Sociological Models of Deviance Theory The purpose of this research is to examine

The purpose of this research is to examine two different sociological models of deviance theory, and see how they may be applied to the issue of the problem of violence and crime committed by women. The plan of the research will be to set forth elements of the issue of violence and crime committed by women as a deviant form of behavior, focusing on a presentation of datadriven evidence on the subject, and then to compare and contrast two different theoretical points of view on the issue. Additionally, these viewpoints will be discussed and evaluated in terms of their ability to explain the phenomenon of deviant criminal behavior by women, with a view toward suggesting possible lines of research development and the formation of social policy that addresses deviant criminal behavior on the part of women.

Criminal behavior by women has been seen as an important social problem almost throughout the modern period. Theories explaining the problem have not been uniform. Among the first theories to explain criminal behavior in women was put forward by Cesare Lombroso, who in the nineteenth century found a positive correlation between antisocial behavior and a born criminal with certain "hereditary physical traits" (Funk & Wagnalls, 1975, p. 151). Lombroso appears to have become interested in deviant females to no good effect, as the following critique suggests:

Cesare Lombroso is credited with starting it all. Trained in

biological sciences, Lombroso w

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Category: Psychology - S