Juvenile Delinquency Theory

Social identity theory

Postmodernist criminology theory

Underlying assumptions

Postmodernism is a relatively unique theory of criminology: rather than simply trying to understand why people commit crimes and explain such behavior, it questions the notion of what constitutes 'crime' altogether. The underlying assumption of postmodernism is that crime is a culturally constructed concept. [One sentence thesis] For example, in the 1950s, being gay was considered criminal -- today being gay is socially accepted behavior. White-collar crime is often considered less serious than violent crime. Postmodernist theories of criminology suggests that this is not because that white-collar crime is less serious, rather it is because the perpetrators are more apt to be socially powerful and wealthy individuals who can define how crime is constructed.

Similarly, postmodernism would suggest that the social construction of the identity of the juvenile delinquent is laden with class and historical assumptions. Once upon a...
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