ABSTRACT
The chapter begins by defining criminal thinking and making a clear distinction between criminal thought content and criminal thought process within the context of a hierarchical model of antisocial cognition. This is then followed by a verbal dissection of the two dimensions of criminal thought process (proactive and reactive criminal thinking) and three dimensions of criminal thought content (negative attitudes toward authority, positive attitudes toward deviance, and criminal identity). As part of the discussion, the reader is informed that proactive and reactive criminal thinking can be broken down further into specific criminal thinking styles or facets. Each of the individual thinking styles and the criminal thought content domains are then defined according to the specific extractions of denial and defense that give rise to the false premise upon which each thinking style or content domain is based. In the final sections of this chapter, other social cognitive factors that help maintain a criminal lifestyle (e.g., attributions, expectancies) as well as broader belief systems (past view, present view, future view, world view, and self-view) are discussed.
