Criminological Theories
Before David Berkowitz became a psychotic killer he, like many other psychotic killers such as Clifford Olson and Ted Bundy, had a criminal history. David had a history of committing arson crimes; he would set fire on numerous buildings in New York City. As a young boy he was very aggressive and tended to bully other kids. David was considered to be a loner without friends. After the death of his adopted mother, whom he loved very much, he became mentally unstable and felt that everyone in the world was against him. Whenever he had an opportunity, he went out and stalked women and killed them. He had no shame or remorse for the things he had done to his victims; instead it satisfied him. When he was finally discovered and captured by authorities he asked them, “What took you so long?” as if he was careless. He also told authorities that his neighbor’s dog ordered him to kill people. These factors were triggered because he had low Self Control, which is under the Social Control Theory.
Social Control Theory is described by Hirschi (1969) as, “Elements of social bonding include attachment to families, commitment to social norms and institutions (school, employment), involvement in activities, and the belief that these things are important" . He also states that it emphasizes the fact that there is an absence of social attachments among juvenile delinquents. When someone has strong social bonds with family, church, school, etc. results in less desire to pursue criminal behavior; this wasn't the case for David. As a boy he didn’t have any friends and would tend to bully other kids. When his foster mother died, he became mentally unstable and lost interest in his religion.
Self-control is to be in control of your emotions and desires. One's self control is needed to avoid deviance. People with low self-control are likely to commit crimes when the opportunity is there without worrying about the consequences. David disliked his foster father's wife, which made their relationship worse. He then got in touch with his real mother and his half sister and started visiting them, but unfortunately he just didn’t care no more and stopped talking to them. He was carless for his actions and when he was finally caught all he told authorities was, "what took you so long?”
Social Control Theory is described by Hirschi (1969) as, “Elements of social bonding include attachment to families, commitment to social norms and institutions (school, employment), involvement in activities, and the belief that these things are important" . He also states that it emphasizes the fact that there is an absence of social attachments among juvenile delinquents. When someone has strong social bonds with family, church, school, etc. results in less desire to pursue criminal behavior; this wasn't the case for David. As a boy he didn’t have any friends and would tend to bully other kids. When his foster mother died, he became mentally unstable and lost interest in his religion.
Self-control is to be in control of your emotions and desires. One's self control is needed to avoid deviance. People with low self-control are likely to commit crimes when the opportunity is there without worrying about the consequences. David disliked his foster father's wife, which made their relationship worse. He then got in touch with his real mother and his half sister and started visiting them, but unfortunately he just didn’t care no more and stopped talking to them. He was carless for his actions and when he was finally caught all he told authorities was, "what took you so long?”