Social Bond Theory

Travis Hirschi is a one of the most prominent control theorists who has contributed significant works to the field of criminology throughout the past few decades. He has generated two major versions of social control theory throughout the course of his career. These theories explain why some individuals commit crimes while others do not. In this paper I will compare and contrast both of his theories, as well as tell you why one particular theory is most adequate in explaining why people do not commit crime.
Hirschi proposed his Social Bond Theory back in in 1969. This theory states that individuals will commit criminal or delinquent acts when their ties (bonds) to society are weakened or have broken. When the bonds are strong, an individual
The first element is called attachment. Attachment is described as the level of values and or norms that young people hold in society. Attachment is especially important when it comes to parental figures. If the attachment between the parents and the adolescent is strong there will be a lower change of the individual to commit a crime because they will not want to disappoint the parent. Institutions also take part of the attachment element. The second element is called Commitment. In commitment an individual will restrain from criminal activity because everything the individual has worked for such as education, or a career can be lost if the individual engages and gets caught committing criminal behavior. The third element is involvement. In evolvement, a person will restrain from committing crimes simply because he or she is too involved in social activities and simply does not have enough time to commit any crimes. The fourth and final element is Belief. With belief an individual knows that there are laws in place, and will not engage in criminal activity because he or she will not want to break any of those laws. Things such as bad parenting, drug use, low social economic status, dilapidated
Low self-control is an individual’s trait that causes crime at all ages when combined with the appropriate criminal opportunities and suitable targets. Self-control becomes a fixed trait in childhood; its effect on behavior is stable and continuous over time. Low self-control is supposed to explain an individual’s propensity to commit or refrain from committing crimes. This theory also explains that people involved with crime also engage in similar behavior that provide short term gratification, such as smoking, drinking or speeding in cars. The major cause of low self-control appears to be ineffective parenting. In other words, if parents do not intervene early in a child’s life, those with behavioral problems will tend to grow into juvenile delinquents and eventually into adult