What Is Hirschi´s Social Control Theory?

The human species is the most unique and difficult species to understand and comprehend on the planet. For that reason, people have been studying other people for centuries. It is in our nature to want to understand ourselves and what happens around us as much as possible. Research has revealed such things like what the human body is comprised of, the effects sickness has on the body, the benefits of regular exercise and a healthy diet, and the physical changes that occur during the natural aging process. Other factors and characteristics of our species are more difficult to understand. Understanding why a person would make a particular decision, specifically one that would have an obvious negative impact on their life is something that is
Society has a set of written laws and social guidelines that people are expected to follow. When a person chooses not to follow those written laws and social guidelines, they can be punished. Those punishments can range from becoming a social outcast to fines, community service, and confinement in a jail or prison. In 1969, Travis Hirschi developed the Social Control Theory. Hirschi attempted to answer the questions surrounding human behavior, why people make decisions that clash with societal norms, and how society can better control and prevent crimes from being committed. Hirschi’s theory is still relevant and still being discussed and researched almost 50 years later. The idea behind the Social Control Theory is that an individual breaks the law because of a breakdown with their bond with society (Schubert, 2016). Understanding Hirshci’s theory is important for criminal justice professionals to properly identify problem behavior and how to prevent criminal activity in the future. Simply arresting an individual and initiating the criminal justice process is not providing relief to society as a whole. It may provide temporary relief to a victim, but the
An area of society that this theory is easily applied to is our society’s youth. A child who grows up in a stable home environment where there are clearly established rules from an early age and the child regularly attends some type of educational system is less likely to participate in deviant behavior. A child who grows up in a home that is not stable and that does not have clearly established rules that are to be followed is immediately put at a disadvantage. The more negative societal factors that are introduced into that child’s life increase the probability of deviant behavior later in that child’s life. These negative societal factors can include not regularly attending some type of educational system, not having a two-parent family system, not learning useful skills such as reading and writing, and not building relationships and attachments. A child that is raised in a household that doesn’t conform to societal norms also dramatically increases the likelihood of deviant behavior. As these societal bonds are developed and become internal, they build social control, which deters individuals from committing unlawful acts (John Jay College of Criminal Justice). An individual who has developed societal bonds and relationships will take