Hirschi's Control Theory

Deviance is when someone decides to go against the social norms and not to accept the usually standards. Deviance can depend on the situation, definition, and how people respond to the behavior.   People who are incarcerated tend to have deviant behavior which caused them to get locked up.  As of know there are three branches of the justice system being police, courts, and corrections. With these 3 in place we have legal codes that they must follow as well. In the twentieth century, we seen a rise in crime rates but as of now they are slowly dropping. Eve n as they drop the United States still hold the highest incarnation rate in the nation.

Hirschi's Control Theory is a theory that states “Control theories assume that delinquent acts result when an individual's bond to society is weak or broken (UMN).” When thinking of Japan and the United States we can see the comparison on why the incarnation rate is high in the United States. In Japan, the crime rates tend to be lower since they emphases the importance of groups and not individuality. Hirschi recognizes four elements of the social bond: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. The element of attachment is the affection of what is usually done by person and society. Commitment discusses to the ‘‘stakes in conformity that are built up by pursuit of, and by a desire to achieve, conventional goals’’ (Hirschi 1969:162). Involvement, as said by Hirschi (1969:185) is ‘‘the most obviously related to delinquent behavior,’’ the more time a member of society spends in community activities, the less time someone will have for delinquent and criminal activities. Lastly, for Hirschi (1969:198), the element of belief in the legitimacy of law. Since Japan uses these four elements the importance of groups their crime rates are lower. They tech people to help and be a part of the community which helps them stay out of trouble and have less time for illegal activity.

According to labeling theory, people involuntarily notice how others see or label them. Over time they internalize these labels and come to accept them as the truth. Once this occurs people then behave according to expectations surrounding the label they have been giving or that's been given to another. In this way deviance is a social construct. Social construct is how our lives are shaped through our experiences and our interactions with others (Andrews). In Japan, the labeling theory can explain the low rate of crime because most people do community work in groups. Since they don’t have time for other activities they cannot be attached with a label that is bad. As for the United States, it can explain why the incarceration rate is so high.  In the United States if you are of African American race people tend to assume that you are “ghetto” or rude only because of what they have seen African Americans do. Just like with Muslims, people act as if they all are bad or part of a secret group trying to kill people.  Putting a label on someone so early takes away from the chance of getting to know them. No one deserves to be judged because their family, friends, or other people in their race have made mistakes.

As said in my discussion post I believe the main cause for high crime rate in the United States is of the different social classes. When we look at people that are locked up they tend to be more form the lower class of people. I personally believe that the prison system is set up backwards. I have seen on the news how people get more time for selling and doing drugs than people who kill and rape others. I get that the drugs are illegal but those people choose to do it and are not forced. When someone is raped or murder they lose their right to make their own decisions. Another reason I believe so m any people get locked up is because of the stress that society puts on each other. American is known for the “American Dream” to other outside places but at the same time people who are from here search for the same thing. Everyone wants to be the best they can be and if they see they are not excelling at the pace they are supposed to they tend to do whatever they can to help reach that goal even if its illegal. I my opinion I believe this leads to the main cause of white collar crimes. People in those businesses want to be the top in their company but at times that can be hard with so much competition.