What long-held belief regarding the causes of criminal behavior did Edwin Sutherland dispute?
A Criminal behavior is learned.
B Criminals are primarily created in the lower classes due to a feeling of inadequacy.
C Criminals are less likely to create strong bonds with their immediate family members despite their antisocial proclivities.
D Criminal behavior is a result of society labels.
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is A. Criminal behavior is learned.
Edwin Sutherland disputed the long-held belief that criminal behavior is the result of inherent biological traits or individual predispositions. Prior to Sutherland’s work, criminologists often believed that criminal behavior was tied to one’s biological makeup or that criminals were simply a product of lower social classes. However, Sutherland introduced the differential association theory in the early 20th century, arguing that criminal behavior is not innate but learned through social interactions.
According to Sutherland, individuals learn criminal behavior in the same way they learn any other behavior: through interaction with others, particularly in intimate groups such as family, friends, or peers. These groups provide the values, norms, and behaviors that an individual adopts. Importantly, Sutherland emphasized that people are influenced by the frequency, duration, and intensity of their associations with criminal influences. If an individual is exposed to more pro-criminal values than anti-criminal values, they are likely to adopt criminal behavior.
Sutherland’s theory was a radical departure from earlier criminological theories that focused on biological or psychological factors. Instead of seeing criminals as inherently different from law-abiding citizens, he proposed that crime is a result of social processes. This shift in understanding had a profound influence on the development of sociological approaches to criminology, focusing on the social environments that foster crime.
In short, Sutherland’s theory underscored the role of social learning in the development of criminal behavior, challenging previous ideas that crime was biologically determined or solely a byproduct of class and societal labels.