What family of theory is it?

Social learning/social process.

Akers specified learning mechanisms.

Who coined white-collar crime?

Sutherland, in his 1939 ASA address.

Differential association theory

👥 Sociology By CampusDown Wiki Editorial Team Last updated October 23, 2026

Differential association theory holds that criminal behavior is learned through interaction in intimate groups, when definitions favorable to law violation outweigh unfavorable ones. Edwin Sutherland developed it.

Contents

1. Overview
2. Key propositions
3. Developments
4. Criticism
5. Frequently asked questions
6. References

Overview

Edwin H. Sutherland argued that criminal behavior is learned in communication with intimate others; a person offends when definitions favorable to law violation exceed unfavorable ones. Introduced in 1939, the theory reached its nine-proposition form in 1947.

📌 At a glance

Theorist: Edwin H. Sutherland
Final form: 1947
Core: Crime is learned
Related: Delinquency theories, Bandura

Key propositions

Criminal behavior is learned through interaction in intimate groups; learning includes techniques, motives and rationalizations; associations vary in frequency, duration, priority and intensity; crime is not explained by general needs and values.

Sutherland coined "white-collar crime." Crime by wealthy executives couldn’t be explained by poverty or pathology—support for his learning theory.

Developments

Theory	Author	Idea
Differential reinforcement	Burgess & Akers (1966)	Adds operant reinforcement and imitation
Differential identification	Glaser (1956)	Learning via identification with media figures

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Criticism

Definitions are hard to measure; impulsive and solitary crimes are poorly explained.

Frequently asked questions

What family of theory is it?: Social learning/social process.
Versus Akers?: Akers specified learning mechanisms.
Who coined white-collar crime?: Sutherland, in his 1939 ASA address.

References

Sutherland, E. H. (1947). Principles of criminology (4th ed.). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott.
Sutherland, E. H. (1940). White-collar criminality. American Sociological Review, 5(1), 1–12.
Burgess, R. L., & Akers, R. L. (1966). A differential association-reinforcement theory of criminal behavior. Social Problems, 14(2), 128–147.

Reports and materials that use this theory (Korean)

There are no materials dedicated to this theory yet, but you can search related reports in the CampusDown library (Korean).

Find more reports · Search '차별접촉이론' on CampusDown →

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This article was last updated on October 23, 2026. It is based on widely recognized original works and textbooks; when citing it in a paper, please check the original sources listed in the references.