CCJS 461 7380 Psychology of Criminal Behavior
Operant Conditioning in the Criminal Justice System
July 12, 2015

Psychology plays a very important role in the field of criminal justice. It is needed to help assess individuals who commit crimes, as well as, help to be a predictor of criminal behavior. Utilizing theories such behaviorism and operant conditioning, individual behavior is able to be assessed by the response to learning what actions result in rewards and what actions result in punishment. As a result of how individuals respond to rewards and punishment, learned behaviors have the possibility to be deterred or corrected.
Behaviorism
Behaviorism is a very important foundational theory in psychology. …show more content…

These consequences for following the enactment of statues can be fines, loss property, or even loss of freedom depending on the severity of the law they break.
Murder is an act or behavior deemed inappropriate by society and which laws are developed to deter. Governments develop and enact laws to protect society and encourage appropriate behaviors. The laws should have appropriate penalties which help to deter crimes. When laws are enacted there are generally minimum or mandatory penalties for crimes committed. These are in an effort to provide punishment to those who commit the crime.
During the enactment of statutes it is also important to ensure that the punishment or consequences for the crime fit. The consequences should be sufficient enough to be a deterrent for the crime committed. Murderers should not be sentenced to a day in jail. This would mean that the punishment would not fit the crime.
Enforcement Statutory laws The enforcement of statutory laws ensures that criminal statutes are adhered to and that society understands that there are consequences when laws are not followed. Enforcement helps everyone to take the laws seriously and if enforcement is not done effectively and efficiently then people may not take the laws seriously. With proper enforcement, there is a positive reinforcement of adherence to laws. This also encourages appropriate behaviors since with