Criminalogical Theories Applied to Monster The...

Criminalogical Theories Applied to Monster The Autobiography of an LA Gang Member In Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member, Kody Scott tells the story of the struggle between two significantly large gangs. At the age of eleven he was initiated into the Crips, and committed his first murder. It was this day that began what would become a career for Kody: banging (Scott, 1993). Kody worked hard to secure a reputation for his name. He held loyal to his homeboys and began to build up the Crips. His potential for being in a leadership position became more and more evident as time went on. During one incident, a police officer referred to him as a monster, and the name stuck. He worked hard to live up to his name, and†¦show more content†¦The Differential Association Theory states that all behavior, pro-social and anti-social is learned, and that we choose the behaviors that are the most rewarding to us (Class Notes). The Night of Kodys initiation he had taken part in shooting down a group of 15 Bloods. After it all was over and he was laying awake in bed, he felt guilty and ashamed of [himself] (Scott, 1993: 13). He knew what he had done was wrong, but when the chance came again for him to choose between right, and what the set wanted him to do, he chose to follow his fellow Crips. Kody chose the praise and approval of his friends over the law, and what he knew in his heart was right (Scott, 1993). The Social Learning Theory is similar to the Differential Association Theory in the respect that they both depend on the approval of others. It says that ...crime is something learned by normal people as they adapt to other people and the conditions of their environment (Bohm, 2001: 82). People learn by reinforcement weather it is positive or negative. Growing up Kody began to feel more and more that his mom no longer expressed any love or care for him, but that she only nagged him. After returning home from juvenile hall the greeting t hat Kody got from his mother wasnt exactly what he wanted. I knew she meant well, but I wasnt up to it tonight. I wanted to be loved, to be missed, to be wanted, not scolded (Scott, 1993: 173). The