- cost benefit analysys

- if the potential outweights the cost then the crime will occur

- decisions to commit crime are offender and offense specific

•   If it is the for the offenders potential needs
•   College student will break into a car, because they need the money to get things they need
•   Motivation:  “how badly do I need ….”
•   Personal traits

•   Different offenses might have a higher likelihood of being caught
•  The severity of the crime(felony v. misdemeanor)

•  The punishment of current offenders should show potential offender that the threat of punishments great, which should decrease the likelihood that the potential offenders will commit crimes.
• Certainty, severity, and swiftness of punishments
•   Certainty: how likely to get caught
•   It is what matters because if you know you are not going to be punished you will be more likely to do it than if you knew you would be caught
•  Severity: how harsh
•  Swiftness: how quickly we are punishment

•  The punishment of offenders should prevent them from committing future crimes

  Locking up offenders decreases their opportunity to commit future crimes (outside of prison).

•    Genes, biochemical conditions, and neuropsychological problems

•           Genetic influences

  •   Traits associated with criminal behavior are inherited
  •   When an adoptive child still have the biological parent’s criminal traits
• Biochemical conditions  
  • Diet, hormones, environmental contaminants
  •   “Twinkie defense”- man that killed Harvey milk said he ate so many sweets it got to him and he acted out (sugar high)
  •    XYY males- maybe have more testosterone
• Neurophysiological conditions
  •    Brain damage or deficit, chemical imbalance, ADHD, arousal theory
     
  • Arousal theory
    •   Need a certain level of stimuli to stay awake and at attention
    •   Some people have a higher arousal level may need more to get the pleasure

• Psychological trait theories
•     Link criminal behavior to unconscious psychological forces
•   Personality, cognition, learning, and intelligence
•   Search for “criminal personality”