working-class boys results in crimes and gang membership acquisition (Duff n.p).

Social Threat

It occurs when an individual fails to gain acceptance and inclusion in other formal activities by the society. They, therefore, feel insufficiently acknowledged and deemed weird due to possessing unique characteristics (Duff n.p). Anyone can suffer from social threat and there is need for the country to offer incentives and awareness programs aimed at incorporating change by involving diversity and different cultural aspects into play.

The Theory that Best describes the Country's State

My view is that the social learning theory best describes how life and criminal justice systems function in the country. It proposes that people engage in either criminal or noncriminal actions as a result of environmental influences and people we interact with (Duff n.p). Therefore, criminal behaviors can be learned and unlearned by developing a safe environment in which criminal activities cannot be normalized.

Conclusion

In summary, understanding criminal law systems can help advocate for proper rights involvement and observation of offender actions across the country. There is a need to implement corrective countermeasures to eradicate such problems. The communities also have to play a significant defining role on some of its customs and allegations as they can negatively impact society members and the country as a whole. Such developments can result in needs exclusion, societal unrest, and the emergence of new criminal activities. Proper legislative actions should be taken, and immediate implementation is put in place to maintain social order. The country and its environs would benefit due to increased awareness claims that tackle global issues and concerns such as racism and ethnic clashes. The communities segregated can feel empowered and ready to achieve any objective placed onto them, thereby helping eradicate unsafe cultural practices. Such would enable the society to conform and assist in the implementation of reasonable rights claims and rapid growth partaking by multiple government policies and agencies.

Work Cited

Duff, Antony. "Theories of criminal law." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2011). https://stanford.library.sydney.edu.au/archives/win2011/entries/criminal-law/