causes of crime in contemporary society
Assignment 1
Various theories have been developed to explain the causes of crime in contemporary society. In my opinion, the theory that should be linked to crime in society is the social learning theory. I hypothesize that people are motivated to commit a crime by their bad behavior, which is caused by weak and broken bonds with family, school, or religion. The social environment is thus, the leading motivator of criminal activities. The theory also postulates that people commit crimes through the people that they associate with. People do not see any need to adhere to the conventional social values in society and thus think that engaging in crime is the only way to improve their financial conditions.
Those who commit a crime in society are mostly members of the same society. I don’t support the fact that people can be born with genes that can lead them to commit a crime. In supporting my hypothesis also, people learn crime activities from the people whom they spend most of their time with. For example, a teenager may learn to smoke by observing how other people do it then develop the urge to try the same. Social learning theory requires one to be attentive to a behavior, remember its kind as observed then be able to repeat the same behavior. However, people are diverted from criminal activities through positive alternatives, which create a sense of competence and empowerment. It is the role of the government to put up programs aimed at motivating people to stop committing a crime. Based on all this explanation, my hypothesis is, therefore, true.