Differential Association Theory

Introduction to Differential Association Theory

• Edwin H. Sutherland presented his theory of differential association in 1939 and 1947.
• Sutherland's theory posits that behavior is learned in a social environment.
• Conforming and criminal behavior differ in what is learned, not how it is learned.
• In the 1920s and 1930s, crime was commonly attributed to individual biological or mental defects.
• Sutherland advanced sociological criminology by criticizing and rejecting biological and mental defect explanations.
• Criminology is allied with sociology due to Sutherland's work.

The Social Heritage of the Theory

• Events of the 1920s and 1930s shaped Sutherland's theory.
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation began producing yearly Uniform Crime Reports.
• Evidence suggested certain populations are more prone to criminality.
• The Great Depression served as a foundation for sociological observations.
• Sutherland's time with the Bureau of Social Hygiene revealed that people turned to crime due to their impoverished situation.
• Crime was considered a product of situation, opportunity, and values.
• Prohibition and the criminalization of drug use affected Sutherland's views on criminal behavior.
• Alfred Lindesmith's work in these areas influenced Sutherland.
• Criminality is partly governed by the legal environment.
• Behavior can become criminal due to changes in the law.
• Individuals continuing the same behavior after law changes may be considered criminals.
• Sutherland emphasized society's evaluation of conduct in terms of adherence to the law and, therefore, felt it was key to consider legal codes when looking at crime.

The Intellectual Heritage

• Sutherland's thinking was influenced by members of the Chicago School, including W. I. Thomas and George Mead.
• Robert Park and Ernest Burgess's conception of the city as a multifaceted organism impacted him.
• He drew upon the ecological work of Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay and his association with Thorsten Sellin.
• Sutherland taught at the University of Chicago and was raised in a religious, rural Midwestern setting.
• His father, a religious fundamentalist, influenced Sutherland's critical stance toward theory and evidence.
• Statistical information and life history became important methodologies.
• Crime rates remained high in the central area of cities despite waves of immigration.
• The Chicago School theorized something (values) was being transmitted that kept the crime rates high.
• Culture conflict theorists suggested values and norms of immigrants differed from the general population of Chicago.
• Sutherland practiced the life history approach.
• Chic Conwell discussed learning the trade and apprenticeship within the profession of thieves, which contributed to the term "differential association".
• Sutherland drew on ecological and cultural transmission theory, symbolic interactionism, and culture conflict theory.
• Sutherland was able to make sense of varying crime rates and the individual processes of becoming criminals.
• Criminal behavior is not necessarily different from conventional behavior.
• Values determine behavior, and certain locations and people are more crime-prone.
• A critique of criminology by Jerome Michael and Mortimer J. Adler influenced Sutherland, so he set out to create a theory based on scientific standards, leading to differential association theory.
• Sutherland revised his theory between 1939 and 1947.

The Theoretical Perspective

• The first edition of Sutherland's textbook discussed the importance of interaction and the conveyance of values.
• The first suggestion of differential association theory came in the second edition of Principles of Criminology (1934).
• Individuals can be trained to any pattern of behavior.
• Failure to adopt behavior patterns comes from traditions and values within the environment.
• Culture conflict is the major element in the development of crime.
• Sutherland viewed cultural conflict as producing social disorganization and crime.
• The first full version of the theory was proposed in 1939.
• This version referred to systematic criminal behavior and focused on cultural conflict, social disorganization, and differential association.
• Sutherland later eliminated reference to systematic criminal behavior.
• Sutherland defined "systematic" as "criminal careers or organized criminal practices".
• Sutherland felt systematic criminal behavior included almost all forms of criminal behavior.

Differential Association

• Sutherland meant by "differential association" that the contents of the patterns presented in association with others would differ.
• Association with criminals alone does not cause criminal behavior.
• Content of communications (“contents of the patterns presented”) is of primary focus.
• Sutherland viewed crime as a consequence of conflicting values.
• Individuals followed culturally approved behavior disapproved of by the larger American society.
• Differential association theory is a product of the social environment.

Differential Social Organization

• The first version of differential association theory explained more than how individuals become delinquent.
• It was also an epidemiological theory of the distribution of crime rates and delinquency rates in society.
• Sutherland used differential social organization and culture conflict to explain why rates vary.
• Culture conflict is rampant in society.
• Conflict, a product of a disorganized society, creates values and interests among groups.
• Different values about the law lead to conflict with authorities, resulting in higher crime rates.
• High crime rates indicate socially disorganized areas.
• The probability of differential association itself is a "function of differential social organization".

The Final Version of the Theory

• The final version of the theory was proposed in 1947.
• Sutherland incorporated the notion that all behavior is learned and moved away from "social disorganization."
• He used "differential social organization” or “differential group organization."
• The final version of differential association was proposed in nine points.
• Criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other persons through communication.
• The process involves all types of contacts and exchanges.
• Focus on teaching and learning criminal behaviors in intimate personal groups.
• Sutherland explains two primary types of learning: techniques for committing criminal behavior and definitions supporting this behavior.
• A relationship must exist, skills or values must be transferred from the relationships, not books or movies.
• The definitions supporting criminal behavior were of more interest to Sutherland.
• Criminal tutors instill motives and drives that may encourage unlawful behavior.
• As Sutherland emphasized, most criminal behaviors require nothing more than what is normally learned during the course of daily activity.
• Criminal behavior often results when there is an excess of definitions favoring criminal behavior.
• Sutherland saw individuals as on operating on a balance or ration of potential good and bad behavioral definitions
• The associations that provide opportunity to learn criminal behavior may vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity.
• This process "involves all of the mechanisms that are involved in any other learning".
• Sutherland explained that criminal behavior relates to general needs and values, and noncriminal behavior also expressed such needs and values

Central Aspects

• The theory of differential association does not necessarily emphasize who one's associates are.
• Focuses on the definitions provided by those associations.
• Suggests that values supporting criminal behavior may be learned.
• Definitions from intimate others remain important.
• Different social organizations, individuals are exposed to differing norms that involve respect and law-abiding behavior.
• Individuals lean towards or away from crime as social organizations, especially those they spend time with, may differ from each other.
• Social organizations culturally different from each other increase the likelihood of criminal definitions.
• Susceptibility to similar behavioral definitions increases once definitions exist.
• Receptiveness to anti-criminal definitions will be less when an individual has existing definitions involving crime.
• Definitions toward any behavior will change as individuals interact within groups.
• The ratio of definitions regarding criminal or anti-criminal behavior may change when unorganized areas include mobility and culture.
• Organized areas will provide stable patterns for consistent definitions.

Classification of the Theory

• Differential association is a positivist theory that focuses on criminals and their behavior.
• Differential association is a micro theory for etiological issues of criminal behavior
• Differential association has a societal and group explanation of crime
• Differential association is macro theory and is oriented toward conflict, specifically normative and cultural ones.
• Rather than conflict groups, the theory discusses conflicting values regarding crime and lawfulness.
• The theory lies in the recognition that a number of values exist in society, and it focuses on the process of becoming a criminal rather than the structure.

Major Points of the Theory

• Criminal behavior is learned in the same way as other any other behavior.
• Learning takes place in social settings through communication.
• People most important to you conduct a majority of the learning.
• 4. The intimate social environment allows one learn how and why that behavior is conducted.
• Values relating to certain behavior may be in opposition to established legal codes.
• People will consider criminal behavior when the weight of what they consider good behavior is in opposition to legal codes.
• The great number of groups and cultures in society makes learning different codes and values prevalent, making it conducive to conductive to learning criminal behavior.
• Some groups conflict with crime values than others, leading to higher crime rates.

Current Directions

• There have been three general trends in the differential association theory over the years
• The focus was on how delinquent subcultures transmitted definitions conducive to crime.
• The trend returned to the Chicago School roots and explained the relationships within differential associations.
• Cressey used symbolic interaction and role theory when replying to criticisms.
• Daniel Glaser combined the theory with the symbolic interactionist concept of identification to create differential identification.
• Public figures, actors, and athletes extended this notion to the learning of values.
• The third trend attempted to explain learning through social leaning theories
• The major concepts of differential association are untestable due to the abstract nature.
• Association with criminal and delinquent peers majorly affects illegal behavior.
• Whether the associations cause illegal behavior is currently unknown.
• Research incorporates measure of time order of associations.

Key Facts

• Sutherland's theory has implications for treatment and the study of alternative “types” of crime
• Prison programs could implement role models who provide conventional definitions for behavior.
• Standard conditions of probation and parole include keeping away from criminal associations.
• Modern models of parenting involve watching the influences and choice of friends that the children make.
• Sutherland is credited with creating the term "white-collar crime".
• White-collar crimes involve those of higher social standing learning crime.
• The difference in which techniques of behavior is displayed depend on definitions from the associations and how the behavior has been learned.

Key terms

• Criminological theories of the 1950s and early 1960s focused on juvenile delinquency
• A common form of delinquency in the 50s were gangs, and criminologists were interested in explaining the context of delinquency.
• Chicago School cultures began to be referred to as subcultures under sociologist.
• Cohen and & Ohlin combined Chicago School and Merton's "anomie theory" to study urban, lower-class, male, gang delinquency.

The Social Heritage

• The 1950s included prosperity and a rise of consumerism.
• Middle class values influenced "normality" and the idea of educational value in American culture.
• Benefits provided to military veterans for college education and influence American society.
• Urbanization was peaking, and issues began to arise.
• Class differences also included segregation with a clear line between "we and them"
• Dominant concepts of poverty translated into policy relied mostly on the ideas that people were responsible for their own actions.

Intellectual Heritage

• Intellectual heritage included Chicago School theories.
• Edwin Sutherland spread the schools work to several graduate students who had influence.
• Robert Merton's theories had become a popular tool in discussing social structure.
• Concepts like structure and functionalism used theories to reconcile with Chicago School processes
• Street gangs and studying male power that ties between political power with organized were influences.
• Kobrin found that community organized was related to criminal elements, and this could be a leading factor in controlling crime

Cohen's Culture of Delinquency

• Cohen attempted to solve the problem of how a delinquent subculture could begin.
• Several theories were integrated, including the the work of Shaw, McKay, Sutherland, and Merton.
• Delinquent behavior is often found among lower-class males, and that gang delinquency is the most common form.
• Behavior of these gangs in the cultures is: non utilitarian, malicious, and negativistic.
• Youths in subcultural delinquency would steal, delight and have an obvious attempt to flout middle-class values

Research and Characterization

• Research also character gangs by:
• Conducting delinquent acts
• Interested in hedonism and self-absorbed actions
• Hostile towards outsiders (group autonomy)
• Social status is something all children seek, however do not compete equally to obtain it.
• Lack of advantages of lower-class youth, so they must compete among themselves to gain status.
• First major issue faced by child is that they must keep up wight middle class peers, as schools base performance off of middle class standards.
• In response to this, the ones who suffer most are those whose parents are not self-evident to the parents of lower-class children

Actions for Overcoming Hurdles

• The children in subcultural environments will use "reaction-formation" as an anxiety defense mechanism.
• However this is solved because many children adapt and seek change by jointly establishing new status and conduct that they are capable of.
• These actions resolve problems as lower-class and create subcultures of delinquency.
• Abandoning middle-class values helps gang members achieve status by showing toughness.
• Social environments are critical to helping prevent strained frustration.
• Frequent interaction affects the degrees of whether gangs will affect youths.
• In certain instances, reaction formation helps assist with status and frustration.

Subculture Influence

• Subculture emphasizes behavior involving masculine that create female authority
• Cohen's theory is referred to as structural and also borrowing strain theory, as consensus determines goals being met.

Major key points include

• Members must share common value that has values over others
• Gaining status is approved when goals are met
• School and other institutes have been given value of meeting goals by any means necessary with little limitations
• Society has been often viewed unfavorably because of the lack of opportunities
• Withstand to the use of conventional schools (grades or a school) because most youths will rebel anti-middle class standing, as they continue goal chasing.
• Youths will create a new standing system as original anti-conventional.

"Delinquent solution" transmission

• This is fostering on as youths continue a cycle a providing behavior that is malicious and non-utilitarian
• Differential opportunity theory finds origin form Richard Cloward article finding origin
• Cloward argued that Merton only focuses on one structures which meant opportunities, as he explained there are more than this
• Cloward explained second structure that involved illegitimate avenue to achieve goals (illegitimate opportunity structure)
• It is from the source of opportunities that theory proposed together Deliquency and Opportunity

Urbanization of gangs

• Juveniles reach aspirations of urbanization with one opportunity.
• The opportunities that lead to success by conventional means, one can see that you can find different means.
• By seeing this, it finds that social standing determines what success is for both parties
• Kobrin argued that gang development depended on community integration and in this they created a stable structure-lower structures could find success by criminal and could succeed as convention too.

Business and Goals

• People can join criminal businesses and can work to legitimate business
• Kobrin stated that this created community with shared goals through illegal and legitimate businesses.
• This made a common understanding and shared desire to have better safe streets.

Cloward and Ohlin Proposed three ideal gang types

• Criminal
• Conflict
• Retreatist
• Gang act as apprenticeship groups for legal adults to become involved
• There would be minor violence and profit-making activities as part of this (criminal subculture), and gang would practice criminal trades under the loose supervision of gangs.
• Shoplifting, fencing extorting , and more was involved

Cloward Views

• Cloward has pointed out that those with legitimate and illegitimate groups exist, and gang will exist where there is an integration of age in gangs' lives.
• Juveniles learn to associate older adults around them.
• A nonintegrated community would mostly only lack a strong underground underground.

Delinquency influence

• It is in Cohen's delinquent subculture and the gangs would find focus is gaining respect.
• Troubling these cause the community to contact police (socially disorganized)
• Transient community are juveniles interaction and are not successful due to role models.
• juveniles who have no access to either the opportunity structures will be more like to face issues, eventually leading to retreat subculture with focus on drug use. One the issues includes is drug and issues that drive gang related events or have been the victim of success will turn to drugs

Differential opportunity theory

• This theory is "strain".
• Bridging theory that leans in a macro context and positistic concept.
• Members of society share a common way of life that leads to certain goals.
• Avenues lead to legitimate and illegitimate.

Miller's Lower-class Focal concerns

• Miller came to different conclusions when testing other conclusions
• Middle Class values than the other three concepts shared
• Emphasis on theoretical perspectives of social class lifestyles had a consensus and understanding of what it meant.

Views of Miller

• There is society views on social and those resemblances are different and similar.
• Concept of the concern than the value describes important thing for a subculture
• Concerns aspect that attention can be for example motherhood, etc.
• This comes with the fact of knowing lower - class can mean bad trouble and is mostly viewed upon.
• Absence is issues with kids who have problems following up with adults

Societal views

• Gang can provide youth and give qualities to male students
• Most gangs can be looked up as a way to success due to the views
• Each culture and class has difference in how the way of life is

WolfGang

• Wolfgang found the culture that theory that tried to find a way
• Gang find the middle-class views help delinquent as a standard.
• Youths provide contacts that give to learning elements of the adult roles to enhance those roles given.

Subculture of Violence

• There are commitments the share understanding of deviancy in behaviour-violence
• Values are different but share same ideas
• There tends to be sharing and a want more

Characteristics

• Drug and terror have all shared informal codes of expectation so one can perform goals There has been lots of tests and talks with criminals' that approve the reasons to be more focused on the idea of defence.

Explore Edwin Sutherland's Differential Association Theory, which posits that criminal behavior is learned in social environments rather than stemming from individual defects. Sutherland's work in the 1920s and 1930s, influenced by the Great Depression and crime reports, shaped sociological criminology by emphasizing social learning over biological factors.