Social Learning Theory Promotes Attachment-Based Caregiving In Young Children

There are many different definitions of crime, the legalistic definition states that a crime is any act committed by a human which intends to disobey the criminal law. According to social learning theories criminal behavior is learned through interactions with others. Human beings can learn more than just criminal behaviors, individuals also learn motivations, directions, drives, attitudes and modifications through these interactions. These things are learned through the same mechanisms used to learn everything else. Sutherland states that humans learn most through interactions with the individuals they feel closest with; this includes those they interact with the most, for the longest period of time, with the strongest message and the most

A clinical trial called Social Learning Theory Parenting Intervention Promotes Attachment-Based Caregiving in Young Children: Randomized Clinical Trial focused on how children who have already acted deviantly can change their behavior by imitating behavior of positive role models. This study shows that various interventions can be successful in promoting positive interactions and changing previous behavior. This specific study showed that children could learn positive strategies to manage their emotions and resolve disputes based on imitating their parents positive behavior and actions. (O'Connor, Matias, Futh, Tantam, & Scott, 2013) More interventions of this nature should be promoted in our criminal justice system because these interventions have proven to have positive effects and it is clear that the way incarceration is being used has not been

According to this theory, more focus should be on rehabilitation and intervention programs because again, deviant behaviors can be unlearned. If individuals can unlearn criminal behavior, then more emphasis should be placed on positive programs which aim to teach them prosocial behavior rather than locking them up. Jails and prisons can be breeding grounds for learning more criminal behavior, therefore based on social learning theory most offenders shouldn’t be sent there. The research explained in the article Social Learning, Reinforcement and Crime: Evidence from Three European Cities found that there is a direct correlation between past reinforcement and future criminal activity. They also concluded that the reason for this is past reinforcement has a high probability of changing an individual's definitions towards crime to being more favorable to commit an offense. Their analyses show that in all three of the countries they studied, past reinforcement is a predictor of current moral beliefs and current anticipated rewards. Overall their results are consistent with their predictions gathered from social learning theory. Further, current definitions impact criminal probability, in both violent and property crime. (Tittle, Antonaccio, & Botchkovar, 2012) Based on these findings our criminal justice system should do more to prevent crime than to punish it. If our