Criminological Theory
Exam Materials
Course Introduction
Criminological Theory explores the major theoretical frameworks used to understand crime, criminal behavior, and the social response to crime. The course examines classical, biological, psychological, and sociological perspectives, including contemporary theories such as labeling, control, strain, routine activity, and critical criminology. By analyzing the development, application, and critique of these theories, students gain insight into how societal factors influence crime patterns and the formation of criminal justice policies. The course emphasizes the practical and policy implications of theory in shaping crime prevention strategies and the operation of the criminal justice system.
Recommended Textbook
Criminology Today An Integrative Introduction 6th Edition by Frank J. Schmalleger
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14 Chapters
797 Verified Questions
797 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: What Is Criminology
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Sample Questions
Q1) This book sees crime as a __________ event.
A)individual
B)social
C)political
D)justifiable
Answer: B
Q2) The field of _______ has contributed the most theoretical understandings of crime causation over the past century.
Answer: sociology
Q3) Which field has contributed most to criminology?
A)psychology
B)sociology
C)economics
D)mathematics
Answer: B
Q4) A criminologist who believes the definition of crime should include all forms of antisocial behavior follows the _________ perspective of the field.
Answer: sociological
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Page 3
Chapter 2: Where Do Theories Come From
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Q1) Creating government-funded opportunities for success that break a cycle of poverty are an example of ________.
Answer: social policy
Q2) When pretest subjects are sensitized,this is called differential selection.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) All of the eras of criminology today have led us to a psychological study of criminology rather than a scientific study of criminology.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) What is a theory? What is the role of theories in the field of criminology?
Answer: Answers should define theory,based on the description in the textbook,as a set of interrelated propositions that attempt to describe,explain,predict,and ultimately control some class of events.Answers should connect the role of theory building in the field as one that helps construct models to allow for better understanding of criminal behavior,and in turn,better development of social policies to reduce criminal behavior.
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Classical and Neoclassical Thought
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Q1) ________ is part of the heritage of the Classic School and states that pleasure and pain,or reward and punishment,are major determinants of choice.
Answer: Hedonism
Q2) The belief that ___________ is sometimes required to deter law violators and serve as an example to others violating the law is a part of the Classic School of thought. Answer: punishment
Q3) Analyzing DNA found at a crime scene is an example of positivism.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q4) Which of the following is a major concept of the Neoclassical School?
A)natural law
B)free will
C)capable guardians
D)due process
Answer: C
Q5) In a small primitive society,_________ govern behavior. Answer: mores/folkways
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Chapter 4: Biological Roots in Criminal Behavior
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Q1) One of the earliest criminal anthropologists was ___________.
Q2) Eugenics criminology studies the link between ________ and inherited behavior. A)genetics.
B)Darwinism.
C)sociology.
D)biology.
Q3) Research has found significant statistical support for genetic _________ of criminal tendencies.
Q4) _________ established the sociobiological theory in criminology.
Q5) What are some of the major findings of the study of genetics in criminology? What does this suggest about human behavior in relation to social and physical environments?
Q6) A ________ criminal has a genetic predilection toward criminality.
Q7) Which theoretical perspective was developed by Edward Wilson?
A)sociobiology
B)positivism
C)biosocial criminology
D)constitutional theories
Page 6
Q8) Research has linked high dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids to a lower likelihood of ________ in young adults.
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Chapter 5: Psychology and Psychiatric Foundations of Criminal Behavior
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Q1) Freudian theory is being replaced in psychological theory by perspectives that value understanding chemical imbalances in the brain and psychopharmacology.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Antisocial psychological disorder has been seen in very few prison inmates.
A)True
B)False
Q3) What are the two main concepts developed in early psychological theories? How do these apply to criminology today?
Q4) A criminal who has a poorly developed superego lacks the ability to follow a moral guide.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Traditionally,psychopathology has been regarded as difficult to treat.
A)True B)False
Q6) In psychological theories,the society is the primary unit of analysis. A)True B)False
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Chapter 6: Social Structure Theories
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Q1) Environmental criminology emphasizes the importance of __________ associated with criminal victimization.
A)social values
B)geographic location
C)economic conditions
D)poverty
Q2) Criminology of place is an example of a social policy theory.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Based on sociological theories,which of the following does not contribute to the causal nexus out of which crime develops?
A)individual behavior
B)group dynamics
C)subgroup relationships
D)group organization
Q4) The Chicago Area Project tried to reduce social disorganization in slums through the creation of _________.
Q5) While the specific behavior of an individual cannot be predicted,estimates about ________ characteristics are possible.
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Chapter 7: Theories of Social Process and Social Development
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Q1) _______ perspective helps us look at criminal behavior throughout a lifetime.
Q2) The degree of positive relationships with others and with social institutions built up over an individual's lifetime is called social capital.
A)True
B)False
Q3) _______ theory explains that weak social constraints lead to delinquent behavior.
Q4) Deviant behavior is learned according to the principles of operant conditioning in the differential association theory.
A)True
B)False
Q5) All of the following are major focuses of social development policy,except
A)emphasizing individual self-control
B)supporting core social institutions to help reduce risk
C)enhancing protective factors
D)immediate intervention with child delinquency
Q6) ________ is the major theorist behind the social learning theory that created the nine principles of differential association.
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Chapter 8: Social Conflict Theories
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Q1) What are the five strands of feminist thought that inform feminist criminology today? Outline the main ideas of each of these perspectives.
Q2) Radical criminology holds that the causes of crime are based on individuals' unwillingness to accept personal responsibility for their own pathologies.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which of the following statements represents a basic principle of the pluralistic perspective?
A)Most members of a society believe in the existence of core values.
B)Society consists of many diverse groups.
C)Laws reflect the collective will of the people.
D)Laws serve all people equally.
Q4) What is a major criticism of left-realist criminology?
A)its tendency to appropriate Marxist ideology
B)its tendency to refute Marxist ideology
C)its emphasis on ideology to the exclusion of theory
D)its emphasis on theory to the exclusion of ideology
Q5) What do social development perspectives include in understanding criminality and why?
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Chapter 9: Crimes Against Persons
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Q1) Which of the following statements did the findings of the National Youth Survey (NYS)reflect?
A)Females are involved in a higher proportion of crime than previously thought.
B)Race differentials in crime are higher than traditional sources suggest.
C)Age differentials in crime are lower than traditional sources suggest.
D)Violent criminals engage in crime much later than previously estimated.
Q2) Which of the following types of murder is a true crime of passion,in which the intent to kill and the killing itself happen almost simultaneously,as in the case of an individual who kills another in a fit of anger?
A)felony murder
B)first-degree murder
C)second-degree murder
D)third-degree murder
Q3) Which of the following statements reflects the first major shift in crime rates in the U.S.?
A)crime increased sharply between the 1940s and the 1960s
B)crime declined dramatically during the early 1940s
C)crime increased significantly between the 1960s and the 1990s
D)crime declined meaningfully during the 1990s and 2000s
Q4) The illegal killing of four or more victims at one event is ________________.
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Chapter 10: Crimes Against Property
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is true of shoplifting?
A)Shoplifting is prevalent among teenagers.
B)Employees cannot be considered shoplifters.
C)Professionals most frequently shoplift goods.
D)Shoplifting is related to the income.
Q2) Most burglars use a fence to dispose of stolen goods.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which of these is true of how residential burglars select their targets?
A)The burglar is not acquainted with the victim.
B)The burglar is a close friend with the victim.
C)The burglar has received a tip about the victim.
D)The burglar selects an area far from his or her home.
Q4) Stealing from retail businesses is a form of larceny known as _____.
Q5) What are four of the forms of larceny-theft? Which ones are most common?
Q6) A thief who steals a car for _____ is more likely than not to know the owner of the stolen car.
Q7) People who shoplift on a _____ level are called boosters.
Page 12
Q8) Explore the concept of burglary within a sexual context.Compare this type of burglary with traditional burglary.
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Chapter 11: White-Collar and Organized Crime
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Q1) Which presidential administration was affected by the Teapot Dome Scandal?
A)Benjamin Harrison's
B)Warren Harding's
C)Richard Nixon's
D)Bill Clinton's
Q2) The SEC was established in 1934 to oversee the securities industry.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Mafia families no longer operate in the United States today.
A)True
B)False
Q4) How do Hirschi and Gottfredson explain the motivations of white-collar criminals?
A)White-collar criminals are motivated by the ease of white-collar crime.
B)White-collar criminals are motivated by the same forces that drive other criminals.
C)The motivations of white-collar criminals have little to do with personal gain.
D)The motivations of white-collar criminals are to fit in with corporate culture.
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Page 13
Chapter 12: Public Order and Drug Crimes
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Q1) What are three of the eight categories of controlled substances in the U.S.? Describe some characteristics of each category.
Q2) When considering the different types of prostitutes,how do street prostitutes compare to other prostitutes?
A)They are equal to all other prostitutes.
B)They are the lowest class of prostitute.
C)They are higher class than hotel prostitutes.
D)They are the highest class of prostitute.
Q3) Which of the followings statements do self-reports of jail inmates collected by the Bureau of Justice Statistics support?
A)Marijuana was the drug most commonly abused by inmates.
B)About one-half of the inmates used illegal drugs at the time of the offense.
C)Nearly one-third used drugs daily in the month before the offense.
D)Long-term drug users were arrested for more serious offenses.
Q4) The Comprehensive _____Control Act of 2006 placed restrictions on retail sales of over-the-counter products containing pseudoephedrine.
Q5) Inhalants are easily accessible because few are subject to _____control.
Q6) Individuals with no _____ record are less likely to report using drugs.
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Chapter 13: Technology and Crime
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Q1) Identity theft is considered a type of A)robbery.
B)larceny.
C)theft.
D)burglary.
Q2) Technology is used by both crime fighters and law breakers.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Compare and contrast phone phreaking with phishing.
Q4) The valuable information that high-technology crime targets is best described as A)financial information.
B)personal,identifying information.
C)a wide range of highly valuable data.
D)patentable inventions.
Q5) How might similarities between hacking and playing computer games blur the lines between entertainment and crime?
Q6) Identity theft became a federal crime in 2008. A)True
B)False
Q7) Describe the range of cybercriminals known as hackers.
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Chapter 14: Globalization and Terrorism
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Q1) The decline in crime in the United States in the 1990s was unique in the western hemisphere.
A)True
B)False
Q2) What is the main challenge for comparative criminologists?
A)to identify crimes that deserve comparative analysis
B)to develop theories that can be applied to multiple cultures
C)to envision a unified theory of criminology
D)to create policies that take other cultures into account
Q3) Terrorist acts are terrible,but not inherently criminal.
A)True
B)False
Q4) What concern did the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)have with the USA PATRIOT Act?
A)insufficient attention to the support needed to counter terrorism
B)stereotyping of Muslim Americans and other minority groups
C)increase of power in the executive branch of the federal government
D)loss of constitutional rights of individuals in the criminal justice system
Q5) Terrorists who pursue their own vision of the divine will are called ________.
Page 16
Q6) Opium growth in Afghanistan is largely controlled by the ________.
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