Getting Hired at the University of Washington......
Dr. Akers had completed his doctoral work and was entertaining about a half dozen job offers to teach at various schools when he had a chance encounter with Professor Mel DeFleur. Professor DeFleur took an interest in Dr. Akers and asked where his first teaching job would be. After reviewing the candidate list, Professor DeFleur told him that he didn't think he'd really want to work at any of those schools. He put in a phone call to Washington University and made a recommendation to a person on the hiring committee that they hire Dr. Akers. A few weeks later, Dr. Akers received a congratulatory letter from The University of Washington, welcoming him as a new employee. He hadn't even gone in for an interview.
Meeting Robert Burgess.....
Shortly after arriving, he met and befriended another professor, Dr. Robert Burgess, a behavior sociologist who had experience in psychological behaviorism. Dr. Akers would refer to Dr. Burgess as a strict follower of B.F. Skinner, a renowned psychologist. Dr. Burgess' and Dr. Akers' offices were adjacent to one another and, as friends often do, would discuss personal and professional interests. Dr. Burgess and Dr. Akers began discussing Dr. Edwin Sutherland's Theory of Differential Association. Both of them felt that the theory had a good fundamental base, but it could be revised to be more useful. The key point to the revision was to include behavioral psychology principles. After making the decision to revise Sutherland's theory, Akers tutored Burgess in sociology and Burgess tutored Akers in psychology until each of them had a meaningful understanding of each others field for the purpose of the revision.
Historical context of their theory.....
Their work on the theory occurred in the middle and late 1960s. It was a time of civil unrest due to the Vietnam War. Traditional ways of thinking were questioned and it opened up opportunities for new theories to take hold. Dr. Akers referred to that time period as having the right intellectual climate to push for a better understanding of crime. In his view, this is why there were so many significant criminologists that emerged at the same time. There was a huge push for new theories and the intellectual community responded. Akers stated that their was a great intellectual climate for new theory to emerge.
A summary of Social Learning Theory........
In general, Social Learning Theory proposes that both criminal and conforming behaviors are acquired, maintained, and changed by the same process of interaction with others. The difference lies in the conforming or deviant direction or balance of the social influences, such as reinforcement, values and attitudes, and imitation. Akers and Burgess believed that behavior, conforming or deviant, was a function of it's consequences. This was explained through the use of classical behavior modification elements, such as operant behavior, respondent conditioning, discriminative stimuli, and schedules of reinforcement.
There are four central concepts in Akers' and Burgess' theory.......
Differential Association - This refers to the process by which one is exposed to definitions that are either favorable or unfavorable to deviant and criminal behavior. It takes into account the value of various sources of definitions on a person's life. Small, intimate groups are the most influential in a person's life. This includes family, friends, church, etc. The frequency, duration, intensity, and priority of the sources has a strong impact on how much they shape one's definitions.
Definitions - This refers to one's on personal meanings or attitudes that are attached to a given behavior. It is what orients a person to rationalize or define an act as right or wrong, morally speaking. These definitions can be general or specific. The greater that a person has a negative definition of a given act, the less likely they are to engage in it. Conversely, the more positive of a definition that one has of an act, the more likely they are to engage in it. Neutralizing definitions are those that acknowledge that an act is wrong, but given the circumstances of a particular scenario, make it justified to the offender.
Differential Reinforcement - This refers to the balance of anticipated or actual rewards or punishment that follow a given behavior. The likelihood that a person will engage in deviant or criminal behavior is increased when a person is rewarded (money, approval, food) for the behavior. This is positive reinforcement. The likelihood of criminal or deviant behavior is further enhanced when they avoid the unpleasant consequences of being captured (jail, fines, disapproval). This is negative reinforcement. Just as their are modalities (priority, frequency, intensity, duration) of Differential Association, there are modalities of Differential Reinforcement.
Social rewards can be very symbolic. The reinforcing effect can come from fulfilling religious, ideological, or political goals.
Even rewards that can be considered very tangible, such as money, has social value in the prestige and approval it carries in society. Nonsocial reinforcement is limited to unconditioned physical or physiological stimuli.
Imitation - This is the engagement of a behavior after observing the same or similar behavior by another. The observed consequences, the model being observed, and the behavior being observed determines if the behavior will be replicated by the observer.
Dr. Akers had completed his doctoral work and was entertaining about a half dozen job offers to teach at various schools when he had a chance encounter with Professor Mel DeFleur. Professor DeFleur took an interest in Dr. Akers and asked where his first teaching job would be. After reviewing the candidate list, Professor DeFleur told him that he didn't think he'd really want to work at any of those schools. He put in a phone call to Washington University and made a recommendation to a person on the hiring committee that they hire Dr. Akers. A few weeks later, Dr. Akers received a congratulatory letter from The University of Washington, welcoming him as a new employee. He hadn't even gone in for an interview.
Meeting Robert Burgess.....
Shortly after arriving, he met and befriended another professor, Dr. Robert Burgess, a behavior sociologist who had experience in psychological behaviorism. Dr. Akers would refer to Dr. Burgess as a strict follower of B.F. Skinner, a renowned psychologist. Dr. Burgess' and Dr. Akers' offices were adjacent to one another and, as friends often do, would discuss personal and professional interests. Dr. Burgess and Dr. Akers began discussing Dr. Edwin Sutherland's Theory of Differential Association. Both of them felt that the theory had a good fundamental base, but it could be revised to be more useful. The key point to the revision was to include behavioral psychology principles. After making the decision to revise Sutherland's theory, Akers tutored Burgess in sociology and Burgess tutored Akers in psychology until each of them had a meaningful understanding of each others field for the purpose of the revision.
Historical context of their theory.....
Their work on the theory occurred in the middle and late 1960s. It was a time of civil unrest due to the Vietnam War. Traditional ways of thinking were questioned and it opened up opportunities for new theories to take hold. Dr. Akers referred to that time period as having the right intellectual climate to push for a better understanding of crime. In his view, this is why there were so many significant criminologists that emerged at the same time. There was a huge push for new theories and the intellectual community responded. Akers stated that their was a great intellectual climate for new theory to emerge.
A summary of Social Learning Theory........
In general, Social Learning Theory proposes that both criminal and conforming behaviors are acquired, maintained, and changed by the same process of interaction with others. The difference lies in the conforming or deviant direction or balance of the social influences, such as reinforcement, values and attitudes, and imitation. Akers and Burgess believed that behavior, conforming or deviant, was a function of it's consequences. This was explained through the use of classical behavior modification elements, such as operant behavior, respondent conditioning, discriminative stimuli, and schedules of reinforcement.
There are four central concepts in Akers' and Burgess' theory.......
Differential Association - This refers to the process by which one is exposed to definitions that are either favorable or unfavorable to deviant and criminal behavior. It takes into account the value of various sources of definitions on a person's life. Small, intimate groups are the most influential in a person's life. This includes family, friends, church, etc. The frequency, duration, intensity, and priority of the sources has a strong impact on how much they shape one's definitions.
Definitions - This refers to one's on personal meanings or attitudes that are attached to a given behavior. It is what orients a person to rationalize or define an act as right or wrong, morally speaking. These definitions can be general or specific. The greater that a person has a negative definition of a given act, the less likely they are to engage in it. Conversely, the more positive of a definition that one has of an act, the more likely they are to engage in it. Neutralizing definitions are those that acknowledge that an act is wrong, but given the circumstances of a particular scenario, make it justified to the offender.
Differential Reinforcement - This refers to the balance of anticipated or actual rewards or punishment that follow a given behavior. The likelihood that a person will engage in deviant or criminal behavior is increased when a person is rewarded (money, approval, food) for the behavior. This is positive reinforcement. The likelihood of criminal or deviant behavior is further enhanced when they avoid the unpleasant consequences of being captured (jail, fines, disapproval). This is negative reinforcement. Just as their are modalities (priority, frequency, intensity, duration) of Differential Association, there are modalities of Differential Reinforcement.
Social rewards can be very symbolic. The reinforcing effect can come from fulfilling religious, ideological, or political goals.
Even rewards that can be considered very tangible, such as money, has social value in the prestige and approval it carries in society. Nonsocial reinforcement is limited to unconditioned physical or physiological stimuli.
Imitation - This is the engagement of a behavior after observing the same or similar behavior by another. The observed consequences, the model being observed, and the behavior being observed determines if the behavior will be replicated by the observer.
Social Structure and Social Learning
Akers also proposed a Social Structure and Social Learning Model where structural factors have an indirect impact on an individual's behavior. They effect Differential Association, Differential Reinforcement, Imitation, and Definitions. In turn, the influence over these factors effects the individual's behavior. SSSL has four dimensions wherein social learning variables operate. They are:
Differential Social Organization - this refers to the structural correlates of crime in a given community or society that affects crime and delinquency, including age composition, population density, and other attributes that lean a community toward high or low crime rates.
Differential Location in the Social Structure - refers to sociodemographic characteristics of individual and social groups that indicate their niches within the larger social structure. Class, gender, race, and ethnicity, marital status, and age locate the positions and standing of persons and their roles, groups or social categories in the overall structure.
Theoretically Defined Structural Variables - refers to anomie, class, oppression, social disorganization, group conflict, patriarchy, and other concepts that have been used in one or more theories to identify criminogenic conditions of societies, communities, or groups.
Differential Social Location in Groups - refers to individual's membership in and relation to primary, secondary and reference groups such as family, friendships, and peer groups, leisure groups, colleagues, and work groups.
Akers also proposed a Social Structure and Social Learning Model where structural factors have an indirect impact on an individual's behavior. They effect Differential Association, Differential Reinforcement, Imitation, and Definitions. In turn, the influence over these factors effects the individual's behavior. SSSL has four dimensions wherein social learning variables operate. They are:
Differential Social Organization - this refers to the structural correlates of crime in a given community or society that affects crime and delinquency, including age composition, population density, and other attributes that lean a community toward high or low crime rates.
Differential Location in the Social Structure - refers to sociodemographic characteristics of individual and social groups that indicate their niches within the larger social structure. Class, gender, race, and ethnicity, marital status, and age locate the positions and standing of persons and their roles, groups or social categories in the overall structure.
Theoretically Defined Structural Variables - refers to anomie, class, oppression, social disorganization, group conflict, patriarchy, and other concepts that have been used in one or more theories to identify criminogenic conditions of societies, communities, or groups.
Differential Social Location in Groups - refers to individual's membership in and relation to primary, secondary and reference groups such as family, friendships, and peer groups, leisure groups, colleagues, and work groups.
Sutherland's Differential Association 1. Criminal behavior is learned. 2. Criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other persons in a process of communication. 3. The principal part of the learning of criminal behavior occurs within intimate personal groups. 4. When criminal behavior is learned, the learning includes (a) techniques of committing the crime, which are sometimes very complicated, sometimes simple; (b) the specific direction of motives, drives, rationalizations, and attitudes. 5. The specific direction of motives and drives is learned from definitions of the legal codes as favorable or unfavorable. 6. A person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of the law. 7. Differential associations may vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity. 8. The process of learning criminal behavior by association with criminal and anti-criminal patterns involves all of the mechanisms that are involved in any other learning. 9. While criminal behavior is an expression of general needs and values, it is not explained by those needs and values, since non-criminal behavior is an expression of the same needs and values. |
Akers and Burgess'
Social Learning Theory 1. Criminal behavior is learned according to the principles of operant conditioning. (Reformulation of Sutherland's principles 1 and 8) 2. Criminal behavior is learned in both nonsocial situations that are reinforcing or discriminative and through that social interaction in which the behavior of other persons is reinforcing or discriminative for criminal behavior. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 2) 3. The principle part of learning criminal behavior occurs in those groups that comprise the individual's major source of reinforcements. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 3) 4. The learning of criminal behavior, including specific techniques, attitudes, and avoidance procedure, is a function of the available reinforcers, and the existing reinforcement contingencies. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 4) 5. The specific class of behaviors which are learned and their frequency of occurrence are a function of the reinforcers that are effective and available, and the rules and norms by which these reinforcers are applied. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 5) 6. Criminal behavior is a function of norms which are discriminative for criminal behavior, the learning of which takes place when such behavior is more highly reinforced than non criminal behavior. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 6) 7. The strength of criminal behavior is a direct function of the amount, frequency, and probability of its' reinforcement. (Reformulation of Sutherland's Principle 7) |