Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine Edwin Sutherland's theory of differential association. Following a brief history of Sutherland's ideas is a summary of the main ideas and premises of his differential association theory. Also included is a review of studies which attempt to test the validity of Sutherland's theory.

Theoretical Criminology attempts to explain theories of why and how crime occurs by examining the various facts related to criminal behavior and crime. These theories offer the sociological, psychological, and psychiatric views of the causes of crime and other forms of deviant behavior. Among these is a group of theories referred to as learning theories, which focus on the ideas and behaviors that can be learned, the processes by which that learning occurs, and the structure of support and encouragement for law violation. Perhaps the strongest and most prominent of these theories is Edwin Sutherland's Differential Association theory. As a sociological interactionist, Sutherland's viewpoint on the etiology of crime was that there existed certain processes or relationships that could explain a

From Sutherland's fourth edition onward of the Principles of Criminology these nine points of his theory of differential associations have remained unchanged.

Reed and Rose's methodology and design for this study (1998) came from the longitudinal data, collected from the NYS (National Youth Survey), which are grounded on a probability sample of households using a multistage, cluster sampling design. "Five annual waves of data for 1976 to 1980 are available; the present analysis examines the first three waves. Of the 2,360 youths (ages ranged from 11 to 17) asked to participate in the original study, 1,725 (73%) agreed. Respondent loss over the first three waves was 6%, leaving 1,626 participants in the study, which had no effect on the studies results" ( Reed and Rose, 1998).

"Sutherland drew upon three major theories from the Chicago School in order to better formulate his theory. These included the ecological and cultural transmission theory, symbolic interactionism, and culture conflict. Expressed by the symbolic interactionism approach, varying crime rates were explained by the culture conflict approach and the process by which individuals became criminal. Thus, he formulated his theory with an attempt to explain not only individual criminal behavior but also those of societal groups" (DeMelo, 1994). This statement, aside from its discussion of how Sutherland formed the basis for his theory, also provides evidence for the argument that Sutherland's differential association theory demonstrates a connection to all three of the broad classifications of the etiology of crime and other forms of deviant behavior. Generally the three categories that theories about the causes and behaviors of crime fit into, they are: individual difference theories, structure/ process theories or theories on the behavior of criminal law.

Overall, Edwin Sutherland's differential association theory does not best explain any one specific type of crime or criminal behavior. In fact, perhaps the reason why Sutherland's theory has sustained its significance is because it encompasses a general formula and the fundamental ideas or way of examining crime and criminal behavior. Conceivably, a better question and challenge that might be raised instead of what types of crime does it best explain, would be what types of crime or criminal behavior could you not apply to Sutherland's differential association theory. Therefore there is no suggestion that Sutherland's theory is not valid, merely that the application of Sutherland's theory must follow in accordance with Sutherland's own calculations and

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Approximate Word count = 4408
Approximate Pages = 18 (250 words per page double spaced)