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Social Control Theory Of Crime Essay

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Social Control Theory Of Crime Essay
There are many theories in the study of criminal behavior that try and answer the question “What causes people to commit criminal offenses?”; however, control theories ask the question “What causes people to conform to rules and criminal laws?” These theories, instead of bringing about deviant motivations, bring about compliance motivations. Control theories state that crime occurs when controls are not formed, are fragmented, or are undermined (Paternoster, R., & Bachman, R. Eds. 2001). The control theory I believe best explains criminal behavior is the social control theory.
Social control theorists state that criminality is natural and that people are naturally inclined to be deviant. Emile Durkheim clarifies this as being an assumption
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