Crime is the violation of a law or specific norm in society. Deviance refers to the violation of a social norm. Based on the definition, all crimes are viewed to deviant behaviors by the society. The rate of crime declined steadily in the United States in the 1990s. The homicide rate dropped by forty-three percent in that single decade in the entire nation hitting the lowest level ever recorded in a span of 35years (Fox, 2015). A wide range of explanation s can be given to support the reasons behind the fall.
An individual’s future affects the immediate actions today. Sharp future discounting can lead an individual to engage in crime. The existence of economic inequality in the society can make the indulgence in crime very attractive option for some individuals who feel oppressed by the wealthy groups or individuals. Most of the individuals who have engaged in crime have done it as a risk-taking process, but rationally they are aware of the dangers that face them. For instance, in the 1990s, the rate of crime in the United States, specifically in Chicago was found to increase with the inequality in the incomes (Currie, 2013). Therefore the drop in the rate of crime in the United States in the 1990s would probably have been attributed by the lower future discounting. The potential criminals in the society might have shifted from negativity to positivity on their views about the prospects of the future. Precisely, the situational cues that occur at different time intervals and are related to the prospects of the future might have been one of the reasons for the crime rate drop in the United States back in the 1990s. If crime is a manifestation of a trait at an individual level, then a significant drop in the rate off the crime in the United States in the 1990s might have been due of a diminished expression and reduced prevalence of the individual's trait (Clinard & Mejer, 2015).
Crime and related deviant behaviors mostly result from individuals in the society possessing low self-control and availability or the emergence of an opportunity. Therefore, the sudden decrease in the crime rate in the United States in the 1990s might have been triggered or influenced by an increased level of self-control by the individuals in the society. It is also probable that the potential criminals in society might have lacked a chance to indulge in crime due to the limited and decreased opportunities (Clinard & Mejer, 2015).
In the 1990s, the drop in crime rate in the United States might have been contributed by the increased application of capital punishment (Currie, 2013). The U.S government had put to death hundreds of prisoners. The death penalty seemed to scare the entire society and the potential criminals from indulging in criminal activities. Capital punishment was very effective by that time for the violent crimes. The criminals had started to fear executions and the deterrent effects related to capital punishment.
The legalization of abortion contributed to the United States’ crime rate drop in the 1990s. The government had legalized abortion in the early 1970s. The effects of the legalization were experienced in the 1990s. The arguments build on the abortion legalization include; that the unwanted children were susceptible to becoming criminals in the future and that the number of unwanted births was reduced significantly (Mishra, 2013). Initially, before the legalization of abortion, a lot of women had made requests to have abortions, but the government would decline. The children who would later be born would be brought up by single mothers who found it hard to provide for every basic need of the family. Some of them would be abandoned in the streets, and they would gradually learn to engage in criminal activities to cater to their needs. The abortion legalization had reduced these kinds of births hence reduction of the number of children and youths who would be exposed to engage in criminal activities.
There was an increased number of law enforcing agencies and police in combating crime in the United States. A government responds to increased crime rate by deploying or hiring more police. In the 1990s, the number of police officers who had been operating had increased by fourteen percent (Fox, 2015). The increased police deployment enabled the launching of a crackdown against illegal drugs trade, and a lot of drug-related crimes had been reduced.
In the 1990s the population in the prisons had increased tremendously. The rise in the population of inmates significantly contributed to the drop in crime rate in the U.S. a lot of criminals had been moved from the streets reducing the criminal activities.
Conclusion
In the 1990s, there was a drop in the rate of crime in the United States. That could have been contributed by different factors. The suggested factors included; increased self-control by society individuals in cases where the economic inequality existed, the transformation of individuals from negativity to positivity, adoption of capital punishment by the government, legalization of abortion, increased deployment of the police, and increased prison populations.
References
Clinard, M. B., & Meier, R. F. (2015). Sociology of Deviant Behavior. Boston, England: Cengage Learning.
Currie, E. (2013). Crime and Punishment in America. Macmillan.
Mishra, S. (2013). Crime Drop of the 1990s. The Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 1-5. doi:10.1002/9781118517383.wbeccj410
Fox, J. A. (2015). Uniform Crime Reports [United States]: Supplementary Homicide Reports, 1976-1998. ICPSR Data Holdings. Doi: 10.3886/icpsr03000
