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Instructions:

Criminological Theories Presented in the Media

There are five groups of criminological theories supported in media representations of crime and justice. The five theories are:
•Rational-choice theories: Crime is seen as being a free-will decision.
•Biological theories:A person is born with a tendency to be violent or kill.
•Psychological theories:Crime is caused by defective mental or personality development.
•Sociological theories:Crime is caused by a criminal environment.
•Political theories:Crime is the result of inequity, oppression, and racism.

The media tend to reflect the theories popular at a given time. Based on your understanding of these theories, respond to the following:
•Analyze and explain which of these theories the media is most likely to use to spike their ratings or to bring in more money.
•Which of these theories can most be seen in today’s mass media? Explain why it is used.
•Give an example of a current film and explain how you feel a theory is represented in the film.
•Criminogenic media is media that is hypothesized as a direct cause of crime. Many Americans feel that television violence is a primary or contributing cause of crime in the United States. What factual evidence exists to support this claim by many Americans? Do sociological explanations for crime support this hypothesis?