From a sociological perspective, explanation for criminality is found in two levels which are the subculture and the structural explanations. The sociological explanations emphasize aspects of societal arrangements that are external to the actor and compelling. A sociological explanation is concerned with how the structure of a society, institutional practices or its persisting cultural themes affect the conduct of its members. Individual differences are denied or ignored, and the explanation of the overall collective behavior is sought in the patterning of social arrangements that is considered to be both outside the actor and prior to him (Sampson, 1985).
That is, the social patterns of power or of institutions which are held to be determinative of human action are also seen as having been in existence before any particular actor came on that scene. In lay language, sociological explanations of crime place the blame on something social that is prior to, external to, and......
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