NCJ Number
145881
Journal
EuroCriminology Volume: 5-6 Dated: (1993) Pages: 61-70
Date Published
1993
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Personality is a key factor in criminal behavior, and an individual's value system is a critical aspect of the structure of personality.
Abstract
An individual's value system represents a set of attitudes toward ideas, events, objects, features, and other elements of the social, material, biological, and spiritual reality associated with that individual. Spatial representations and models have been used to evaluate individual values and development and how values can contribute to criminality or be helpful in overcoming criminal tendencies, hostility, violence, and other social deviations. The models focus on becoming more of a human being, cooperating with others to create a sense of community, connecting with the world of culture and nature, and connecting with transcendental reality and religion. Accepting the personal conception of human beings, the author emphasizes both the possibility and importance of forming more differentiated and interconnected cognitive structures about knowledge of oneself and the world. He also discusses the multidirectional character of personal development which includes biological, psychic, spiritual, and social dimensions.