This article is written by Anupama G Varier, who is an MSW graduate from CMR University Bangalore. The author had also specialized in medical and psychiatric social work.
Crime is an act or omission which can be considered as an offence and can be publishable. As per the legal definition crimes can be thought of as acts which break the law. Crimes are acts which can offend against a set of norms like a moral code.
Crime has multiple meanings. Those meanings are socially constructed. The most important differences in the meanings of crime occur between strictly legal definitions and those that relate crime to the breaking of other codes and conventions. These may be formal moral codes like religions, or more informal codes of socially – acceptable behaviour. Indian penal code (IPC), 1860 is a comprehensive code which covers all aspects of criminal law and explains about the crime and punishments. The person who violates this law can be punished in India even if it’s an Indian citizen or a foreigner who ever does crime in India.
Concept of crime differs as per the situation of crime. Most of the time crime is carried out in four stages as intention, preparation, attempt and accomplishments. For example there were a case of snake bite murder which is a planned executed murder with an intension, and there were also cases of murder by mistake or as a part of self protection. Both types of crime and its punishments are different. Crime has existed since the existence of society, before the law became humanly in ancient times the punishments were very brutal such as boiling, danda, animal torture etc. As the system changed, the punishment methods also changed.
As per the IPC, 1860, there are 511 sections and it’s divided into personal crimes, property crimes, statutory crimes and inchoate crimes. In IPC, 1860 section 299 to 377 explains the crime against person which involves assault, kidnapping etc. In 2013 Anti rape Act came as a result of Nirbhaya rape case and IPC added with some sections such as 166 A, 236 A, 354 A, 354 D etc. The sections 378 to 462 explains the crime against property such as Theft, Robbery, House trespass etc. There are also statutory acts such as ‘Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954,’ ‘Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988,’ ‘Protection of Women from Violence Act, 2005,’ etc. Also the IPC, 1860 explains other crimes as crimes related to religion, financial crimes etc..
None of them are born as criminals. Criminal behavior occurs when individuals are not properly socialized and thus do not feel bound by the laws, rules, and morals that have been established by the society. Crime not only affect individuals, but it will severely affect the society also. Criminals develop due to their social or psychological background. The social factors encompass processes that take place at the ecological level as well as the meanings that one attributes to a particular situation, which in turn affects one’s emotional state. The psychological factors encompass processes that take place at the individual-level as well as the meanings that one attributes to a particular situation which in turn affects our mental state. Personality factors, other individual variables like intelligence, emotional behaviour and academic achievements also determine the chances of an individual to be in criminal behaviour. The social factors involves,
- Presence and lack of support from family (Absence of Father, Poor Relationship with Family, Home Environment, Attachment with Mother, Marital Discord, Poor Emotional and Physical Health of Family)
- Poor neighbourhood conditions and relations (Underdeveloped Neighbourhood, Lack of Safety, Poor relationship with neighbours, Negative impact of labelling by the society)
- Peer influence (Negative peer influence, Temporary nature of friendship)
- Low socio-economic status and occupational difficulties (Need for financial security, Inability to meet one’s needs, Eagerness to earn money, No external source of financial support, Occupational stress)
- Educational background and interest (Low interest in studies, Less emphasis on education)
- Lack of Awareness (Lack of awareness of consequences, Inability to think of consequences, Causes of Crime, Interventions, Attitude of Police Personnel)
- Individual Factors (Rigid pattern of thinking, Need for power, Personality traits) etc.
Psychological problems such as Personality disorder, Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Schizophrenia, depression, adjustment disorders, Eating disorders, Addiction, bipolar affective disorder, and sexual disorders such as paraphilias etc. are prone to criminal behavior which involves aggression and violence. The history of parental substance use disorder or psychiatric illness increase the risk. Frontal lobe deficits, dementia, and thyroid disease can also lead to increased aggression. Psychomotor agitation, akathisia, physical discomfort or pain, head injuries and temporal lobe lesion can increase a patient’s acts of violence.
Being a criminal or increase in the crime rate not only affects the person who does the crime or the victim or the family, but it also affects the whole society.
The communities which experience higher levels of crime are also adversely affected. People may become frightened inside or outside their own home. Home insurance premiums can rise. Property prices are affected. Homeowners can find it more difficult to sell their property. New businesses may avoid the area. Thus, increase in the rate of crime adversely affects the whole nation and it is having a far reaching impact. There were cases such as “The son killed mother for questioning alcoholism”, “School students arrested for drug use”, where the people get worried about the area and the parents get worried to send their kids to school etc.
Being an ex-convict is also not a good factor as they faces a lot of problems as rejection from the family as well as the society, rehabilitation issues such as difficulty in finding job or shelter, chances of being Habitual offenders who does crimes repeatedly. The ex- convicts will develop angry with god, offenders, relatives, friends, service providers, the criminal justice system and themselves. There are chances of mental health issues such as PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), anxiety, depression, suicidal tendency, substance abuse, adjustment disorder etc. and the same can affect the victims which leads to anti social personality disorders such as murder, robbery, rape etc. Even the same for victims there are a chances of a conversion of victims to the offences as a case in which the son killed his Father’s killer after 25 years which is a clear example that victimisation also lead to crime and most of the victims also face the social negligence and make them to be drug addicts, depressed or they may be affected with other psychological problems.
Criminals are developed due to their situations, and most of these criminal behavior can be reduced by proper guidance. There are proper psychological first aid for the offenders as well as victims or ex convicts such as empathy, emotional warmth, attending to their concerns, psychological ventilation, building acceptance, psychiatric treatment, rehabilitation, counseling and rerouting to normal life etc. In short, the overall crime rate can be reduced by integrating the criminals back into society.
References
● Bryan Vila, 1994, A General Paradigm For Understanding Criminal Behavior : Extending Evolutionary Ecological Theory, Journal.
● Ernst Freund, 1914, Classification and Definition of Crimes, Journal.
● Mehak Sikand, K. Jayasankara Reddy 2017, Role of Psycho-social Factors in Criminal Behaviour in Adults in India
● Milton Keynes, 2017, The meaning of crime, Journal, The Open University, Walton Hall
