Posted: August 14th, 2022

Who is to blame, the individual or society?

Unit 4 Individual Project
Who is to blame, the individual or society?

James T. Johnson is a 24-year-old construction worker who lives at home with his mother. During the week, he goes to work on time, does his work, and comes home. Occasionally, he will go out with a group of coworkers on a Friday evening. He has one other secret. He burglarizes homes and garages in the neighboring communities, selling what he steals via the internet or at pawn shops two counties over.

This past weekend, he was arrested during a burglary when he entered a home where the home owner was present. His mother had to mortgage her home to bail him out of jail. While driving him home, she started to berate him, stating that he has ended up “just like his father, a criminal” and that she will probably end up dying early due to the stress of having a criminal son.

James was angry and blurted out that it was her fault, that this was the only life he knew because his father never taught him anything worthwhile. He said that his mother and father fought all the time, and the main subject of the their fights was his constant drinking.

Assignment Guidelines

Using the scenario above, address the following in 3 pages:
Do you think James learned his behavior from his father? Explain your reasoning.
Could there have been other contributing factors that would have an effect on the problem? Explain.
Do you think that if James were removed from his home as a juvenile, he would have become a burglar?
Are the statements from James about responsibility only used to shift blame? Why or why not?
Research reaction formation, and apply this theory to James’s situation. ?
How is this related to strain theory? Explain. ?
How is this related to subculture perspective? Explain.
Be sure to reference all sources using Help write my thesis – APA style.

Unit 4 Individual Project
Do you think James learned his behavior from his father? Explain your reasoning.
James might have acquired his behavior from his father based on the social learning theory. The theory provides that children learn to exhibit behavior and attitudes from their social environment, including parents (Patterson & Graham, 2018). James’ mother can be considered to play a role in James’ behavior. His mother did not take possible measures to ensure James grew up in an environment that would not expose him to criminal activities. James’ mother allowed her husband to continue conducting criminal behavior during, as James witnessed. She did not take possible measures of ensuring James understood the consequences of criminal behavior the reasons why he should keep away from such behavior. James growing up witnessing a male figure engaging in criminal behavior made him consider that lifestyle as it is plausible.
Could there have been other contributing factors that would have an effect on the problem? Explain.
Other contributing factors that would result in James’ criminal behavior include peer pressure during James’ childhood development stages that might have involved stealing. Despite James having a job, he still burglarizes homes and garages in the neighboring communities, which indicates that he faces financial problems and considers the criminal act as the only easily availed solution. The other contributing factor is the fact that James is addicted to drugs and alcohol, which requires money to acquire. If the job does not provide enough money to support his addiction, James would probably find another way of satisfying his habits.
Do you think that if James were removed from his home as a juvenile, he would have become a burglar?
Based on unstructured socializing theory, the causes of delinquency are a result of individual having more unfettered time on their hands. An individual that is busy conducting conventional activities has less changes of finding time to engage in deviant behavior (Wilcox & Cullen, 2018). The criminal behavior that James has is considered to have developed during his juvenile age period. Therefore, there is high possibility that James would not have ended up becoming a burglar has he been removed from his home as a juvenile and placed in a home that socialization does not consider criminal behavior as a rewarding act. The lack of an authority figure or handler that could have helped James understands how to conduct the unstructured socializing activities without engaging n criminal behavior.
Are the statements from James about responsibility only used to shift blame? Why or why not?
Shifting responsibility is considered a negative aspect of coping with stress that involves denying circumstances and external causes of the problem. In the case scenario, James uses the responsibility to shift the blame of his behavior to his mother and father, who did not teach him anything worthwhile (Yokley, 2008). Therefore, the statement of just are considered only to shift the blame as he refuses to admit the present problem is his cause. James tends to avoid dealing with his current behavior and avoids taking responsibility for his behavior by addressing pas historical factors regarding his issue. The responsibility statements indicate that James is not honest with himself concerning the extent of his behavior, the impact is causing, and his responsibility for the behavior hence tries to shift the blame.
Research reaction formation, and apply this theory to James’s situation?
Reaction formation theory is a defense mechanism that one applies when protecting their mental harm caused by anxiety and societal pressure by perceiving their true feelings or desires. Reaction formation leads to a person to form or develop behavior that they can use as a substitute for an opposed repressed impulse as a way of protection. Individuals use reaction formation as a way of justifying to themselves and others regarding a perspective that is opposite of they genuinely feel through aggressive behaviors and actions. In the scenario, it is factual that James’ mother was not a good mother, which led her to apply reaction formation against James as she blamed herself for not making much effort in his son after she separated from his husband.
How is this related to strain theory? Explain. ?
Strain theory states that an individual under strain developed pressure and incentives to take part in activities such as criminal behavior as a responsible way to strain experienced (Ministry of Children, 2016). Reaction formation is related to strain theory in the aspect that James engages in criminal behavior as the response to the absence of father strain. Growing up without a father and having been a witness to illegal activities conducted by his father causes James to develop negative stimuli as a way of suppressing the gap of lacking a father for a more extended period as he grew up. Another negative stimulus that James adapts as a suppressor is using drugs and alcohol.
How is this related to subculture perspective? Explain.
Subculture is a subsystem of society that possesses its norms and attitudes that mostly tend to be in contrast with the moral concepts of the majority society (Wickert, 2019). In the scenario provided, James and his mother tend to be living a sustainable lifestyle in a decent neighborhood. The subculture perspective does not seem to be related to reaction formation as the subculture that James and his mother come from does not seem to act as a factor for aggressive behavior or actions as a suppressor. Therefore, living a comfortable life does not give James any reason for stealing based on suppressing the strain of lacking a father. However, the absence of a father is used as the son and the mother to justify their past mistakes.
References
Ministry of Children. (2016). Review of the Roots of Youth Violence: Literature Reviews. Retrieved from http://www.children.gov.on.ca/htdocs/English/professionals/oyap/roots/volume5/chapter06_strain.aspx
Patterson, G., & Graham, W. (2018). Clinical Interventions in Criminal Justice Settings: Evidence-Based Practice. Elsevier. Academic Press
Wickert, C. (2019, May 10). Subcultural theory (Cohen). SozTheo. Retrieved from https://soztheo.de/theories-of-crime/learning-subculture/subcultural-theory-cohen/?lang=en
Wilcox, P., & Cullen, F. (2018). Situational Opportunity Theories of Crime. Annual Review of Criminology. Retrieved from https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev-criminol-032317-092421
Yokley, J. (2008). Social Responsibility Therapy for Adolescents and Young Adults: A Multicultural Treatment Manual for Harmful Behavior. Routledge.

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