Donald R. Cressey

Thieves, Convicts and the Inmate Culture

Dentro de la prolifica literatura sobre la organizacion social de las instituciones correccionales, se ha tornado bastante frecuente discutir la “cultura de la prision” o “cultura carcelaria” en terminos que sugieren que el sistema de comportamiento de los distintos tipos de presos se origina en las propias condiciones de encierro. La lectura estructural-funcionalista en la investigacion y observacion de las instituciones ha llevado por un lado a enfatizar la nocion de que las condiciones internas de las prisiones estimulan conductas de diverso tipo entre los detenidos, y por otro a recuperar las viejas nociones en torno de que los presos portan una cultura que llevan consigo al interior de la carcel. Nuestro objetivo es suge-

Changing Criminals: The Application of the Theory of Differential Association

Behavior, attitudes, beliefs, and values are not only the products but also the properties of groups. Consequently, attempts to change individual behavior should be directed at groups. The implications for diagnosis and treatment of criminals of the theory of differential association are consistent with this principle of changing behavior by changing the group and can be effectively utilized in correctional work.

Personality Characteristics of Criminals

During the last twenty-five years objective personality tests have been widely used to investigate differences between criminals and noncriminals. Of 113 such comparisons, 42 per cent showed differences in favor of the noncriminals, while the remainder were indeterminate. The doubtful validity of many of the obtained differences, as well as the lack of consistency in the combined results, makes it impossible to conclude from these data that criminality and personality elements are associated.

Differential Association and the Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts

Five social psychological principles for the rehabilitation of criminals, formulated in this Journal by Cressey in 1955, have unwittingly been used in a program for rehabilitating drug addicts. Sixty-six per cent of the addicts who stayed in the program for at least three months, and 86 per cent of those who remained for at least seven months, are still not using drugs or alcohol.

Epidemiology and Individual Conduct: A Case from Criminology

A principal thesis of this paper is that a theory explaining social behavior in general, or any specific kind of social behavior, should have two distinct but consistent aspects. First, there must be a statement hat explains the statistical distribution of the behavior in time and space (epidemiology), and from which predictive statements about unknown statistical distributions can be derived. Second, there must be a statement that identifies, at least by implication, the process by which individuals come to exhibit the behavior in question, and from which can be derived predictive statements about the behavior of individuals. Concentration on either the epidemiological segment or the individual conduct segment of a theoretical problem is sometimes necessary, but it is erroneous and inefficient to ignore the second segment, to turn it over to another academic discipline, or to leave its solution to a specialized set of workers within a single discipline. In some cases, data on both aspects of a problem are not available, so that a two-edged theory is impossible. For example, my work on trust violation was concerned almost exclusively with the process by which one becomes a criminal, but such concentration was necessary because reliable data on the distribution of this type of crime was not available.1 Should data become available, then the generalization about trust violators should be integrated with a generalization about variations in trust violation. In other cases, concentration on one phase of an explanation may be merely a matter of interest or time. However, it might also be due to an undesirable informal or formal division of labor-such as that between sociologists and psychiatrists, or that indicated by the recent development of a special Section on Social Psychology within the American Sociological Association. The need for integrated theories of epidemiology and individual conduct is demonstrated in the work done on

The State of Criminal Statistics

or municipal ofhcial, and another department receives reports from other officials. Uniform systems of reporting have not been developed, so that published materials are not comparable. In some states the only criminal statistics available are those published by individual institutions or agencies. Only ten states-California, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Texas-and the Territory of Hawaii have a central bureau which collects and publishes statistical information from reports made by a variety of municipal, county, or state agencies.i Some of these bureaus, such as the one in California, have very comprehensive programs, but others are greatly limited in their activities. The principal point made in most publications evaluating the criminal statistics published by either local or central agencies is a negative one-the statistics are not reliable indexes of crime rates. After at least a quartercentury of articles of this sort, we are aware that the general statistics on crime are among the most unsatisfactory of all social statistics. This awareness has not served to correct the deficiencies, but it has introduced notes of caution in the interpretation of any set of statistics dealing with crime. We shall review some of the reasons why crime statistics must be interpreted with caution, and then shall ask two questions which seem timely: What can be done with the kind of statistics we have? Why do we have this kind of statistics?

Professional Correctional Work and Professional Work in Correction

an increasing degree of specialization and division of labor, is the move toward professionalization of many different groups. Tasks formerly performed independently by individual contractors are now being broken down into numerous operations and performed by specialists, each of whom has membership in an association of specialists. And even new occupations which would have been considered crafts had they developed only a few years ago are now in the process of professionalization. The growth of educational facilities and, specifically, the pragmatic emphasis in education which is turning a huge proportion of our high school and college curricula into vocational courses assure

Justice by Consent: Plea Bargains in the American Courthouse@@@Plea Bargaining or Trial? The Process of Criminal Case Disposition

In undergoing this life, many people always try to do and get the best. New knowledge, experience, lesson, and everything that can improve the life will be done. However, many people sometimes feel confused to get those things. Feeling the limited of experience and sources to be better is one of the lacks to own. However, there is a very simple thing that can be done. This is what your teacher always manoeuvres you to do this one. Yeah, reading is the answer. Reading a book as this plea bargaining or trial the process of criminal case disposition and other references can enrich your life quality. How can it be?