HARD DETERMINISM

the doctrine that human actions and choices are causally determined by forces and influences
over which a person exercises no meaningful control. The term can also be applied to nonhuman
events, implying that all things must be as they are and could not possibly be otherwise. 
1. a hard determinist might see humans as a sort of thinking machines, but believe it
is inaccurate to say they "came to a decision" or "chose".

2. Hard determinism is the philosophical view that none of our so-called decisions were
arrived to by our own volition. Alternatively, it argues, all of these decisions are the
product of antecedent causes. The argument can be made deductively as follows:
3. The only method by which a physical thing can do anything is by virtue of
being caused to do so by an antecedent physical thing
4.  All we are is an aggregation of physical things
5.  The only method by which we can do anything is by virtue of our being caused
to do so by an antecedent physical thing
6. All of our actions are the products of antecedent physical things
7. The free will vs determinism debate revolves around the extent to which
our behavior is the result of forces over which we have no control or
whether people are able to decide for themselves whether to act or behave
in a certain way.

Hard determinism sees free will as an illusion and believes that every event
and action has a cause.
Behaviorists are strong believers in hard determinism. Their most
forthright and articulate spokesman has been B. F. Skinner. Concepts like
“free will” and “motivation” are dismissed as illusions that disguise the real
causes of human behavior.
In Skinner’s scheme of things the person who commits a crime has no real
choice. (S)he is propelled in this direction by environmental circumstances
and a personal history, which makes breaking the law natural and
inevitable.
Soft Determinism
Soft determinism represents a middle ground, people do have a choice, but that
choice is constrained by external or internal factors.
For example, being poor doesn’t make you steal, but it may make you more likely
to take that route through desperation.
Soft determinism suggests that some behaviors are more constrained than others
and that there is an element of free will in all behavior.
Free will is the idea that we are able to have some choice in how we act and
assumes that we are free to choose our behavior, in other words we are self
determined.
For example, people can make a free choice as to whether to commit a crime or
not (unless they are a child or they are insane). This does not mean that behavior
is random, but we are free from the causal influences of past events. According to
freewill a person is responsible for their own actions.
The Positivist School was founded by Cesare Lombroso and led by two others: Enrico Ferri and
Raffaele Garofalo. In criminology, it has attempted to find scientific objectivity for the measurement
and quantification of criminal behavior. Its method was developed by observing the characteristics of
criminals to observe what may be the root cause of their behavior or actions.[1] Since the Positivist's
school of ideas came around, research revolving around its ideas has sought to identify some of the
key differences between those who were deemed "criminals" and those who were not, often without
considering flaws in the label of what a “criminal” is.
As the scientific method became the major paradigm in the search for knowledge, the Classical
School's social philosophy was replaced by the quest for scientific laws that would be discovered by
experts. It is divided into biological, psychological, and social laws.

WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF CHILDHOOD RISK

FACTORS?
Everyone may be exposed to certain risk factors throughout their life; most experts in
the field believe that the more risk factors someone experiences throughout their
developmental years (early/middle childhood, teen), the higher the chance that they will
participate in criminal or antisocial behavior in their lifetime. Some risk factors include
failing classes, dropping out of school, abuse of drugs or alcohol, rejection by peers, or
verbal/physical abuse by parents. Other familial risk factors include negative sibling
influence, or poor parenting skills. Poor self-regulating, interpersonal, and social skills
are some psychological risk factors that often show beginning in early childhood. A
nurturing environment is thought to shield children from these risk factors, as well as
lessen the effect of risk factors when they are eventually exposed to them. Although it is
pretty well known which factors are closely related to juvenile delinquency and adult
criminal behavior, researchers are still unsure as to why they are related.

RISK FACTOR: POVERTY

Poverty can be referred to as a living situation in which the basic requirements to live an
average life in a specific geographic area are absent. In the United States, 1 in 5 children
grow up in households with combined incomes below the
 federal poverty line. Children growing up in
conditions of poverty are at higher risk of attending poorly funded schools or dropping
out of school; teens also are more likely to be unemployed. They may also be exposed to
various criminal activities, including violent crimes. Rates of domestic violence are
higher in areas of poverty, and children often witness this occur. In low income areas,
slapping and hitting a child is a more common form of punishment; this is believed to be
due to the fact that this form of punishment is easier to conduct and has immediate
effects. Living in a poor environment, in addition to physical punishment is thought to
negatively influence a child’s worldview. Adults living in conditions such as these are
more likely to be victims of crime.

Police tend to target teens living in lower-class areas more so than people living in
middle or upper class neighborhoods. When arrested they are more likely to be referred
to juvenile courts and become delinquents. Being sent to a juvenile facility at a young
age is argued to actually promote adult criminal behavior, not prevent it.