Criminal organizations develop for a variety of reasons and differ in many ways. Some common ground between the two is the general type of organization. These types of organizations are patron client and bureaucratic organizations. A patron-client organization is a group of criminal patrons who exchanged information, established a network of connections with political leaders and government officials, and access to a network of operatives for the purpose of benefiting the group’s clients politically and economically (Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary. . d.
).Bureaucratic organizations are formal and consist of rules, regulations, procedures, and protocols that prevent lower ranking members like the patron-client from making decisions without administrative approval. (Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary. n.
d. ) Below is a list of the differences in the two groups: Patron-Client * Personal Relationships * Treat people as individuals * Individual judgment * “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know” (Thompson E. C. 2008) Bureaucratic * Categorical Relationships * Treat people as categories Bureaucratic rules * It’s what you know, not who you know (Thompson E. C. 2008)Crime models are extremely important for law enforcement to understand criminal organizations.
These models tell us why and how the groups are formed. In many groups a combination of the models applies. Some of the most common models are; The Alien Conspiracy Theory, The Social Control Theory, Beccaria and Lombroso’s Classical Theories, Durkheim and Morton’s Strain Theory and Anomie, Sutherland’s Theory of Differential Association, and Albanese’s Theory of Typologies.Below are some basic definitions of these theories. (Mallory, S. L.
2007) The Alien Conspiracy Theory describes organized crime being brought over from foreign countries and carried on in the United States. The Social Control Theory describes the threat of being a social outcast as the basis for many people to stay away from a life of crime. If they are raised to think it is right then they will do it. Beccaria and Lombroso’s Classical Theories are theories of rational choice.People have the ability to choose a life of crime or to obtain their goals in a legal way. Durkheim and Morton’s Strain Theory and Anomie describe people who, when they cannot achieve a goal by legal means, try through illegal means.
Sutherland’s Theory of Differential Association says that the behavior is learned through being in a place where there is high crime and others who are involved in crime. Albanese’s Theory of Typologies describes organized crime in several categories.Positivism, crime caused by social and economic factors; ethical, self-interest drives crime; structural, laws are the cause of crime; and classical, pleasure outweighs pain. (Mallory, S. L.
2007) All of these theories are similar in that they are all reasons someone would want to commit crime, whether in an organization or as an individual. Combinations of many factors influence criminal organizations, but they all have the common goal of achieving financial success.
