www.dotcomhunter.com How to Understand Criminology Theories When it comes to understanding the theories behind connections betwee n crimes and individuals or the community, many people may not realiz e that the beliefs that differentiate the theories are not as complex as they may seem at first. By simplifying the core of the theories, individuals are able to more properly understand the different theor ies that can help individuals to identify the theory that they most i dentify with when considering the interactions of crime and society. Once the foundation of the theories are understood, it is much easie r to build upon the theory by including some of the more complex idea s supported by the theory. A number of theories exist, and many are being created daily on the part of individuals. However, there are a few theories that are more common and widely held as beliefs than ot her theories may be. There are social structure theories, or those theories that the status and construction of the social setting will define the likelihood and amount of crime in the area. Individuals that are exposed to poverty and other signs of social deterioration are believed to be more prone to crimes and acts of violence. There are other specific social theo ries that believe crime is perpetuated by the inequality that exists w ithin the social structure that is established. When people are unabl e to achieve that which society expects of them, such as the “American Dream”, these individuals turn to crime to try to realize this dream. Individual theories exist in order to explain criminology within a s ociety. Trait theories are those based on scientific knowledge of the human body and how chemicals and genetic material will determine or a lter how an individual responds to stimuli. Aggressive behavior and a ntisocial tendencies are just some of the many personality traits of i ndividuals that are involved in crime, and the links to genetics, horm ones and other biological factors are currently being studied. Some theories stop looking at what encourages an individual to become corrupt, and instead focus on the effects of society to explain how an d why some people are able to lead productive and admirable lives. Th ese theories are commonly referred to as control or social control the ories. In an example, it is illustrated that an individual that has a greater degree of self control will be able to wait patiently while a ttaining their dream or goal instead of using possibly degenerate mean s in order to gain immediate access to their desire. Symbolic interac tion as a theory examines the relationship of the powerful, ruling cla ss and those that are less powerful. By integrating themselves into t he belief that they were less powerful, youths that were looked down o n played up to the role designated to them. It represents a self-fulf A gift from www.dotcomhunter.comwww.dotcomhunter.com illing prophecy of sorts since the youths are taking the more powerful group at their word and transferring the definition onto themselves a s criminals. Of the last main theories that surround criminology, rational choice t heory maintains that criminals weigh the pros and cons of an outcome j ust like anyone else. When the costs and benefits are dissected, the criminal will make a decision. They may also consider the time and pl ace for the crime as well in order to find the situation with the lowe st crime risk. A gift from www.dotcomhunter.com