Deck 4: Rational Choice Theory

Question 1

Professional shoplifters who steal with the intention of reselling stolen merchandise are known as _______________.

Answer 1

boosters

Question 2

Defensible space theory is credited to ________________ in the 1970s.

Answer 2

Oscar Newman

Question 3

According to theorist ____________, "utilitarian calculus" is the idea that people choose to act when, after weighing costs and benefits, they believe that their actions will bring them an increase in pleasure and a reduction of pain.

Answer 3

Jeremy Bentham

Question 4

In a 1975 book that came to symbolize renewed interest in classical views, Thinking about Crime , political scientist ____________ debunked the view that crime was a function of external forces .

Question 5

The prescribed method for dealing with the possessed was _____________, a practice that survived into the seventeenth century.

Question 6

The excitement or exhilaration of successfully executing illegal activities in dangerous situations is known as _________________.

Question 7

Rational classical criminology is rooted in the classical school of criminology and is most closely identified with the theorist _____________________.

Question 8

Bruce Jacobs and Richard Wright found among street robbers who target drug dealers that their crimes are a response to one of these types of violations: market-related violations, _______, or personalistic violations.

Question 9

Monitoring by parents reduces the likelihood kids will commit crime: This is the role of _____ in criminal decision making.

Question 10

In the 1980s, there was a _____ shift in U.S. crime control policy that led to tough new laws creating mandatory prison sentences for many different crimes .

Question 11

______________________ is the concept that a penalty for a crime may prompt commission of a slightly more severe crime because that crime receives the same magnitude of punishment as the original one.

Question 12

During the Eighteenth century ________________ period, social philosophers such as Jeremy Bentham began to embrace the view that human behavior was a result of rational thought processes.

Question 13

That a crime is __________________means that offenders will react selectively to the characteristics of an individual criminal act

Question 14

A well-publicized book, __________________, by Charles Murray and Louis Cox, went so far as to suggest that punishment-oriented programs could suppress future criminality much more effectively than those that relied on rehabilitation and treatment efforts.

Question 15

Offenders must make decisions about what, _____, when, and whom to target.

Question 16

____________________ theory states that crime is a function of a decision-making process in which the potential offender weighs the potential costs and benefits of an illegal act.

Question 17

A person's ability to intentionally make choices based on free will is referred to as _____.

Question 18

________________  is the eighteenth-century school of thought that believed criminals chose to commit crime,  and that crime could be controlled by judicious punishment

Question 19

Beccaria argued that punishments for crimes should be _________ to the harm brought on by the crime.

Question 20

Areas with a greater than usual number of access streets from traffic arteries into the neighborhood are referred to as ______________________.

Question 21

_______ is the idea of convincing criminals that committing a serious crime is too risky and that other, less-dangerous crimes or actions might be a better choice.

Question 22

_______ is the notion that people who believe they will be punished will be deterred from crime, even if the likelihood of punishment is insignificant.

Question 23

Rational choice theory is rooted in the classical school of criminology developed by:

A) James Q. Wilson.
B) Cesare Beccaria.
C) Jeremy Bentham.
D) Andrew Von Hirsch.

Question 24

If petty offenses were subject to the same punishment as more serious crimes, offenders would choose the worst crime: this is referred to as the concept of:

A) marginal deterrence.
B) "the tipping point.
C) specific deterrence.
D) general deterrence.

Question 25

Beccaria's beliefs and writings about the proportionality of crime and punishment have been credited as the basis for the elimination of what nineteenth-century practice?

A) public executions
B) hanging
C) the death penalty
D) torture

Question 26

A program that seems successful because it helps to lower crime rates at specific locations or neighborhoods may simply be redirecting offenders to alternative targets; this is known as__________________________.

Question 27

The concentration of police resources on street-level drug dealing, for example, to eradicate or displace that activity, would be an example of a(n) _______.

Question 28

Beccaria believed that humans were naturally:

A) geared to care for others.
B) egotistical and self-centered.
C) incapable of making rational decisions.
D) unaware of the consequences of their actions.

Question 29

When efforts to prevent one crime benefit another crime or area, it is referred to as _________________.

Question 30

Crime may be reduced by making it difficult for people to _____ their criminal behavior by saying things like "I didn't know that was illegal."

Question 31

In Ronald Clarke's CRAVED model, the "C" stands for ___________________.

Question 32

Placing offenders behind bars during their prime crime years should lessen their lifetime opportunity to commit crime. This theory is known as the _________.

Question 33

The theory of __________________ holds that criminal sanctions should be so powerful that known criminals will never repeat their criminal acts.

Question 34

Beccaria believed that criminals chose to commit crime, and that criminal choices could be controlled by:

A) fear of punishment.
B) improving economic conditions.
C) selective incapacitation.
D) situational crime prevention.

Question 35

The philosophy of ___________________ asserts that those who violate the rights of others deserve to be punished.

Question 36

Fear of shame, embarrassment, and humiliation can be powerful general deterrents to crime. An individual's fear of exposure and consequent shaming may vary according to the _________ of community structure and type of crime.

Question 37

Adding a security guard to reduce shoplifting in a department store is an example of a crime __________.

Question 38

The Doorsteps Neighbourhood Program in Ontario, Canada, is a(n) ________________ program to help to reduce crime.

Question 39

The three elements of deterrence are certainty, severity, and __________________.

Question 40

__________ is the principle that crime prevention can be achieved through modifying the physical environment to reduce individuals' opportunities to commit crime.

Question 41

Which statement is false regarding the structure of crime?

A) Distance is irrelevant to an offender when choosing a location.
B) Choice of crime may be determined by market conditions.
C) Offenders are aware of target vulnerability.
D) The place of the offense is carefully chosen.

Question 42

Who wrote Seductions of Crime , a book that argues that there are immediate benefits to criminality?

A) Jack Katz
B) Cesare Beccaria
C) Jeremy Bentham
D) Andrew Von Hirsch

Question 43

Before choosing to commit a crime, ________ criminals evaluate the risk of apprehension, the seriousness of punishment, the potential value, and the immediate need for criminal gain.

A) reasoning
B) opportunistic
C) juvenile
D) needy

Question 44

Adding a security guard to reduce shoplifting in a department store is an example of a crime:

A) discourager.
B) eliminator.
C) barrier.
D) pusher.

Question 45

When an effort to prevent one crime has the unintended consequences of preventing other crimes, this is referred to as:

A) displacement effect.
B) diffusion of benefits.
C) situational crime prevention.
D) environmental crime prevention.

Question 46

Brightly displaying "No Littering" signs is an example of eliminating:

A) excuses.
B) rewards.
C) risks.
D) payout.

Question 47

According to __________, punishment has the potential to discourage all individuals in the population from committing crime.

A) specific deterrence
B) general deterrence
C) diffusion of benefits
D) crime displacement

Question 48

Situational crime prevention is not without its problems. When crime-reduction programs redirect offenders to alternative targets, the practice is termed:

A) temporary deterrence.
B) crime displacement.
C) crime shifting.
D) temporary displacement.

Question 49

________ violations involve encounters in which the grievant's essential character has been challenged.

A) Status-based
B) Crime-based
C) Personalistic
D) Market-related

Question 50

Some law violators describe the adrenaline rush that comes from successfully executing illegal activities in dangerous situations. This integration of danger, risk, and skill is, for some, a seduction of crime and is referred to as:

A) rushwork.
B) edgework.
C) riskwork.
D) thrillwork.

Question 51

Well-lit housing projects that maximize surveillance reflect Oscar Newman's concept of _______ that suggests that crime can be prevented via the use of residential architectural designs that reduce criminal opportunity.

A) permeability
B) accessibility
C) defensible space
D) target-hardening

Question 52

When urban planners consider the characteristics of sites that are at risk for crime, the factors that attract people to these sites, and the factors that equip potential criminals to take advantage of illegal opportunities, they are engaging in a practice known as:

A) situational crime prevention.
B) crime displacement.
C) crime discouragers.
D) situational displacement.

Question 53

While outwardly considered the most irrational of offenders, serial murderers are considered rational killers because:

A) they tend to have higher than average IQs.
B) they pick their targets with care.
C) they elude arrest for months and, sometimes, years.
D) they are rarely, in actuality, psychologically disturbed.

Question 54

Richard Felson suggested that violence is a matter of choice that serves specific goals. Which is not one of these goals?

A) Control
B) Rationality
C) Retribution
D) Reputation

Question 55

The belief that crime can be reduced by modifying the physical environment to reduce opportunity is called:

A) defensible space.
B) opportunity theory.
C) social perception theory.
D) power-control theory.

Question 56

When efforts to prevent one crime unintentionally prevents another, and when crime control efforts in one locale reduce crime in other, nontarget areas, this is called:

A) extinction.
B) diffusion of benefits.
C) crackdowns effects.
D) discouragement benefits.

Question 57

According to deterrence theory, if the probability of arrest, conviction, and sanctioning could be increased, crime rates should:

A) remain stable.
B) increase.
C) decline.
D) initially spike, then decline.

Question 58

Most burglars prefer to commit crimes in neighborhoods that contain a greater than usual number of access streets. These neighborhoods are referred to as _____ neighborhoods.

A) accessible
B) permeable
C) arterial
D) open

Question 59

Officer Smith with the Charleston, South Carolina, police department begins motorcycle patrols in an effort to reduce public intoxication offenses in the downtown area. The increased police presence reduces public intoxication offenses in downtown Charleston, but in neighboring communities a spike in these offenses occurs. This is an example of:

A) displacement.
B) dismemberment.
C) diffusion.
D) distension.

Question 60

The view that criminals are not robots who engage in random acts of antisocial behavior reflects _____ crime.

A) offense-specific
B) offender-specific
C) target-specific
D) risk-specific

Question 61

________ argues that punishing an offender will prevent that offender from committing the same crime again.

A) Specific deterrence
B) General deterrence
C) Punishment logic
D) Classical punishment

Question 62

According to Bentham, the purpose of law is to produce and support the total happiness of the community it serves.

Question 63

The philosophy of justice that asserts that those who violate the rights of others deserve to be punished is known as:

A) specific deterrence.
B) just desserts.
C) revenge.
D) retribution.

Question 64

The three components of deterrence theory are severity, certainty, and speed of legal sanctions (punishment). Of these components, deterrence theorists tend to believe that which component of punishment seems to have the strongest impact?

A) Severity
B) Certainty
C) Speed
D) The impact of the components is equal.

Question 65

Rational choice theory has roots in the positivist school of criminology developed by Lombroso.

Question 66

The concept of "just desserts" has been proposed by Von Hirsch as a theoretical model to guide justice policy. Which statement reflects that just desserts theory is concerned with the rights of the accused?

A) The offender should not be treated as more or less blameworthy than is warranted by the character of his/her offense.
B) An offender who violates others' rights deserves to be punished.
C) Punishment is needed to preserve the social equity disturbed by crime.
D) Retribution justifies punishment because people get what they deserve for past deeds.

Question 67

British philosopher Sir Lawrence Driscoll wrote the book On Crimes and Punishment , from which the Classical School was developed.

Question 68

After the famous Minneapolis domestic violence study, other studies and analyses have been conducted. Overall, what are the implications of these domestic violence studies?

A) These studies indicate that even if punishment can produce a short-term, specific, deterrent effect, it fails to produce longer-term behavioral change.
B) These studies indicate that if offenders were released after arrest, no deterrent effect was evidenced.
C) These studies indicate a strong positive effect for arrest, but only if the offender had no prior arrests for domestic violence.
D) These studies indicate that actual prosecution and subsequent probation supervision or incarceration were stronger deterrents than arrest alone.

Question 69

Evaluations of incarceration strategies reveal that their impact may be less than expected. Why might incarceration not work?

A) because prison exposes young, impressionable offenders to higher-risk, more experienced inmates who can influence their lifestyle and shape their attitudes
B) because most criminal offenses are committed by old offenders, who are unlikely to be sent to prison for a single felony conviction
C) because incarcerated criminals are too young
D) because not enough offenders are being incarcerated

Question 70

According to Von Hirsch's view on "just deserts," why is punishment based on deterrence or incapacitation wrong?

A) Punishment based on deterrence or incapacitation does not allow for the possibility of rehabilitation.
B) Punishment based on deterrence or incapacitation is used only within the adult criminal justice system, thus, it ignores juvenile offenders.
C) Punishment based on deterrence or incapacitation involves an offender's future actions.
D) Von Hirsch did not view punishment based on deterrence or incapacitation as wrong.

Question 71

What do immediate impact studies indicate about capital punishment's deterrent effect on murder?

A) Impact studies indicate that the overall impact of executions might actually increase the incidence of homicide.
B) Impact studies indicate that a deterrent effect does not exist, even though the death penalty is being used more often over the past decade.
C) Impact studies are inconclusive regarding capital punishment's deterrent effect on murder.
D) Impact studies indicate a deterrent effect, but only for expressive forms of murder.

Question 72

According to rational choice theory, why might a criminal decide not to commit crime?

A) The criminal has developed a conscience as he or she matured.
B) The criminal has legitimate means to achieve financial success and does not need to commit crime.
C) The criminal perceives that crime is too risky.
D) The criminal has learned that crime is only one of many solutions to their personal problems.

Question 73

The view that proposes placing offenders behind bars during their prime crime years in order to lessen their opportunity to commit crime is known as:

A) preventive incapacitation.
B) specific incapacitation.
C) the opportunity reduction effect.
D) the incapacitation effect.

Question 74

The Kansas City, Missouri, police department's study of patrol effectiveness convinced criminologists that:

A) the mere presence of patrol officers on the street did not have a deterrent effect.
B) doubling the amount of patrol officers on the street had a deterrent effect.
C) the mere presence of patrol officers on the street had a deterrent effect, but only in high-crime neighborhoods.
D) decreasing the amount of patrol officers on the street increased crime.

Question 75

Some rational choice theorists believe that all criminal behavior, no matter how destructive or seemingly irresponsible, is actually a matter of thought and decision making.

Question 76

Which statement best reflects the effect of informal sanctions aimed at shame and humiliation?

A) They are highly effective in reducing recidivism.
B) They are highly ineffective in reducing recidivism.
C) Their effectiveness depends on the cohesiveness of the community structure.
D) Their effectiveness depends on the amount of media attention they receive.

Question 77

Criminologists argue that three-strikes policies will not work because:

A) most offenders are too young.
B) the punishments are still too lenient.
C) the punishment is not certain.
D) current sentences for violent crimes are already too severe.

Question 78

To deter people from committing more serious offenses, Beccaria believed punishment should be as severe as possible regardless of the offense.

Question 79

Crackdowns are sudden changes in police activity designed to lower crime rates through an increase in the communicated threat or certainty of punishment. What does research indicate about the effectiveness of crackdowns?

A) Merely saturating an area with police deters crime.
B) Crackdowns initially deter crime, but the effect soon wears off after the high-intensity police activity ends.
C) Crackdowns are ineffective when coupled with aggressive problem-solving and community-improvement techniques.
D) Crackdowns initially do not work but later lead to a long-term decrease in crime

Question 80

British philosopher Jeremy Bentham helped popularize the view of utilitarianism.