ESSAY : Criminology Unit 5

James T. Johnson is a 24-year-old construction worker who lives at home with his mother. During the week, he goes to work on time, does his work, and comes home. Occasionally, he will go out with a group of coworkers on a Friday evening. He has one other secret. He burglarizes homes and garages in the neighboring communities, selling what he steals via the internet or at pawn shops two counties over.
This past weekend, he was arrested during a burglary when he entered a home where the home owner was present. His mother had to mortgage her home to bail him out of jail. While driving him home, she started to berate him, stating that he has ended up “just like his father, a criminal\” and that she will probably end up dying early due to the stress of having a criminal son.
James was angry and blurted out that it was her fault, that this was the only life he knew because his father never taught him anything worthwhile. He said that his mother and father fought all the time, and the main subject of their fights was his constant drinking.
What James did not know was that his father came from a physically and emotionally abusive family. Though he constantly drank and fought with James’ mother, he tried not to direct this abuse at James. The result of his attempts to shield James was to ignore James almost entirely. His attempt not to abuse James led to his neglect of James. While James was a pre-teen and teen, his parents rarely knew what James was doing or who he was with. As such, James learned how to “fly below the radar” and avoid getting in trouble, while getting away with many antics that could have had him labeled as a juvenile delinquent.

Now that James has more insight into his father’s behavior, apply 1 psychological theory and 1 sociological theory to this scenario.

Explain the concepts in your 1 psychological theory.

Explain the concepts in your 1 sociological theory.

Relate both theories to James’s father and why he reacted in this manner to James.

Explain how the theories that you chose can have an effect on future generations.

Be sure to reference all sources using APA style.
What fallows is my week 4 paper, Please use my week 4 paper, info, and references to strengthen what is asked above for this paper.
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Introduction
The case to be addressed is that of James T. Johnson who is a construction worker aged 24. James still lives with his mother at home. Apart from being a construction worker, James secretly engages in crime. He breaks into other people’s garages and homes to steal valuable items and sell the items at pawn shops or via the internet. James happened to break into a home without knowing that the owner was present at the time. He was arrested and to cover his bail money; his mother was forced to mortgage her house. Furious with him, James’ mother scolded him for engaging in crime like his father. James angrily blamed his parents for his behavior. He claimed that they fought a lot concerning his father’s constant drinking and that his father did not teach him valuable skills. This paper examines whether it is James, the society or both that is to be blamed for his criminal behavior.

Whether James Learned Criminal Behavior from his Father
I think that James learned his criminal behavior from his father. According to the social learning theory, one can learn new behavior by observing others in the society and copying their behavior (Siegel, 2016). James’ mother confirms that his husband was a criminal. She further asserts that, by engaging in crime, her son is copying his father’s behavior. James\’ angry blurt confirms that he had been observing his parents while growing up and their behavior and actions played a huge role in shaping his behavior. Studies show that upbringing is connected to criminal behavior. Children who have had a bad upbringing are more likely to engage in crime compared to those raised in a good family (Siegel, 2016). James’ father’s behavior ruined his child life, and that must have played a part in shaping his later life.

Other Contributing Factors
The behavior of James\’ father is just one of the factor that drove him to crime. Several other factors could have influenced his behavior and actions. One such factor is James’ personal choice to engage in criminal acts. The criminology theory known as the rational choice theory asserts that human beings apply their reasoning capacity to weigh whether to commit a crime or not (Siegel, 2016). The theory considers most, if not all, crimes to have been pre-meditated and the actor could have chosen not commit the crime. Therefore, James’ rational choice to engage in crime has to be considered.
A second factor that could have contributed to James’ criminal behavior is his biology. Some biology-based criminology theories posit that biological factors such as genes, brain chemistry, and hormones can make one susceptible to criminal behavior (Siegel, 2016). James could have inherited such factors from his father. Thirdly, James’ hopes and aspirations could contribute to his behavior. It could be that he hopes for a better lifestyle but the income he gets from the construction work is not enough to support the lifestyle he desires and he, therefore, engages in theft to attain his aspirations. Finally, the neighborhood that James lives in could be a contributing factor to his deviant behavior (Siegel, 2016).

Removal from Home as a Juvenile
If James were removed from his home as a child and placed in a good upbringing, maybe he would not have become a burglar. It is clear that James\’ childhood was terrible and significantly impacted him. If he had been placed in good care, received a good education, and landed a good job, he would have been less likely to be a burglar. However, it is worth noting that researchers have observed that many children in foster care experience difficulties that cause harm to the children. In foster homes, children are likely to experience physical and emotional neglect (Yi & Wildeman, 2018). They are also likely to be abused in such homes. The death and suicide rate of children raised in foster homes has also been found to be high (Yi & Wildeman, 2018). Therefore, only good care can work in developing healthy and virtuous individuals.

James’ Statements
James’ statements about responsibility are largely about shifting blame. His blurt that his parents are to blame for his behavior because they fought constantly and that his father constantly drunk and never taught him any useful skills does not excuse his actions. He had a choice to engage in crime or not and chose to be a criminal. He was well aware that his criminal acts harmed members of the society and were outlawed, but he continued to perform those acts. James has to bear most responsibility for his criminal acts as he was the active perpetrator of those acts. It is true that his upbringing and father’s criminal behavior predisposed him to criminal behavior but he still had a significant amount of control. Many children are brought up in challenging backgrounds but end up being upright, responsible, and successful citizens because to a large extent, they are the authors of their fate.

Reaction Formation Theory Application
Reaction formation is a concept within the psychoanalytic approach to psychology (Behrendt, 2015). The concept describes a defense mechanism that people use when dealing with unacceptable or anxiety-producing impulses and emotions. In reaction formation, an individual masters the unacceptable or anxiety-producing impulses and emotions by exaggerating tendencies that are directly opposite to the impulses and emotions (Behrendt, 2015). For example, if by loving another person one feels very anxious, they can form the reaction of hating the person to conceal the love that they have for the person. The feeling of love does not vanish because it has been replaced by hate. It still exists inside the person, but externally, it has been concealed with hatred (Behrendt, 2015). The defense mechanism that is strengthened in reaction formation is that of repression (Behrendt, 2015). Unacceptable or anxiety-inducing feelings and impulses are repressed.
The reaction formation concept can be applied to explain James’ situation. It could be that James has an irresistible impulse to steal and sell other people’s property to earn money easily. He understands quite well that the impulse is morally and legally unacceptable. When his mother scolded him for his criminal act, he responded by claiming that both his parents are responsible for his behavior due to their fighting and his father’s alcoholism, criminal behavior, and failure to teach him useful skills. James may not want to admit to himself and others that he has a strong and unreflective desire to steal other people’s property and represses the impulse by trying to convince himself and his parents are responsible for his short-comings. James\’ accusations are far-fetched as they in no way justify burglary. He ought to own up to the fact that he has unacceptable impulses and works on controlling the impulses.

Relation to Strain Theory
Strain theory is a theory that is applied in both sociology and criminology to explain people’s behavior and actions. Robert Merton created the theory in the 1940s (Siegel, 2016). Merton’s work was influenced by the work of the sociologist Emil Durkheim who had studied social phenomena in depth. Several other theories have been derived from strain theory. The theory states that societies have goals which most if not all people strive to attain (Siegel, 2016). One key goal is wealth. Societies also have offered recommendations to their members on how to achieve the treasured goals. For instance, education is recommended as a means for gaining wealth. Those who lack the recommended means may use crime as a mean to attain the desired end. Burglary can be a way of achieving wealth.
Strain theory is related to James’ case. It could be that like many other people, James’ aspires to wealth as the society encourages people to work hard to become wealthy. However, as a construction worker, James is unable to attain his goal. He lacks the recommended means of achieving his objective. James complains that his father did not teach him skills that are worthwhile. Due to the Strain, he uses crime as a means to achieve his desired end. His angry blurt towards his mother could explain the difficulty he faces in his attempt to attain his goal.

Relation to Subculture Perspective
The term “subculture perspective” refers to a class of related criminology theories that attempt to explain why people engage in deviant behaviors. Proponents of this perspective argue that abnormal behavior arises when one or many groups of people depart from the values of the mainstream society and create their subcultures (Rubington & Weinberg, 2015). The subcultures have values that the mainstream society may not support. Subcultures arise due to status frustration (Rubington & Weinberg, 2015). For instance, a group of people who may be marginalized in society may come together and create their subculture. The subculture of marginalized people may reverse the values and norms recommended by the society. For example, members of the subculture may reward members who break the law and intimidate outsiders. Such rewards may encourage other members to engage in such behavior. Subcultural theories can account for crimes that are not committed for personal gain such as vandalism.
The subcultural perspective can also be applied to James’ case. It could be that James’ is a member of a subculture that encourages its members to steal. A group of James’ friends may be the members of the subculture. The subculture that James could be a member of could have arisen due to economic marginalization, and they view crime as a mean to earn more money.

Conclusion
In summary, James could have learned criminal behavior from his father. Other factors that could have contributed to such actions are James’ choice, biology, aspirations, and neighborhood where he lives. Removal from his home as a child and placement in a good home could have helped prevent James from becoming a burglar. James is mostly to blame for his behavior and not the society. He uses reaction formation to avoid facing the truth.

References
Behrendt, R. (2015). Narcissism and the Self: Dynamics of Self-Preservation in Social Interaction, Personality Structure, Subjective Experience, and Psychopathology. Springer.

Rubington, E., & Weinberg, M. (2015). Deviance: The interactionist perspective. Routledge.
Siegel, L. (2016). Criminology: Theories, Patterns, and Typologies (13th ed.). Boston: Cengage Learning.

Yi, Y., & Wildeman, C. (2018). Can Foster Care Interventions Diminish Justice System Inequality? Future of Children, 28(1).
I am giving 5 days to get this completed but I would be happy to get it completed as soon as you can.

SAMPLE SOLUTION

Criminal Procedure
In order to reduce serious deviance and violent crime in the society, there is a need to understand reasons why such vice occur. Many psychological and sociological theories are in existence and presents a more complete understanding of the individual deviant activities and the factors triggering it. These theories also help to answer why defiant activities differ within the social context; location and why some criminal behavior is considered more deviant than others. The paper adopts a psychological and sociology theory to address the case of James T. Johnson a construction worker aged 24 years old. Although he still lives with his mother, he engages in burglary through breaking into…