Background
The Aurora Shooting was one of the most tragic events in Colorado, US, where a mentally ill James Holmes committed a mass shooting. The incident took place on July 20, 2012, near Century 16 theatre, where James Holmes kills 12 people and heavily injured 70 (Pinto, 2020). It is stated that: “he was armed with a semi-automatic rifle, a shotgun and a pistol and according to prosecution, was listening to loud techno music on headphones during the assault “to block out the screams” (Pinto, 2020, para. 1).
James Holmes was born on December 13, 1987, in California to his parents Arlene and Robert (Reid, 2018). Both parents did not have any major issues, such as alcoholism, domestic abuse, or substance abuse, and they can even be considered role models for a successful life (Reid, 2018). However, it is important to note that there were certain mental issues among the members of the extended family. For example, Arlene’s father had mental issues, such as psychosis and depression, which were found during midlife. Robert’s twin sister was diagnosed with mental illness early in her childhood (Reid, 2018). Robert’s father also had a psychiatric problem, where was the most prominent later in his life (Reid, 2018). However, both of the murderer’s parents had good mental and physical health.
In other words, James Holmes’ family was a perfect one, where core values, such as family life, imitative, and education, were instilled early in his childhood. The murderer showed first major signs of mental issues during his 20-years-old. He completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of California and transitioned to the University of Colorado to earn a graduate degree and Ph.D. degree (Reid, 2018). Before the shooting, he broke up with his girlfriend, which worsened his mental condition.
Agnew’s General Strain Theory
The given case will be analyzed from the perspective of Agnew’s General Strain Theory, which was built upon the ideas of Merton’s Strain Theory. The theory was revised and completed by Robert Agnew based on Merton’s works. The theory states that “stressors can lead people to engage in deviant behavior as a method of coping with the negative effect they are likely to experience when under these stressors” (Shadmanfaat et al., 2018, p. 545). In other words, the conceptual framework assumes that it is a stressor, which catalyzes one’s inability to cope with certain undesirable events, which further leads to criminal activities.
It is important to note that there are three main components of strain, which lead to criminal behavior. These are an introduction to negative stimuli, removal of positive stimuli, and failure to achieve the goals, which are perceived and valued in a positive light (Shadmanfaat et al., 2018). Therefore, a person, who is willing to commit a crime, is an individual who was unable to achieve his or her goals, lost something positive in his life, and was confronted with some form of negativity.
The main strength of the theory is that it applies to all social classes rather than specific crimes. For example, Merton’s general strain theory primarily focused on people with lower socioeconomic status, where the typology of crime was mainly centered around financial ones. However, Agnew’s approach added more details in regards to its applicability to all social strata because criminal behavior is exhibited by all members of socioeconomic categories. In other words, the given theory proved to be useful in explaining the “why” part of the crimes since it proved a systematic and comprehensive motivational reasoning behind the actors.
However, the main weakness of Agnew’s general strain theory is the fact that it is too broad and vague. The framework lacks any form of definitive specifics, where every element or factor can be considered as a strain. All people experience some form of stress, which is caused by an array of different stressors. In addition, many people fail to achieve their desired goals, which does not necessarily lead to criminal behavior. Agnew’s general strain theory fails to explain the magnitude and range of stressors in regards to invoking one’s criminal behavior.
One of the key policy implications of Agnew’s general strain theory can be found in the framework’s differentiation of gender-based motives. Based on the theory, it is not possible to prevent crime because a person will always have a chance to fail to achieve his or her goals. In addition, the strains can be both objective and subjective, which means that it is implausible to regulate what people desire and to what magnitude.
However, the policy-based changes can be focused on improving the society and social system to be fairer, or at least perceived to be as just. Perceived injustice is one of the main drivers of crime because one loses hope in legitimate measures, and thus, he or she starts considering illegitimate ones. In other words, the theory is an outstanding tool for assessing and analyzing the motives and reasoning behind a criminal’s mind, but its implications are limited since the changes need to be systematic and global.
Application of the Theory
James Holmes had major mental issues, which are supported by the fact that three members of his extended family had mental problems as well. Therefore, one can easily see how James Holmes had poor or even non-existent coping mechanisms with stressors, where the required magnitude for exhibiting a criminal behavior was lower than for a regular individual. In addition, the break up with his girlfriend in the year 2011 put even more strain on the murderer.
It can be considered as the removal of positive stimuli, which is one of the three main components of Agnew’s general strain theory. In addition, James was studying to earn his degree, which is a fairly challenging academic endeavor. In other words, his studies were a persistent stressor because there was always the fear of him being unable to meet his parents’ expectations, who were outstanding role models for success. This component is also adherent to Agnew’s general strain theory, where one’s failure to achieve his positively perceived goals can lead to criminal behavior.
The last element of Agnew’s general strain theory is the confrontation with negative stimuli. It was manifested in the fact that James Holmes was scoring poorly and experienced a decline in his academic performance (Reid, 2018). Although the university was not threatening to expel him, the perceived confrontation with a possibility of withdrawal led to the notion that James was undergoing all three strain elements of Agnew’s general strain theory. In other words, James Holmes’s year of his shooting was the period where he experienced all three strain types, which are an introduction to negative stimuli, removal of positive stimuli, and failure to achieve the goals, which are perceived and valued in a positive light.
References
Pinto, A. (2020). Aurora shooting anniversary: Where is the Colorado movie theatre shooter James Holmes now?Meaww. Web.
Reid, W. H. (2018). A dark night in Aurora: Inside James Holmes and the Colorado mass shootings. Skyhorse Publishing.
Shadmanfaat, S. M., Cochran, J. K., Muniz, C. N., & Kabiri, S. (2018). Soccer hooliganism in Iran: A test of Agnew’s general strain theory. Deviant Behavior, 40(5), 544-558. Web.