week3 disc

Previously, you considered the impact of the general environment on local residents. This week the discussion will focus more precisely on the family level.

• If two siblings of the family grow up in the same household and turn out completely differently—one attends college and becomes a successful professional, while the other becomes a career criminal—can the environment still be held responsible for the deviance of the criminal?
• How could social control, social learning, and rational theories be utilized to explain how these two siblings developed in opposite ways?
• What factors would differential association theorists focus on while explaining the differences between the lives of the two siblings? Why?
• Travis Hirschi developed his social control theory on the basis of bonding towards society. Which of the four elements of this bond—attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief—has been more important than the others in your own opinion? Please provide supporting references.