Deck 15: Contemporary Integrative and Critical Theories

Question 1

All of the following are central to Katz's phenomenological perspective EXCEPT:

A) Standard background factors cannot predict who will engage in crime.
B) A person's experiential foreground impacts his/her decision to commit crime.
C) Violent crime allows the offender to transcend normal life.
D) Crime statistics are useful for explaining why people do certain crimes

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In applying situational action theory, all of the following are important elements to consider EXCEPT:

A) The moral basis of rules in a particular circumstance.
B) The surrounding social milieu and its degree of integration.
C) The level of complexity in a linear analysis
D) An individual's propensities and exposure to criminogenic settings

Answer 2

C

Question 3

According to the text, the two most common ways to integrate theory are called the "end to end" and the "class stratified" methods.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The argument purported by Jack Katz is that if we don't understand the situation from the view of the offender, the offense will appear irrational.

Question 5

The theory that argues that individuals react more strongly to economic control if their own internal controls are weak particularly in terms of morality which allows for violence to be used to expedite their goals is:

A) Chaos theory.
B) Situational action theory.
C) Seductions of crime.
D) Institutional anomie theory.

Question 6

All of the following were mentioned as difficulties in using terrorism in the development of criminological theory EXCEPT:

A) It does not seem to fit well in conflict oriented frameworks.
B) It is politically determined and therefore, politically defined.
C) Motivation is not a government concern so that part of theory is left out.
D) Terrorists may vary according to who officials object to at any given time.

Question 7

Theories that attempt to organize principles that will make sense out of theories by explaining how unit theories function and are best understood are called ____________.

Question 8

The theory of crime that includes in its concepts basic human impulses, the desire for autonomy, deviant predispositions, feelings of debasement, situational risk and opportunity is:

A) Critical incident metatheory.
B) Control balance theory.
C) Evolutionary ecology theory.
D) Chaotic engagement theory.

Question 9

According to Semiotic theory the reality of the criminal justice system is defined by the person, the setting and the application of situational norms.

Question 10

Charles Tittle's control balance theory relies on a continuum of seriousness for analyzing potential harm outcomes.

Question 11

An end-to-end model of theory building would most likely include all of the following EXCEPT:

A) A macro-level theory.
B) A fully-integrated theory.
C) A bridging theory.
D) A micro-level theory.

Question 12

Travis Hirschi argues against theory integration for one primary reason which is:

A) Theories are relevant only for a limited time.
B) Statistical tests must be crafted for each theory individually.
C) Theorists should first develop an agreed upon method of integration.
D) The basic assumptions of individual theories are incompatible.

Question 13

Cultural criminology focuses on the essence of behavior and the emotion and meaning of why people do certain things.

Question 14

Cultural criminologists argue that social events should be studied using the subjective interpretation of events, motives and people (rather than data) is called a ____________ approach.

Question 15

The subjective perspective of crime, of which cultural criminology is an example, is also known as:

A) Functionalism.
B) Chaos.
C) Phenomenological.
D) Self-help.

Question 16

In control-balance theory, the two types of deviance that are referred to are:

A) Suggestive and perfunctory.
B) Autonomous and repressive.
C) Cultural and linear.
D) Predictive and conceptual.

Question 17

A ________ theory focuses on the metaphors and linguistic concepts in the justice system and how that shapes our subjective understanding.

Question 18

The perspective that is primarily a reaction and alternative to the positivist theories of the past century is called ____________.

Question 19

According to the text, the first theories to be widely used in integration were:

A) Anomie and feminist theories.
B) Differential association and life-course.
C) Social control and social learning.
D) Labeling and control balance.

Question 20

The integrated theory that brings together theories of rationally-motivated offenders, routine activities, victimology and ecology is called:

A) Critical incident metatheory
B) Crime and social context
C) Revolutionary context theory
D) Adolescent subculture theory

Question 21

Identify some of the most common theories used in integration efforts and give examples of how these theories are used in the integration process.

Question 22

Describe some of the social forces that shaped the development of integrative and postmodern theories.

Question 23

In what ways does the media construct crime images, give examples of media accounts that seem to involve a cultural spin and how that might influence public opinions.

Question 24

What are some of the characteristics of Chaos Theory and why is it different from other theories?

Question 25

Explain what the advantages and disadvantages of using "mini theories" to explain specific crimes would be.

Question 26

Analyses that do not incorporate time and change so that they are considered less useful are called _________ .

Question 27

What are some of the basic assumptions of cultural criminology?