Characteristics of criminals: The privileged offender

Abstract

In studying the etiology of crime, criminological theories rest, to a large extent, on studies based on registered offenders from the lower social classes. Their living conditions have inspired criminologists to develop so-called social deprivation theories to explain crime. According to these theories factors such as bad housing conditions, inadequate education systems, poor job opportunities, lack of recreational facilities favour the development of criminal behavior. Because of this frame of reference social deprivation theories usually are social class theories (Goppinger , 1980; Mannheim, 1965). Criminal behavior, however, is certainly not restricted to people with a low SES. As early as 1946 Porterfield was able to show that students too have quite a part in the total volume of crime. He found that compared to registered juvenile offenders the criminal “records” of students were even worse both quantitatively and qualitatively (Porterfield, 1946). It is obvious that criminal behavior of students cannot be explained by the poor social conditions under which many lower class offenders have grown up. Therefore focussing on this category of offenders might help us to increase our knowledge of the origins of crime.