Criminal Factors

What makes criminals?

by: Brian Minor

Have you ever wondered why some social groups are more prone to crime than others are? Should we conclude that some groups are more prone to crime or that they are just put in a situation that makes them more likely to commit crimes? In spite of the research in the past years there is still no conclusive evidence as to why some people in the same situations choose to commit crimes while the others don't. There are numerous reasons that offenders resort to crime; Families, gender, economic status, age, and race are all valid explanations said by many theorists as to why certain social groups commit crimes, and why certain groups stay away.

Married life is the norm of our society but it can also cause strain and anguish. Along with the anointing of a new life, there also comes new problems. Often times the choice of getting married is the first major decision in a young man or woman's life, and soon there are more relatives, more bills, conflicting plans, annoying habits that one's spouse may develop, children, being that fifty percent of all marriages end in divorce, these are things that most couples cannot overcome, society is to the point where for every marriage there is a coinciding divorce. When these new hurdles are not overcome then a broken home is the most common result. When this happens, then the likelihood of a person being driven to crime skyrockets. One starts to think that they are worthless and that they are destined to be lonely forever, once this occurs, crime is their next option. A broken family can generate in different ways, divorce, death, or separation. Marriage is a common but not the most likely reason that some resort to crime.

Someone who usually commits a crime at a young age is often identified as a born criminal, these reckless actions for a helpless and innocent child are passed down as a result of hereditary traits that pass from one generation to the next. It is said that these offending children do not know any better because of their traits, and the environment

that they are brought up in (Erikson 1964). These children specialize in crime and delinquency just as others may specialize in the classroom or sports. They aren't able to tell the difference between a deviant act or something productive such as an A in the classroom.

"When we define someone or some group as deviant - we strengthen our own position and simplify our response to the "other": we can ignore, expunge, destroy, or rehabilitate them. We convince ourselves of our own normalcy by condemning and controlling those who disagree. Deviance is a phenomenon situated in power: Winners are the good and the normal; Losers are the sick, the crazy, and the evil. Deviance therefore exists in opposition to those who attempt to control it - to those who have power." (Phofl, 1994)

When crime becomes part of a child's life at an early age, they begin to consider it as second nature. Born criminal's look at prison as a place in which food and shelter are guaranteed without having to do much labor and more often than not, they are made to sit and do nothing and be fed and clothed for free, which makes prison more comfortable than the community or city that they are from. Society may force people to fall back into crime, with institutions, segregation and surveillance, these constant reassurances of their not being able to function outside of prison deprived them of any chance of leading a normal life. The only way these individuals know to survive is to simply return to the so called houses of correction and prisons.

There has always been a reluctance to accept poverty officially as a cause of crime. Being employed can mean many things, one could work few hours or work for such a low wage that they fall under the title of being employed but they still need another income. This, for some people, results in crime, typically property crime for males and prostitution for females. Economic conditions do correlate with certain crime rates and these circumstances cast their influence far into our societies. Property crime is a solution to most economic difficulty. Unemployment is a serious social problem because it puts strains on communities and families. For example, during the periods of severe unemployment, theft, alcoholism, depression, suicide and domestic violence all show an increase. The main reason for the correlation between theft and unemployment is that some people, when they cannot earn an income from legal work, turn to illegal

activities. As a result the amount of theft increases.

Male crime is usually considered to be more masculine than female crime, typically much more violent. Strictly 'male' offenses are: rape, indecent exposure, abduction of female, sodomy by males, robbery with a gun, gun hold up, attempted pick pocket. Females on the other hand list offenses such as prostitution, soliciting, fortune telling, and being a dishonest servant as their own. Males and females differ in moral

development, women's moral choices constrain them from behavior that could be harmful to others. Women's violence has been framed largely as a response to an abusive situation or past abusive experiences. Even in our always changing society the majority of females don't have to deal with being crowded into mine pits, machine shops and assembly lines. Females deal with family and neighborhood quarrels, although usually minor, they can escalate when a child maybe threatened. A female is more attached to their children and is inclined to react violently towards a threat aimed at her child. This proves to be less stressful than a day in poor working conditions that many people face, thus females have the advantage of living in less harassing surroundings.