Criminology Theories of Crime Causation PDF

THEORIES Designed the Panopticon Prison (pan=all; Set of statement, behavior, events that optic=seeing) – circular building with cells widely accepted by society. along the circumference, eac...

THEORIES Designed the Panopticon Prison (pan=all; Set of statement, behavior, events that optic=seeing) – circular building with cells widely accepted by society. along the circumference, each clearly visible CRIME from a central location staffed by guards. An Act or Omission Punishable by Law. Modes of Punishment THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION Theories of crime causation encompass a ✓ Retribution - the individual has committed a wide variety of theories that attempt to explain wrongful act that justifies punishment, and the fundamental reasons behind criminal that the punishment should be proportional to behavior. the wrong committed. They are typically categorized into biological ✓ Deterrence- the theory that criminal penalties theories, psychological theories, and do not just punish violators, but also sociological theories. discourage other people from committing similar offenses. SCHOOL OF THOUGHT IN CRIMINOLOGY o General Deterrence - It focuses on potential offenders and that these 1. CLASSICAL SCHOOL offenders must receive punishment in a severe, swift and certain way. Focuses on the CRIME o Specific Deterrence - Its main targets hold primarily that the people’s decision to are those offenders who have already commit crime is a matter of choice. been convicted and it also claimed that Does not give distinction between an adult punishing more criminals will reduce and a minor or mentally handicapped as far as their involvement in criminal activity free will is concerned. KEYWORDS: FOUNDER: ❖ Free Will ❖ Utilitarianism – Pleasure and Pain A. CESARE BONESANA MARCHESE DI ❖ Classical – Crime BECCARIA ❖ Rational – Result ❖ Hedonism – Seek pleasure to avoid Pain FATHER OF CRIMINOLOGY Published the book entitled “On Crimes and RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY Punishment” (delitti e delle pene) - opposed Is a perspective which holds that criminality the death penalty and torture as signs of the is the result of conscious choice, and which injustice and cruelty that existed in the past predicts that individuals choose to commit regime's society. crime when the benefits out weight the costs of disobeying the law. B. JEREMY BENTHAM UTILITARIANISM Founded the concept of UTILITARIANISM – assumes that all actions are calculated in focuses on rehabilitation and deterrence; the accordance with their likelihood to bringing goal is to use punishment to benefit society. pleasure and pain. “Greatest Happiness Principle” – The greater Devised the Pseudo-mathematical formula the number the greater the Happiness called “Felicific Calculus” – individuals are End justify the Means (Robin Hood) human calculators who put all the factors into an equation in order to decide whether a 2. NEO-CLASSICAL SCHOOL particular crime is worth committing or not. He reasoned that in order to deter individuals Focuses on SOME OTHER FACTORS from committing crimes, punishment, or pain, Theory that modified the doctrine of free will must be greater than the satisfaction, or by stating that free will of men may be pleasure, he would gain from committing the affected by OTHER FACTORS and crime is crime. CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  committed due to some compelling reasons that prevail. B. CESARE LOMBROSO Argued that children and lunatics cannot calculate pain and pleasure, therefor, must FATHER OF MODERN CRIMINOLOGY be exempted from criminal liability. FOUNDER OF CRIMINAL ANTRHOPOLOGY – In the study of legal provisions, this termed relationship between human physical as either Mitigating (Art 13 (2) - That the characteristics and criminality offender is under eighteen year of age or over He claimed that criminals are distinguishable seventy years. In the case of the minor, he from non-criminals due to the presence of shall be proceeded against in accordance atavistic stigmata – the physical features of with the provisions of Art. 80.) or Exempting creatures at an earlier stage of development. Circumstances (Art. 12 (1) - An imbecile or an ATAVISM – derived from the Latin term insane person, unless the latter has acted Atavus, which means “Ancestor” during a lucid interval.) - criminals are physiological throwback to earlier stage of Principle of Insane evolution. “Actus me invito factus non est meus actus” According to his theory, criminals are usually “An act done by me against my will is not my act.” in possession of huge jaws and strong canine teeth, the arms span of criminals is often 3. ITALIAN/POSITIVIST SCHOOL greater than their height, just like that ape who used their forearm to push themselves Focuses on the PERSON along the ground. UMBRELLA OF ALL THEORIES other physical stigmata include deviation in Presumes that criminal behavior is caused by head size and shape, asymmetry of faces, internal and external factor outside of the excessive dimensions of the jaw and individual’s control. cheekbones, eye defects and peculiarities, Viewed crime as a social and moral ears of unusual size, nose twisted, upturned phenomenon which cannot be treated and or flattened in thieves, or aquiline or beaklike checked by imposition of punishment but in murderers, fleshy lips, swollen and rather rehabilitation or the enforcement of protruding, and pouches in the cheek like individual measures. those of animal’s toes. Positivism can be broken up into three segments (PRINCIPLE OF DETERMINISM): CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMINALS BY LOMBROSO Biological Determinism Psychological Determinism ✓ BORN CRIMINALS – individuals with at least Sociological Determinism five (5) atavistic stigmata ✓ INSANE CRIMINALS – those who are not FOUNDER: criminals by birth; they become criminals as a result of some changes in their brains which HOLY THREE OF CRIMINOLOGY (LGF) interfere with their ability to distinguish between right and wrong. 1. CESARE LOMBROSO (Biological) ✓ CRIMINALOIDS – occasional criminals who 2. RAFAELLE GAROFALO (Psychological) were pulled into criminality primarily by 3. ENRICO FERRI (Sociological) environmental influences. A. AUGUST COMPTE Consider the FATHER OF POSITIVIST SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY Applied scientific method in the study of society from where he adopted the word “sociology” CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION DIFFERENT APPROACHES UNDER THE POSITIVIST a.) ERNST KRETSCHMER CRIMINOLOGY German psychiatrist, neurologist, psychopathologist. A. BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM Since Kretschmer was a psychiatrist, he - this explanation for the existence of criminal related these body shapes to various traits associates an individual’s evil disposition to psychiatric disorders: pyknics to manic physical disfigurement or impairment. depression. Asthenics and athletics to schizophrenia. 1. CRANIOLOGY / CRANIOLOGY THREE (3) PRINCIPAL TYPES OF PHYSIQUE a) FRANZ JOSEPH GALL (Kretschmer) neuro anatomist and physiologist and a pioneer in the study of the localization of the ❖ ASTHENIC – lean, slightly built, narrow mental functions in the brain. shoulder, their crime are petty thievery and He developed Cranioscopy, a method to fraud. study the personality and development of ❖ ATHLETIC – medium to tall, strong, muscular, mental and moral faculties based on the coarse bone; they are usually connected with external shape of the skull. crimes of violence. Later renamed as PHRENOLOGY, the study ❖ PYKNIC – medium height, rounded figures, that deals with the relationship between the massive neck, broad face; they tend to skull and human behavior. commit deception, fraud and violence. b) JOHANN KASPAR SPURZHEIM German phrenologist who was the assistant of GALL he was the man most responsible for popularizing and spreading phrenology to a wide audience. 2. PHYSIOGNOMY a.) GIAMBATTISTA DELLA PORTA (Giovanni Battista Della Porta) an Italian physician and natural philosopher. He founded the school on human physiognomy. PHYSIOGNOMY - deals with the study of facial features and their relation to human behavior. b.) JOHANN KASPAR LAVATER He introduced the idea that physiognomy related to the specific character traits of individuals, rather than general types. 3. PHYSIOLOGY/SOMATOTYPE This refers to the study of the body build of a person in relation to his temperament and personality and the type of offense he is most prone to commit. CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION b.) WILLIAM SHELDON Formulated his own group of Somatotype: TYPE OF PHYSIQUE TEMPERAMENT 1. ENDOMORPHIC – relatively large digestive VISCEROTONIC – generally relax and comfortable, viscera, round body; short tampering limbs; small extrovert person, loves luxury and bones; smooth velvety skin 2. MESOMORPH – with relatively predominance of ROMOTONIC – active, dynamic, walks, talks, and muscles, bones and motor organs of the body gestures assertively with large wrist and hands and behaves. 3. ECTOMORPHIC – relative predominance of skin CEREBROTONIC – introvert, prone to allergies, skin and its chronic the nervous system; it has fragile and appendage with includes troubles, fatigue, delicate bones; with droopy shoulder, small face and insomnia, sensitive skin and sensitive to noise. sharp nose, fine hair and with relatively small body. 4. NATURE THEORY minded only 46 normal, 36 were illegitimate, 3 Nature theory holds that low intelligence is epileptics, 3 criminals, 8 kept brothels and 82 died of genetically determined and inherited. infancy; his marriage with a woman from a good family produced almost all normal descendants, only a.) CHARLES GORING two (2) were alcoholics, 1 was convicted of religious Also studied phrenology and cranioscopy. offense, 15 died at infancy and no one became he believed that criminal characteristics were criminal or epileptic. inherited and recommended that people with such characteristics should not be d.) ALFRED BINNET allowed to reproduce. French psychologist who together with According to him, people with epilepsy, Théodore Simon invented the first practical insanity and feeblemindedness were among intelligence test, the Binet–Simon test. those who should not be allowed to have a He believed that people with low IQ child. “intelligence quotient” are prone to become criminals b.) RICHARD DUGDALE He studied the lives of the members of the JUKES FAMILY and referred to ADA JUKES as B. PSYCHOLOGICAL DETERMINISM the MOTHER OF CRIMINALS This explains that psychological determinants He discovered that from among the which define behavior of a person. descendants of Ada Jukes, there were 280 There are many ways to classify psychological paupers, 60 thieves, 7 murderers, 40 other theories of crime causation, but the common ciminals, 40 persons with venereal disease assumption of these theories is that there is and 50 prostitutes. something wrong with the mind of the He claimed that since families produce offender which cause him to commit crimes. generations of criminals, they must have been transmitting degenerate traits down 1. PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY the line. A psychiatric approach developed by Austrian psychiatrist Sigmund Freud which c.) HENRY GODDARD emphasizes the role of personality in human He studied the lives of the KALIKAK FAMILY behavior, and which sees deviant behavior as He found that among the descendants from a result of dysfunctional personalities. MARTIN KALIKAK’s relationship with feebleminded lady, they were 143 feeble- a.) SIGMUND FREUD FATHER OF PSYCHONANALYSIS He attributed delinquent and criminal behavior to a conscience that is over bearing CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  which arouses feeling of guilt or a conscience - Boys are more attached to their mother that is so weak that it cannot control the (Oedipus) while girls are more attracted to individual’s impulses and the need for their father (Electra) immediate gratification. 4th Stage – LATENCY (6 y/o to Puberty) In his theory, PERSONALITY COMPROMISED - Dormant sexual feeling and interact mostly OF THREE COMPONENTS: with same sex peers. 5th Stage – GENITAL (Beyond Puberty) ID – stands for Instinctual Drive; “Pleasure Principle” - Attraction to opposite sex peers. - represent the unconscious biological needs of food, water, sleep, sex and other life sustaining b.) RAFAELLE GAROFALO necessities including aggression as well as Credited to have coined the term primitive needs that at present at birth Criminology, which he called “Criminologia” - this pleasure-seeking part of human personality Proposed that people commit crime due to is concerned about gratification of one’s wishes. some psychic or MORAL ANOMALY, a EGO – acts according to “Reality Principle” deficiency in moral sensibilities. - sensible and responsible part of an individual’s He believed that certain people are morally personality. less developed than others due to - It is developed in early life and compensates for environmental, circumstantial and organic the demands of the ID by helping the individual reason. guide his actions to remain within the boundaries of accepted social behavior. SUPER EGO – “Conscience Principle” “Morality C. SOCIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM Principle” Refers to things, places, and people with - Serves as the moral conscience of an individual. whom we come in contact with and which - Part of an individual’s personality that allows the play a part in determining our actions and person to feel pride, shame, and guilt. conduct. These causes may bring about the - It is structured by what values were taught by development of criminal behavior. the parents, the school and the community, as well as belief in GOD; it is largely responsible for SOCIAL NORMS – also called rules of conduct making a person follow the moral codes of - Set of rules that govern an individual’s society. behavior and actions 2. FREUD’S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES 1. ANOMIE THEORY According to the famous psychoanalyst derived from the Greek a nomos which Sigmund Freud, children go through a series means without norms. of psychosexual stages that lead to the The idea of anomie means the lack of normal development of the adult personality. ethical or social standards. This concept first Freud's stages of human development, which emerged in 1893, with French sociologist consisted of five psychosexual stages of Emile Durkheim. development, described how personality a breakdown of the norms and values of a developed over the course of childhood. society or an individual a.) EMILE DURKHEIM 1st Stage – ORAL (0-1 y/o) One of the founding scholars of sociology - Children derived pleasure from Oral Activities In his book entitled “The Division of Labor in (Ex. Chewing, biting, sucking) Society”, it became a landmark work on the 2nd Stage – ANAL (2-3 y/o) organization of societies. - Children begin potty training. Pleasure He claimed that “crime is an important focuses on bowel and bladder elimination, ingredient to all healthy society” coping with the demands for control. According to him, crime is a normal part of rd 3 Stage – PHALLIC (3-6 y/o) the society as birth and death He coined the term “Anomie” (ANOMIE THEORY) CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  but seeks to redefine 2. STRAIN THEORY new values for society. When an individual is unable to meet (+- +-) culturally-acceptable goals using institutionalized means, he experiences a 3. THEORY OF IMITATION state of emotional disturbance (fear, stress, People imitate one another. disappointment, pressure, depression, anger, This theory explained by the following and frustration), also known as strain. pattern: KEYWORD: o Pattern 1: individuals imitate others F - frustration in proportion to the intensity and A - Anger frequency of their contact R - resentment o Pattern 2: Inferiors imitate Superiors D - Disparity o Pattern 3: when two behavior U – Under great pressure patterns clash, one may take the T – The goal is blocked place of another. b.) ROBERT KING MERTON c.) GABRIEL TARDE Advocated the STRAIN THEORY, which Introduced the Theory of Imitation, which maintains that the failure of man to achieve governs the process by which people become a higher status of life cause them to commit criminals. crimes in order for that status/goal to be Tarde was the first theorist to associate crime attained. with learning in what he called the laws of This strain then forces the individual to adapt imitation. According to Tarde's theory of to his conditions to relieve the stress he imitation, he believed that crime is the result faces. The various adaptations can be of imitation or modeling the behaviors of categorized into conformity, innovation, others. When a person learns new responses ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion. by observing others, this is called modeling. MODES OF ADAPTATION d. ADOLPHE QUETELET Culturally accepting goals and means of FATHER OF MODERN STATISTICS achieving them. Founded what is known as the CARTOGRAPHIC SCHOOL OF CRIMINOLOGY, CONFORMITY accepts the means and together with ANDRE MICHAEL GUERRY goals together. (+ +) Made use of data and statistical analysis to INNOVATION Accepts the goals but gain insight into relationship between crime uses illegitimate and sociological factors. means in order to He found that age, gender, poverty, achieve them. (+ -) education, and alcohol consumption were RITUALISM Lose faith in cultural important factors related to crime. goals but still feel obligated to work e.) ENRICO FERRI under the routines of He believed that criminals could not be held legitimate daily life. morally responsible because they did not (- +) choose to commit crimes but was driven to RETREATISM When they ignore the commit them by conditions of their lives. goals and the means of The one who coined the term “Born society. (- -) Criminal” used by Lombroso REBELLION Rejects the cultural He proposed that the commission of the goals and the crime was caused by a number of factors institutionalize means, including Physical (race, geographics, temperature, climate), Anthropological (age, sex, organic and psychology) and Social CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  (customs, religion, economics, and By DANIEL GLASSER population density) Commit criminal or delinquent acts if they believed that will lead to acceptance by and 4. SOCIAL DISORGANIZATION THEORY/ approval of these important people in their DEFFERENTIAL SOCIAL DISORGANIZATION lives. By SHAW AND MCKAY It proposes that an individual pursues Focuses on the condition within the urban criminal behavior due to his/her environment that affects crime rates identification with a real or imaginary person Links crime rate to neighborhood ecological who accepts his or her criminal behavior. characteristics. Views crime-ridden neighborhoods as those 11. DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT THEORY in which residents are uninterested in By ERNEST BURGESS AND RONALD AKERS community matters, therefor, the common Refers to the potential rewards and sources of control - family, school, church, punishments for committing or not barangay authorities – are weak and committing a criminal or deviant act. disorganized. The concept of differential reinforcement purports that inappropriate behavior is more 7. CULTURE DEVIANCE THEORY/CULTURE CONFLICT likely to be repeated when it is frequently THEORY reinforced and infrequently punished. By WALTER MILLER suggest that both peer groups and families Combines the elements of both strain and reinforce crime as an option if the behavior is disorganization theories tolerated, ignored, or rewarded. Theories that in order to cope with social isolation and economic deprivation, member o Negative reinforcement – gives punishment of the lower class create an independent o Positive Reinforcement – gives rewards subculture with its own set of rules and values. 12. CONTAINMENT THEORY Criminal behavior is an expression of By WALTER RECKLESS conformity to lower class subcultural values. The central concepts of containment theory are that outer and inner containments are 8. DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION THEORY required for a person to develop restrained By EDWIN SUTHERLAND law-abiding behavior. Believe that criminal behavior is not inherited but learned. OUTER CONTAINMENT – which is about community MOST IMPORTANT THEORY socialization and the application of social norms LEARNED by: and rules. o Interaction INNER CONTAINMENT – the controlling of the self, o Communication by a favorable self-concept frustration tolerance o Socialization and ability to follow norms. “Tell Me Who Your Friends Are, And I Will Tell You Who You Are” 13. BROKEN WINDOW THEORY By JAMES Q. WILSON and GEORGE KELLING 9. DIFFERENTIAL OPPORTUNITY THEORY Their theory states that signs of disorder will By LLOYD OHLIN lead to more disorder. Explained that society leads the lower class to Ex. A building with a broken window that has want things and society does things to been left unrepaired will give the appearance people. that no one cares and no one is in charge. The main concept of this theory states that people in all strata of society share the same 15. SOCIAL PROCESS THEORIES success goals but that those in the lower- Social process theory views criminality as a class have limited means of achieving them. function of people's interactions with various 10. DIFERENTIAL IDENTIFICATION THEORY organizations, institutions, and processes in CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  society; people in all walks of life have the Says people become criminals when potential to become criminals if they significant members of society label them as maintain destructive social relationships. such and they accepted those labels as a It also has three (3) major branches, such as personal identity. social learning theory, social control theory, and social reaction theory 16. ROUTINE ACTIVITY THEORY by MARCUS FELSON 14. SOCIAL LEARNING studies crime as an event, closely relates to By ALBERT BANDURA its environment and emphasizes it ecological Assumes that people are born good but learn process thereby diverting academic attention to be bad away from mere offenders. Behaviors are Learned through Life Experiences or Bad Experiences. Element of RAT Bandura (1973) believed that violence was o Motivated offender something learned through a process called o Suitable target BEHAVIOR MODELING. Aggressive acts are o Lack of Capable Guardian usually modeled after 3 principal sources: o FAMILY MEMBERS. Bandura reports 17. DRIFT THEORY/NEURTALIZATION THEORY that family life showing children who By GRESHAM SYKES They viewed the process of becoming a use aggressive tactics have parents criminal as a learning experience in which who use similar behaviors when potential delinquents and criminals master dealing with others. techniques that enable them to o ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERIENCES. counterbalance or neutralize conventional People who reside in areas where values and drift back and forth between violence is a daily occurrence are illegitimate and conventional behavior. more likely to act violently than those who dwell in low-crime areas whose 18. CONFLICT THEORY norm stresses conventional behavior. It was first applied to criminology by three o MASS MEDIA. Films and television distinct scholars: Willem A. Bonger, Ralf G. show commonly depict violence Dahrendorf, and George B. Vold. graphically. Moreover, violence views crime as the outcome of class struggle. The basic concept of conflict criminology is 5. SOCIAL BOND/SOCIAL CONTROL THEORY that the unequal distribution of wealth and By TRAVIS HIRSCHI power in society contribute to the frequency Hirschi links the onset of criminality to the of crime. The elite commit crimes to gain weakening of the ties that bind people to more wealth and maintain their powerful society. status, while the poor commit crimes to try Most people do not commit crimes as they to alleviate their financial struggles. have four (4) controls in their lives. B.I.A.C 19. RELATIVE DEPRIVATION THEORY ✓ Belief This theory clearly emphasizes that a sharp ✓ Involvement division between the rich and the poor ✓ Attachment creates an atmosphere of envy and mistrust. ✓ Commitment based on the notion that people will often feel that they have less than some 6. SOCIAL REACTION THEORY/ LABELLING THEORY comparative standard. People can feel ✓ By FRANK TANNENBAUM relatively deprived of tangible items, such as Theory of how the self-identity and behavior money or cars, or intangible items, such as of individuals may be determined or social status or respect. influenced by the term used to describe or 20.INTERGENERATIONAL TRANSMISSION THEORY classify them. CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  Stated that criminal and antisocial parents viewed that some people may actually tend to have delinquent and antisocial initiate the confrontation that eventually children, as shown in the classic longitudinal leads to their injury or death. surveys by Joan McCord in Boston and Lee Robins in St. Louis. ✓ Passive Precipitation - victim exhibits some Refers to the complex and dynamic process personal characteristic that unknowingly with which values, ideas and behaviors are either threatens or encourages the attacker transmitted across generations. ✓ Active Precipitation - occurs when victims act provocatively, use threats or fighting words, 21. ALTERNATIVE THEORY or even attack first the offenders contradicts the famous saying that says, “OPPOSITE CHARGES ATTRACT.” 24. LIFESTYLE THEORY An alternative theory focuses on assortative Lifestyle theory suggests that certain people mating; female offenders tend to cohabit may become the victims of crimes because of with or get married to male offenders. their lifestyles and choices. This theory explains that people may become There are two main classes of explanations crime victims because the routine of their concerning why similar people tend to get married, daily life increases their exposure to criminal cohabit, or become sexual partners. offenders. ✓ First Process: 25. LIFE-COURSE THEORY/DEVELOPMENTAL SOCIAL HOMOGAMY - convicted people THEORY tend to choose each other as mates because suggests that criminal behavior is a dynamic of physical and social proximity; they meet process, influenced by individual each other in the same schools, characteristics as well as social experiences, neighborhoods, clubs, pubs, and so on. and that the factors that cause anti-social behaviors change dramatically over a person’s life span. ✓ Second Process: An explanation for criminality that recognizes PHENOTYPIC ASSORTMENT - people that criminogenic influences (those that examine each other's personality and contribute to an individual's likelihood of behavior and choose partners who are engaging in criminal behavior.) have their similar to themselves greatest impact during the early stages of life, and which hold that experiences which 22. SOCIAL CONFLICT THEORY children have shape them for the rest of their was provided by Karl Marx who finds that lives. society is in a constant state of internal conflict, as different groups strive to impose 26. DEVIANT PLACE THEORY their will on others. The deviant place theory states that an Laws serve as a tool of the upper class to individual is more likely to become the victim control the lower class. Though, not all of a crime when exposed to dangerous areas. crimes are committed by the lower class, but most of the time they are the subjects of 27. PEACEMAKING THEORY arrest. by Larry Tifft and Dennis Sullivan in their EX. Vagrancy was classified as a criminal book entitled, “The Mask of Love” explains offense under Article 202 of the Revised that the only ways to reduce crime are Penal Code. REPEALING the RA 10158 (AN through peace and humanism. ACT DECRIMINALIZING VAGRANCY) in 2012 resulting in the decriminalization of vagrancy. 23. VICTIM PRECIPITATION THEORY 28. AGE-GRADED THEORY/TURNING POINT CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION  Robert Sampson and John Laub in their work commit violence as a form of self-defense (1993), “Crime in the Making” identify the may have suffered from Battered turning points in a criminal career. In age-graded theory, the type of crime SELF-DEFENSE under Article 11, paragraph 1 of the committed by a certain individual is in Revised Penal Code necessarily implies a deliberate consonance with his age or his age governs or and positive overt act of the accused to prevent or dictates the type of crime to be committed by repel an unlawful aggression of another with the use him. of reasonable means. This is what Laub and Sampson called as the turning points: marriage and career. To successfully invoke battered woman syndrome as self-defense, there are three AGING OUT - it is also known as desistance or requirements. spontaneous remission. - as the Age Increase the capacity to commit ✓ First, there must be at least two battering the crime decrease. episodes ✓ Second, the final acute battering episode 29. BATTERED CHILD SYNDROME preceding the killing of the batterer must This term was coined by Dr. C. Henry Kempe have produced in the battered person's and his colleagues. mind an actual fear of imminent harm defined as the collection of injuries sustained from her batterer and an honest belief by a child as a result of repeated that she needed to use force to save her mistreatment or beating. life. ✓ Third, at the time of the killing, the 30. BATTERED WOMEN SYNDROME/ BATTERED batterer must have posed probable grave PERSON SYNDROME harm to the accused based on the history of violence perpetrated by the former What is battery? against the latter. “Battery” refers to an act of inflicting physical harm upon the woman or her child resulting to the physical and psychological or emotional distress. (Section 3(b), Republic Act No. 9262) What is the Battered Woman Syndrome? “Battered Woman Syndrome” refers to a scientifically defined pattern of psychological and behavioral symptoms found in women living in battering relationships as a result of cumulative abuse. (Section 3(c), R.A. No. 9262) The battered women syndrome is characterized by the so-called “cycle of violence” which has three phases. The cycle of violence has three phrases: (i) the tension-building phase; (ii) the acute battering phase; and (iii) the tranquil phase. RA 9262 acknowledges that women who have retaliated against their partner or who CRI 170: THEORIES OF CRIME CAUSATION