Essay Sample about Deviant and Criminal Behavior

How we classify criminal behavior is completely suggestive to whomever is seeing the crime take place. Take someone stealing from a store, typically one would consider that a crime, but now let’s add some labels to it, a nine-year-old girl is caught stealing from a grocery store. Many people would say it is still a crime but due to age she is less likely to get a severe punishment. Now, similar story with different labels, a grown man is stealing from a grocery store. Most people will agree that is a crime, but the difference is that the adult will get a harsher punishment than the child. Society would likely go easy on the kid because she is younger and punish the adult more harshly. If we were to add intent behind the crime society might change their mind. Say the kid was stealing candy because her mom wouldn’t get her any so she just took it, people would most likely agree this is criminal behavior with criminal intent. Now if the adult was stealing groceries because he was laid off from his job and no longer could afford to keep feeding his kids despite his best efforts to get a new job it begs the question on whether this is criminal intent or a product of the surrounding environment? 

Continuing to use the example of the kid versus the adult let’s look at Becker’s Labeling theory. This theory proposed the idea that labeling someone as deviant results in that individual participating in more deviant behavior. Say the girl’s mom told her she was a bad kid often and that the girl wasn’t going to achieve much in life, this results in low self-esteem for the child and an internal belief that she is no good. Being labeled a deviant, deviance is when cultural norms are violated, really affects the psyche of developing brains. When the mother tells her no to the candy the girl takes it for herself anyway because the mother has already affirmed her that she is a deviant. The kid has been told she is bad, so she begins to take the shape of that role. Embracing the role in this case also made her a criminal because crime is when laws were violated. This most relates to the idea of a self-fufilling prophesy because it's the idea of believing somethings until it actualizes, like manifesting.

Moving on to Sutherland’s differential association theory that implies being around criminal behavior is learned from associations and interactions with people who participate in criminal activity. Part of this theory is there needs to be influence for an extended period, repeated often, and/or an intensity that stays in an individual’s memory. Let’s use a new example of a third grader, Taylor. Taylor has been surrounded by overachievers with lots of money since they were a baby, but the money came from illegal activity. They don’t know that it’s highly illegal because it has been so normalized their whole life. Fast forward to freshman year of high school and the parents include Taylor in the family business. So, Taylor goes into school and sells contraband to peers and eventually gets caught for it. For this example, let’s assume they got off with a warning, Taylor might not want to continue in the family business, but they may want to participate in other illegal or taboo activities because it had become normal in their life. Their family has instilled, since they were a baby, that crime is just a means to life, and with this idea repeated over the course of growing up when Taylor eventually moves out for college, they may continue the family business or some other criminal behaviors to feel comfortable.

Lastly, Hirschi’s control theory. This theory states that delinquents who fail to form or maintain a bond to society with commitment, involvement, attachment, and belief, which serves to control their behavior, will have more deviant or criminal behaviors. Strong ties to family, school, peers, etc. which will reduce likelihood of crime because of the desire to maintain connections. Let’s go back to the example of the dad. His attachment to his children has him committed to caring for them, so when he steals the groceries for his kids, he knows he is wrong, but he believes he needs to do this for them. Before he got laid off of work, he had never broken a law because he wanted to be able to stay involved with his children. He knew if he got caught breaking the law his kids may go to foster care while he gets sent to jail which is the opposite of what he wants. Before the stealing of groceries, he was a prime example of control theory because he maintained himself for his family. The other side of this would be if an individual had no ties to family or friends it would lead to deviant behavior because there is less reason to control oneself. Like if someone had no family, no school, no friends, what would make them want to stop from participating in criminal behavior? The answer according to the theory is nothing would stop them; the answer would be to hope that they build connections that make them want to walk a good path.

In conclusion, Becker, Sutherland, and Hirschi all proposed theories of criminal and deviant behavior that are still relevant today. Knowing what all their theories mean we can see examples of them in our everyday life. Criminal and deviant behaviors could all probably relate in some way to one of these three theories. Try in your day-to-day life to use these theories to understand why deviant and criminal behavior is common especially during years of adolescence when people are at their most impressionable.