Page 5 - Flipbook: Sociology Shortcuts Issue 5: Situational Action Theory

Propensity

Crime propensity is measured in two ways:

1. Personal morality refers to the 2. Self-control can be broadly
kind of moral outlook everyone defined as “the ability to manage
develops throughout. In this context, impulses, regulate emotions, and
if you see nothing morally wrong exhibit restraint in the face of
with criminal behaviour you will challenges” and in terms of criminal
develop a higher crime propensity. propensity it relates to two things:
Similarly, if you’ve been raised to firstly, our ability to resist our inner
see criminal behaviour as morally impulses towards criminal behaviour
wrong you will have a much lower and, secondly, our ability to resist
criminal propensity. the encouragement of others
towards criminal involvement.
Although it’s a significant variable in
terms of whether an individual is
likely to engage in criminal
behaviour, propensity doesn’t, of PROPENSITIES
itself, determine criminality. Other
factors are also at work here.

In this respect an individual’s propensity towards criminal or non-criminal
behaviour is the outcome of a complex interplay between their personal
morality and levels of self-control. In broad terms someone with a high
moral disdain for crime – and hence a low propensity for criminality – and
strong self-control in the face of temptations towards crime is unlikely to
become an offender.

Conversely, someone who sees nothing wrong with particular forms of
criminality and has low levels of self-control in the face of temptation is
highly-likely to develop some form of offending behaviour.
It’s important to note crime propensity is not an all-or-nothing quality.
Someone who, for example, has few moral qualms about drug dealing
might be as appalled by the idea of assaulting or killing someone as those
with a low crime propensity.

05