CAPSTONE ASSIGNMENT – SOC220 – CRIMINOLOGY

Rationale for assignment as an assessment project for all SOC 220 students.
This assignment is a means of assessing whether students can both understand and utilize the major criminology theories in helping to explain and solve typical criminological issues they are likely to encounter. The research component consists of using library resources to find 2 sources in addition to your textbook and classroom presentations. One source must be a journal article. Instructors will easily determine whether the student has mastered the material by examining whether the proposed explanations are logically based upon the theories they cite, and whether the solutions they propose are drawn upon the logic of the explanations.

By using the same fact pattern for all students, the instructors can easily compare the work product of students not only within a class but between different classes. Additionally, requiring students to solve a hypothetical problem using the concepts they have learned in class minimizes the likelihood of plagiarism. Students can use the internet and other text sources to help clarify the concepts- but merely “cutting and pasting” material will have no value to the essential task: using crime theory to explain and solve hypothetical problems.

Rationale for assignment as an Associate’s degree capstone project for JUS majors.
In addition to the foregoing, Part III requires the student to show how each of the major components of the criminal justice system (the police, the prosecution, the criminal law, the judiciary, probation and corrections) either alone or in conjunction with the community, can best be used to solve the given problem. This additional features draws upon the knowledge the student has acquired in other justice courses and integrates this knowledge by requiring the student to exercise critical thinking skills toward the goal of proposing workable solutions.

ASSESSMENT TERM PAPER – SOC220 – CRIMINOLOGY
WHY DID THEY DO IT?
Upon Completion, This Assignment Should Be Placed in Your E-Portfolio
When a crime attracts a lot of attention, the media will sometimes explore the offender’s background and motives. Now that you yourself have become an “entry-level criminologist,” you too can attempt to explain why a particular crime was committed.
Below are a few notorious criminals, some mentioned in your textbook, who filled the pages of newspapers, magazines, and on-line sources.
Jesse Timmendequas
Alex & Derek King
Andrew Luster
Charles Cullen
Cheng Chi Ping
Eric Rudolph
Ken Lay (Enron accounting fraud, employee-stockholders’ pensions wiped out)
Zacarias Massaoui (would-be 9/11 hijacker now serving life sentence in Federal prison)
Susan Smith (falsely claimed carjacking to cover drowning of her children)
Joel Steinberg (lawyer who beat 6-yr-old daughter to death)
Sante Kymes (grifter who, with son, murdered elderly socialite to get townhouse)
Robert Chambers (“Preppie Murderer” in Central Park)
Kathy Boudin (radical involved in robbery that led to death of 3 people)
Seung-Hui Cho (killed 32 people at Virginia Tech)
Michael Devlin (kidnapped & sexually abused 2 boys, while living openly as their “father”)
John B. Taylor (former Wendy’s manager who robbed and shot 7 employees)
Bernard Madoff (perpetrated world’s largest Ponzi scheme, bilking investors of billions of dollars)

Pick your favorite criminal, and then find at least three different types of information sources that probe the “why” part of the crime. These may be newspapers, books, journal articles, magazines, encyclopedia articles (other than Wikipedia), etc. and they MUST be found through library databases, NOT web search engines like Google. One source must be a journal article. Particularly useful databases for this assignment are EBSCO and ProQuest. Books and journal articles are PREFERRED. A librarian can direct you to the databases. Seek out sources that discuss the offender’s background, circumstances, and motive. Such information should suggest theories to explain the criminal’s actions. You are to select ONE theory from the list below. Explain the theory in detail. Then show how various facts in the case, derived from your research, support the chosen theory.

Age-Graded Theory
Anomie Theory
Arousal Theory
Behavioral Theory
Biochemical Theory
Cognitive Theory
Control Balance Theory
Critical Criminology
Critical Feminist Criminology
Cultural Deviance Theory
Deviant Place Theory
Differential Association Theory
Differential Coercion Theory
Evolutionary Theory
General Strain Theory
General Theory of Crime and Genetic Theory
Instrumental Theory
Integrated Cognitive Antisocial Potential (ICAP) Theory
Interactional Theory
Left Realism Theory
Lifestyle Theory
Neurological Theory
Neutralization Theory
Pathways to Crime
Power Control Theory
Problem Behavior Syndrome
Psychodynamic Theory
Rational Choice Theory
Relative Deprivation Theory
Routine Activities Theory
Social Control Theory
Social Development Model
Social Disorganization Theory
Social Ecology Theory
Social Reaction /Labeling Theory
Strain Theory
Victim Precipitation

Documentation
You must document your sources using Criminology’s standard citation method, APA. This method is actually simpler than MLA. For example, to cite your textbook after you talk about a theory, you need only put the author’s last name and year of publication:
His lack of self-control suggests Latent Trait (Siegel, 2008).
Then in your References (bibliography), you write:
Siegel, L. (2008). Criminology: the core. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
To find out the rules for APA style, please refer to the Berkeley Libguide at: http://berkeleycollege.libguides.com/content.php?pid=197278&sid=1650985
You can also look at the APA guide from the library at CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
http://www.lib.jjay.cuny.edu/research/apastyle2010.pdf .
You can also look at the OWL Purdue Writing Lab: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Also, some databases, such as Proquest, will automatically put its listed sources in APA format for you. You can also use citation assistants online or in Microsoft Word. Lastly, you can always go to the ASC for assistance in writing, paraphrasing, and referencing.

Assignment Overview
1. Pick a case study from above and provide a brief background on the offender (one page only).
2. Pick a theory from above and explain it in detail. Make sure your explanation is comprehensive, referenced, and highlights a particular theorist (i.e., do not pick Strain theory in general; pick Agnew’s Strain Theory or Merton’s Strain Theory). Do not give your opinion or write in the “I” format, as this has no substantive value in formal academic writing. While writing about the theory, make sure to address its strengths and weaknesses in its ability to explain criminal behavior. What are the theory’s policy implications (i.e., according to the theory, what should be done about crime prevention, what should be done with the offender, etc.)? This section should be 1 page.
3. Apply the theory to the case study so we can understand how the theory explains why the offender behaved in this way. Make sure to use specific examples form the case study and use specific concepts from the theory (one page only).
4. Make sure your paper has a works cited page in APA format.

Important Requirements:
**This project must be submitted through Safe Assign. Upload it to the assignment link in your course in BlackBoard.
***You are required to have in-text citations and full references that adhere to APA format.
****You are required to have 3 sources: one source may be your text; one source must be a journal article You must use library resources to find 2 sources in addition to your textbook.
Students will participate in a research workshop conducted by library personnel. This workshop will be conducted during classroom time.

General notes: This term paper must be at least three to four pages long (normal margins, 12 point font, double spaced) with proper spelling, punctuation and grammar.

Final Instructions
Librarians LOVE to help students with research. Make them happy – and get an A on this assignment!
DO NOT copy or cut and paste from any source unless you are quoting the material, and keep quoted material to no more than 10% of your paper. Your paper must be IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
Keep the assignment length between 3 & 4 pages, in 12-pt. Times New Roman font, double-spaced.
E-mail a copy of your paper as a Microsoft Word attachment to your professor.

Your assignment will look like the following:
I. Introductory paragraph – prepare the reader for forthcoming information
II. Body
A. Your chosen case study
1. Background detail on your case study (1 page)

B. Your chosen theory
1. Detailed information regarding the theory, including its strengths and limitations in explaining criminal behavior (1 to 1 ½ pages).

C. Application of the Theory to the Case Study
1. Use specific examples to show how the theory explains why your case study committed a particular crime (1 to 1 ½ pages).
III. Conclusion – Summarize your main points
IV. Works Cited Page – cite your sources according to APA format.
Criteria
Poor
Adequate
Excellent

ORGANIZATION, WRITING AND MECHANICS

Poor writing. Organization unclear and/or the assignment is marred by significant grammar, spelling errors, or typos. Scholarly ideas are cited incorrectly using the assigned style guide.

Ineffective discussions of position and/or alternative position in the legal briefs with little or no evidence of critical thinking. Adequate and competent writing. Scholarly ideas are cited correctly using the assigned style guide.

Satisfactory discussions of position and alternative positions in the legal briefs.

Clear organization and strong writing skills with few or no grammar or spelling errors. Scholarly ideas are cited correctly using the assigned style guide.

In-depth discussions of position and alternative position are provided and clearly articulated. Excellent
demonstration of critical thinking and analysis.

APPLICATION OF CRIMINOLOGICAL THEORY

Errors or contradictions in the application of pertinent criminological theories. Very little evidence of an understanding of the roles of the prosecutors and defense attorneys in the criminal justice system.
Adequate review and application of pertinent criminological theories as rationales for the prosecutor and defense positions.

Excellent review and application of pertinent criminological theories. Strong evidence of comprehension of theories and how they apply to the court’s role in the criminal justice system.

APPLICATION OF COURSE READINGS AND MATERIALS

Course readings are not mentioned or mentioned with no clear understanding of the relationship between the assignment and course themes.

Inappropriate or inadequate selection of other reference sources. Lack of citations or major errors in citations. Failure to use articles or failure to attach articles used in the assignment.

Course readings are adequately used to define criminological concepts.

Adequate selection of at least 3 other reference sources which are properly cited, printed and included as an attachment. If errors exist, they are minor ones.

Demonstrates solid use of course readings to accurately define criminological concepts.

Excellent choice of at least 3 other reference sources which are properly cited, printed and included as an attachment.

THOROUGHNESS

Did not answer all components of the assignment and/or failed to submit the required assignment length. Answered all components of the assignment, but not completely.

Answered all components of the assignment completely and submitted the proper page or word length.

Updated: Kim Collica-Cox, Ph.D.
7/15/13

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