Definitions (Social Learning)
Definition
Attitudes or rationalisations that frame a behaviour as acceptable, justified, or necessary. In Akers's model, a high ratio of favourable-to-unfavourable definitions toward an act predicts a higher probability of committing that act.
- Theorist
- Ronald Akers
- Framework
- Social learning theory of crime
- Key ratio
- Favourable-to-unfavourable definitions
Common questions
How do definitions differ from differential association in Akers's model?+
Differential association describes exposure to others who hold certain attitudes, while definitions are the attitudes themselves that a person internalises from that exposure and then applies to justify or condemn a specific act.
Can definitions favouring an act exist without direct pressure from others?+
Yes. A person can absorb definitions that neutralise or justify an act, such as viewing it as a victimless choice or a deserved response, and act on them without anyone directly urging the act at that moment.
Related terms
- Differential Association
- Sutherland's concept that criminal behaviour results from an excess of associations with pro-criminal definitions over anti-criminal definitions. The learning depends on the...
- Differential Reinforcement
- The balance of rewards and punishments, anticipated or actual, that follow a behaviour. If the expected rewards outweigh expected costs, the behaviour...
- Imitation
- Modelling one's behaviour on observed actions of others, especially admired or high-status individuals. Akers added imitation to Sutherland's original framework, explaining initial...
- Pro-Criminal Definitions
- Attitudes, values, or verbal rationalisations that make law-breaking seem acceptable or desirable. Examples include neutralisation techniques (denying the victim, appealing to higher...
- Social Learning Theory (Akers)
- The reformulation of differential association in behavioural terms by Ronald Akers and Robert Burgess (1966). It integrates differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement,...