Chapter OneThe Theory of RelativityRon Burgundy Example: who would argue against science? People who refuse to abide by rational thinkingThe Politicization of ScienceScience is commonly used to advance claims: racism, sexism, environmentalism, fascism/socialism…Nearly every “ism” and ALL political groups attempt to claim the legitimacy of science.Establishing “facts” is the key to winning debate.Bio-Ethic Debate: should or should not use these clusters of cellsEnvironmentalist claims: global warming is a direct result of human consumption patterns.“You have the right to your own opinion, but you don’t have the right to your own factsThe Definition of CriminologyThe systematic study of (1) the processes of making law, (2) the breaking of law (pondering why people break the law), and (3) the reaction to the breaking of law.Politics –Theory -Criminal Justice (holy trinity)Law is subject to changeExample: Abortion, alcohol, and drugs.Is Criminology a Science?Theory (explains why something happens)HypothesisMethods (Quantitative-# and Qualitative- stories)How do we go about posing the question?How we gather evidence?Crime statistics: how prevalent is robbery?Statistical MethodologyWhat leads to deviant behavior?Qualitative: provides the detail.What roles the field play in shaping policy?Negligible“Can we imagine legislative decisions on health policy without careful consultation of doctors, insurance executives, and health care administrators?”How about crime legislation without criminologists?Politicians, lobbyists, and crime victims play an extraordinary role in advancing political claims.The state of criminology’s science: relatively weakWe lack predictive powerWe cannot predict why crime occursCrime decline in 1991However…We’ve been able to discredit several proposed solutions, such as:Boot CampsDeath Penalty (no appreciable decline)Three- strikes legislationDAREScared straightGun buy-backsNevertheless several of these programs remain. Why?Ideology (def: a set of beliefs or values that all of us develop, usually unconsciously, about the way that the world is or ought to be.)In a democracy we get to shape policy through voting. This is informed by ideology.The Range of IdeologyConservative (right): punitive and repressiveLiberal (left): forgiving and rehabilitativeDiscussion Groups:Relativity of crime (mala in se and mala prohibita)Conflict versus consensus assumptionsThe five “paradigms” of criminologyRelativity of Crime-What defines the law and where does it come from?-What is crime and how do we define it?Divide it into two main categories:Mala in se: evil in itself, morally wrong regardless of government legislation. Commanded because they are just, inherent morality.Example: Murder, theft and rape.Mala prohibita: it is wrong because it is prohibited by the law, there is no moral value to it, victimless crime. Just because they are commanded.Example: Underage drinking, speed limits, drug use.We can’t say that legal definitions are based on morality, how we define the seriousness of a crime is relative.Our morality can change too, there are no absolutes.-The problem with crime, so many factors that go into whether not the crime is serious or less serious. No absolutes, a lot of grey areas.Seriousness of a crime: the status of the victim (child, elderly, disabled population), moral judgments, offender characteristics, and intent (by accident or on purpose).-Crime exists on a continuum, a fluctuating like of what is more wrong.Example: statuary rape: 25 yr old man and 16 yr old, consensually having sex.Conflict vs. Consensus: perspective of where does the law come from.Consensus: Durkheim, morality is central to social order. Laws are integrative, general consensus of what is right and wrong. The law is a reflection of society.Conflict: Marx, society is divided into groups, these groups have competing ideas and values. The groups with the most power make the laws and control society. One group uses the law to repress others. The “haves” and “have nots”.The Powerful vs. The Masses.Paradigm: (Figure 1.4 in textbook)Rational Choice: based on the deterrence doctrine, people are rational, they choose whether or not to commit crime. (Pro-Con Assessment)Positivism: forces that are beyond the individual’s control are responsible for the criminal’s behavior (biological predisposed, sociological). Society as a whole that pushes certain people towards crime. Concentrates on serious crime.Interactionism: crimes is revolved around the actions and reactions of individual groups, acts become deviant because of the reactions of others. Labeling, we define crime based on our reactions. Critically analyzes how the law is defined, what is criminal and what isn’t.Critical: coming from a conflict perspective, rejects state definitions of crime. Why the actions of the powerful are defined as more criminal? Why people commit crime? Its all about power. Crimes against the state, crimes committed by the powerful or against the powerful.Example: If your poor, your more likely to steal, rich people on the other hand want to protect their property.Integration: we are assuming that optimal theories of crime can be intersected. Different theories have competing assumptions. Everything depends on the theories that you are integrating.Review from Last WeekWhat is “crime”?The definition is not fixed and unchanging1. Legal definition (nulla poena sine lege): no punishment without a crime2. Social harm (problems: loss of clarity, victimless crimes)-The problem with applying knowledgeShould the field endorse policy solutions?The American Society of Criminology has issued a statement against capital punishment. Is this an ideological or scientific stance?Chapter Three-Research Methodology- VocabularyIndependent variables (IV) and dependent variables (DV)IV: cause (s) ofDV: outcome (what we are attempting to explain) Does my assigning a paper produce the needless death of students’ grandmothers?Correlation and causalityJust because two items are consistently related (correlated) does not imply a casual connectionExample: my having an umbrella handy every time it rains doesn’t mean I control the weather.-Temporal (i.e. Time) ElementCross-sectional data: data collected at only 1 point in timeDefinitive point in time.Longitudinal data: data collected at more than 1 point in time.How many times have you been a victim in a crime, repeated-Levels of AnalysisMacro:
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