Essay Example on Criminal Psychology: Essential for Criminal Justice Majors

Introduction

In the modern world, psychology is one of the major fields that is involved in many aspects of human life, including criminal justice. Therefore, it is essential for people working in criminal justice to study this vital field and acquire the needed skills and knowledge. Studying criminal psychology is necessary for my major which is criminal justice as it will help in understanding the mind of criminals so that to prevent future crimes from happening as well as offering help to the offenders due to the deep understanding of their thought process and content. It is of paramount importance that people in the field of criminal justice understand that understanding the mind of a criminal is the best and most effective way of reducing and also eradicating crime (Icy & Wing-lam, 2018). For instance, the police can arrest offenders, but this fact does not prevent others from committing similar crimes or even bigger crimes in future. Therefore, with knowledge gained through criminal psychology, criminal justice agents can understand how criminals think, hence getting a closer understanding of why they are committing these crimes in the first place thus stopping it from happening. The purpose of this paper is to outline the importance of psychology in the field of criminal justice through the application of the four main psychological theories of crime which include; psychodynamic theory, behavioural theory, cognitive theory, and psychopathic personality concept.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Psychological Theories of Crime

Psychodynamic Theory

The psychodynamic theory which is also referred to as psychoanalytic theory was developed by Sigmund Freud who had strong beliefs that three central forces shape the personality of an individual; id, ego and superego (Criminal Justice, 2019). The id is said to represent instinctual needs; the ego is a representation of social norms while the superego refers to the learned moral reasoning.

This theory is essential in criminal justice as it states that delinquent behaviour is due to the imbalances that occur between the ego, the id and the superego. This conflict that arises between the personality components forces a person to develop various defence techniques and mechanisms to cope with the conflict (Moore, 2011). Consequently, delinquency and problematic behavior can result due to the battle of the personality components. Misconduct is said to be an identity crisis which leads to the development of inner turmoil hence leading to criminal acts.

Behavioral Theory

Behavioral theory is a psychological theory of crime that argues that the behavior of an individual is learned. This theory is also known as the social learning theory, which suggests that the actions of an individual are determined majorly by life experiences. The central concept of this theory is conditioning which is the form of learning which involves various stimuli then followed by rewards. Therefore, the behaviour of a person, for instance, to commit a criminal act is learned when the actions of that individual are reinforced via conditioning. This theory argues that also, the environment is a significant factor that is involved in the development of behaviors.

Through the application of this psychological theory of crime, it has been identified that criminal behavior happens in a cultural conflict in cases where there is an association with criminals which increases the occurrence and emergence of criminal behavior (National Criminal Justice Reference Service, 2018). Therefore, the empirical support that is given to the successful application of this theory is to modify the behavior of an individual to reduce or completely inhibit crime. The principles of this perspective can be applied to different kinds of practices hence providing a valuable tool for the understanding of delinquency and crime.

Cognitive Theory

The cognitive theory argues that cognitive processes are the core factors that influence behaviors, emotions and thoughts. This perspective mostly focuses on what individuals think instead of what they do. Through this theory, various stages of cognitive development have been proposed which are used to help in explaining crime and delinquency which has led to the submitting of the three levels of moral development (National Criminal Justice Reference Service, 2018). The first level is the pre-conventional, which is most common in children and emphasizes the apparent consequences that actions have. The second level is seen mostly in adolescents as well as young adults and put more focus on the views of society and expectations. The third level is the post-conventional, which is seen mainly in adults who are over twenty years and focuses on the evaluation of moral principles as well as human rights. This theory suggests that offenders do not fully develop the right moral judgement capability beyond a pre-conventional level.

Psychopathic Personality

This psychological concept of crime argues that psychopathy is a typical product of a destructive and unsuitable home environment. Psychopaths are due to an aberration or a defect that is within themselves. The antisocial personality causes deficient levels of guilt, above average intelligence, violations of the rights of others, risk-taking, forcefulness, superficial charm and shallow emotions which contributes to criminal activities. The aetiology of this personality is brain abnormality, neurological disorder and traumatic socialization (Criminal Justice, 2019). Through this concept, it has been found that a person suffering from decreased levels of arousal during a neurological examination may engage in risky activities such as crime in the quest to offset his or her low arousal level. The other dynamics that are said to contribute to the antisocial personality include a patient who has pathologic tendencies and traumatic events that leads to inconsistent discipline and consequently, criminal activities. Many of chronic offenders are said to be sociopaths hence the personality trait can be used to predict violence and crime since the root causes of crimes are various forces that influence human development during the early stages of life.

Intelligence and Crime

Criminologists suggest that there is a link between crime and intelligence. This is one of the most common and widely accepted psychological concept of crime which argues that delinquents and criminals have deficient intelligence which is attributed to criminality. The idea of crime and IQ led to the emergence of nature-vs-nurture debate which is a psychological interaction that seeks to determine whether heredity or the environment impacts the social development of people (Criminal Justice, 2019). To answer the question of nature-vs-nurture, scientific research has shown that inmates have a low IQ test score as compared to the general public. In the early decades, researchers administered IQ tests to offenders whose results showed that over forty per cent of them had below-average intelligence. Therefore, this data has been used to conclude that the role of nature is prevalent. However, the concept has been faulted as many questions have been raised such as; since heredity determines IQ, which then influences criminal behavior, what accounts for the free will? The concept has been challenged as many people believe in the capacity of one to make choices and also many people have low IQ but can refrain from committing crimes.

Conclusion

As stated above, psychology is one of the core pillars of the criminal justice system. This interaction is based on the psychological theories of crime which include; psychodynamic theory, behavioral theory, cognitive theory, and psychopathic personality concept. There are numerous roles for the psychologists and psychological knowledge and skills in the legal system. Also, many careers exist related to psychology in law, such as criminal justice. The subjective experience in crimes impact law significantly in a variety of ways such as the reduction of crime rates as well as understanding the minds of offenders to come up with far-reaching interventions. Social scientists have become interested in crime which is an interacting system in which the offender, the victim and the society play a significant role. Psychology in criminal justice is essential as it helps in understanding the minds of criminals hence resolving domestic disputes, avoiding recurrence of a crime, testimonies and statements. Criminal psychologists can develop profiles of criminals, as based on the shared psychological characteristics. Throughout the training, the forensic psychologist can study the behavior of criminals hence having the capability of addressing psychological theories to legal issues. The subjective knowledge that is acquired by criminal justice agent makes them have the capacity to carry out many vital responsibilities such as; conduct screening of prisoners, examine the mental status of criminals, and also investigate psychological disorders among offenders.

References

Bohm, R. M., & Vogel, B. (2010). A Primer on Crime and Delinquency Theory. Cengage Learning. Retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Ahyi0WnvvvoC&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=A+Primer+to+Psychological+Theories+of+Crime&ots=8fpqqoKeS8&sig=Fq0uPGozInBlf6Ll_9yi2g1GpvI&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=A%20Primer%20to%20Psychological%20Theories%20of%20Crime&f=false

Criminal Justice, (2019). Psychological Theories of Crime. Retrieved from: http://criminal-justice.iresearchnet.com/criminology/theories/psychological-theories-of-crime/

Icy, W., Wing-lam, K. L. (2018). How Studying Criminal Psychology Will Ultimately Help Prevent Crimes In The Future Having More Criminal Psychologists Will Benefit Society and Make Our City Safe. Retrieved from: https://yp.scmp.com/over-to-you/letters-to-the-editor/article/108455/how-studying-criminal-psychology-will-ultimately

Moore, M. (2011). Psychological Theories of Crime and Delinquency. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 21(3), 226-239. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10911359.2011.564552

National Criminal Justice Reference Service, (2018). Cognitive-Behavioral Theory and Interventions for Crime and Delinquency. Retrieved from: https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=111177