Why The Low Crime Rate?

Our latest chapter we are reading in Sociology was about crime. Motivations, interpretations and statistics make for some interesting topics on the subjects. The last section of the chapter focused on different statistics and topics that trend on the topic of crime. The first and overall statistic that I saw was the overall crime rate in the United States.

The trend showed that over the time of 1985 to 2006 crime rates rose in the early 90's then started dropping heading into the 21st century. This trend got me thinking... what happened? Was there some change in law enforcement? Stricter gun enforcement? According to the book there is no prevailing explanation as to why. Some other explanations have been the booming economy which provides better opportunity for work. There was also a declining market for crack cocaine.

After reading this and exploring the statistics I was talking to my roomates and one of them mentioned a book he read that tried to explain the drop in crime rates called "Freakanomics." The book took different characteristics of society and tried to explain the trends that occured. This particular situation of lowering crime rate was explained by the introduction of legal abortions.

Let me explain: When Roe v. Wade was decided upon, many people who did not plan to have a child was suddenly able to rid themselves of the unwanted pregnancy. Whatever your beliefs on abortion, the claim made by the author is that in 1970, when the abortion was made legal, a generation of high risk children were never born. This trend made it possible that 20 or so years later, an entire generation of young men who would most likely be involved in crimes did not exist. According to the chart in our book, the crime rates begin to drop starting in 1993. This downward trend continues through the 2000's.

Whether this is THE reason for crime rate drop is unclear completely, however it does make some sense to claim that nothing drastic has changed to cause a major shift in the elements important to the many different theories of crime. As in many theories in sociology, the answers are not always easily explained and have many different factors involve. I think this overall crime rate drop is no different.

Nature vs. Nurture, Lodge, Nature Always Wins

The quote that is the title of this blog entry comes from the movie "Wedding Crashers." Maybe you have seen it, but one of the story lines running through it is about a young couple who come from very wealthy and successful families. The father of the girl talks about the two "great family traditions" one day. Christopher Walken's character makes a quip during a football game that the man's "nature" will always prevail. It got me thinking, which is it? Are we ingrained with certain attributes passed on by our parents in our genes that determine who we are going to be? Or is it rather a question of family, societal and social influenced?
After considering this for some time I would have to say my answer is YES. Are we influenced by the way we have naturally developed? Yes. And are we influenced greatly by the way we were brought up and the friends we hang out with? Yes. I believe that there is no one reason we are the way we are, but rather a diverse myriad of influences including inherit genetics and socialization.
The nature side of the debate would say that we interact with the world based solely on our genetic make-up. Gene's are turned on and off based on our environment. This leads to a belief that we are pre-programmed to turn out a certain way. While this is true in some ways, our development is affected in so many ways that it can hardly be boiled down to just genetics. My physical characteristics ARE genetically determined, however who I am deep down is not naturally made by a complex system of chromosomes but rather a delicate dance between the factors that influence my life inside and outside my body.
Some things that put pressure on my personality as I develop are my family, friends and the mass media. There are many theories of how children develop, however it is clear that we are influenced by our upbringing. We learn about the world and how to interact with it from our parents. Children are growing up under the supervision of a 42 inch screen displaying messages they will believe and incorporate into their lives.
We engage with the world based on the physical and mental capacities we are born with. At the same time, we are changed by the many factors that influence us in the environments through which we develop. The question of nature vs. nurture is a complex debate and in my opinion one that is not black and white but rather a rainbow.

America

I love being an American. I am live in a great country that lets you be who you want to be and drink beer out of an flag colored can while watching Fox News tell you why America is so good. That isn't the REAL reason I love America, but people will tend to make up their own minds about why people think America is great. I think it is easy to poke fun at American, we do some silly things sometimes. I am planning a trip to go to Daytona Florida with some buddies from college. 10 guys in a 12 passenger van riding around wearing tank tops and drinking beer. This will undoubtedly look ridiculous (especially if Joe orders those matching wolf t-shirts), but I can guarantee we will not be the only ones looking outrageous.
I have never been to a nascar race, but I am imagining some pretty outrageous things. In my mind, I will be overdressed if I only cut the sleeves off my shirt...
It would make sense that America would be the butt of a joke in other countries. I recently watched a clip from a British show starring Hugh Laurie (aka "House") where he played an American singer. He looks like a typical rocker from Jersey... plaid shirt, bandana, and an undeserved sense of accomplishment. It was funny as he played a song consisting mainly of the word "America" sung over and over in a very pious manner. It sends the message that when you are talking about America, the only thing to say IS "America."
Is this how we are seen by the rest of the world? I think that we are viewed differently by different cultures and countries. We might be cocky and dumb to one country but evil and dominating to another. It is clear that to those of the BBC viewing area we are pretty much in love with ourselves and while it is only a comedy show made to get a laugh, I think this sketch is true on some level. We have many things to boast about in America, but there are many things we can do better.
This clip also made me think of another British take on America and that is the movie "Love Actually." In it the newly elected Prime Minister meets with the President of the United States. The Prime Minister is a humble and confident man with good morals while the President is a southern chauvinistic jackass. The opposite is seen in the movie "The Patriot" about the revolutionary war. In it the Americans are freedom fighters whereas the British troops are murdering dictators. Obviously "Love Actually" is a a British made film where "The Patriot" is made in America.
So this goes both ways, different cultures view other cultures differently. I guess we just want to make it seem like the way we live life is normal. Other cultures must be lesser, inappropriate or wrong compared to ours because if they are normal... then what does that make us?

The Stanford Experiment

The University of Stanford created a sociological experiment in which students were paid to take part in a fake prison located in the basement of the sociology building. The results were both interesting and shocking. As the time in the "prison" went on, the students took on the personality traits of the roles they played. Guards became more hostile and aggressive while prisoners were more docile and sometimes rebellious. This experiment made me think of two things: the first is the ethical implications of an experiment of this sort. Were the students (and professors for that matter) aware of the possible repercussions of the time spent in the prison, both physical and mental? How far is too far when experimenting on humans? Secondly I put myself in the shoes of the students. Whether I was a prisoner or guard, would I react differently in the prison environment? What kind of person might I become in that situation. Could I compartmentalize my life to allow for an 8 hour shift as a guard to be a time where I become a different kind of person to better fit the role I was playing?
Ethics is a tough subject to tackle in one blog post. So many ideas, beliefs, and presuppositions are involved in looking at a scenario through the lens of ethics. In the Stanford Experiment the prisoners were put into a situation reserved for those being punished for real crimes they have committed. Although they were paid and told what would be happening to them, I do not think that they were properly prepared for what would happen. As seen in an interview after the experiment the students (both guards and prisoners) were in disbelief as to what had taken place. While it seems that no one was physically hurt the psychological pain inflicted is very real and could have some effects on the students. For me, the ethical question is based on the whether the professors and or students involved in creating the experiment knew the possible extent to which the subjects would be effected by being in the prison environment. If they were well aware of the possibilities then ethically the experiment should not have happened.
Personally I wonder what kind of prisoner I would have been... would I be the rebellious one? Would I tap into the small part of me that is introverted and find a way to pass the time quietly? If picked to be a guard, would I enter into the role I was placed and come down hard on the prisoners? Would I see injustice and step up and make things right? I am pretty sure I am inherently not very different than these Stanford students. I am a result of both nature and nurture. I sometimes act like the friends I am around. I am often affected by the situation I am in. So, would I be changed? I don't know... what do you think?