Tracing proactive and reactive criminal thinking back to their historical roots: a “history of the present” analysis
The objective of this “history of the present” analysis was to illustrate how historical trends from the past may have shaped modern conceptualizations of proactive and reactive criminal thinking; not just in terms of how these criminal thinking dimensions relate to criminal behavior but also in ter...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2024
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| In: |
Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Criminology
Year: 2024, Volume: 16, Pages: 15-31 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Keywords: |
| Summary: | The objective of this “history of the present” analysis was to illustrate how historical trends from the past may have shaped modern conceptualizations of proactive and reactive criminal thinking; not just in terms of how these criminal thinking dimensions relate to criminal behavior but also in terms of how they relate to each other. Using social cognitive and social-cognitive-developmental theories as a conceptual framework, it is argued that reactive criminal thinking has its roots in crimes of desperation as committed by the poor and destitute during the Middle Ages and Industrial Revolution, whereas proactive criminal thinking has its roots in crimes of opportunity as committed by the rich and powerful, during these same two historical periods, with perception serving as a link between certain social-environmental realities and these two criminal thinking styles. Despite divergent historical origins, the proactive and reactive dimensions of antisocial cognition overlap extensively: first, because of economic and political changes occurring during the Middle Ages which eventually led to cross-involvement in crimes of desperation and opportunity, and second, because these two dimensions of antisocial cognition contain styles of thought (superoptimism in the case of proactive criminal thinking and cognitive indolence in the case of reactive criminal thinking) are strongly aroused by a person’s involvement in criminal activity. These styles of criminal cognition, along with their overarching dimensions, rose significantly during the Industrial Revolution with the loss of informal social control that accompanied movement into the city. Implications for modern-day criminological research, theory, and practice are discussed. |
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| Item Description: | Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 27-31 |
| Physical Description: | Illustration |