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Akers, Ronald L.: Social Learning Theory 21 youngsters were overly obligatory, friendly, and “self-conscious to the point of arrogance” (p. 164). While the first group experienced too little love, the second group suffered from parents who expend too much libido on the child. Relying on Freud’s work, Aichhorn argues that there are two principles that can be used to explain responses to the institutional setting: (1) the pleasure- pain principle; and (2) the reality principle. The pleasure-pain principle is best exemplified in the unconscious state (super-ego) whereby the child seeks pleasure and attempts to avoid all pain. The reality principle includes the mechanism by which the conscious state (ego) seeks to regulate the impulses of the unconscious such that satisfaction is attained in a socially acceptable way. These two principles taken together rule all mental processes. The reality principle does not, however, rule out all pleasure. It just serves as the barometer for socially acceptable behavior. The transformation from the unconscious to the conscious state involves education through renunciation. The educator seeks to minimize immediate gratification and enhance the use of delayed gratification through approval rather than punishment. The key to education is the enhancement of the reality principle. Delinquency occurs because of a faulty ego. The therapist must be aware that chil- dren commit delinquent acts for diametrically opposite reasons: one for being given too much love and the other for experiencing too much pun- ishment. In some cases, children receive a combi- nation of the two, whereby the father may be extremely severe in the punishment of the child while the mother is overindulgent. Regardless, the worker must discover these underlying causes and focus on enhancing the reality principle. Conclusion The results of Aichhorn’s seminal work have not been forgotten. Follow-up interviews with parents of children who had as few as one interview with Aichhorn reported changes in their child (see the 1951 edition of Wayward Youth). As James Wuluch notes, Aichhorn was one of the first psy- choanalytic pioneers to apply these concepts to cure narcissistic juvenile delinquents. The influence of his works, particularly the capacity for guilt, were further tested and supported in the literature. However, although the presence of love with- drawal may attach anxiety to hostile impulses, it alone does not explain the “presence of guilt and moral judgment” (Hoffman & Saltzstein, 1967, p. 56). Aichhorn was further attributed with influ- encing the creation of mileau therapy. Although workers may not refer to their handling of youths as incorporating psychoanalysis, the direct influ- ence of this work can be seen in group homes and other institutional settings. Shannon M. Barton-Bellessa See also Freudian Theory; Hare, Robert D.: Psychopathy and Crime; Kohlberg, Lawrence: Moral Development Theory; Mental Illness and Crime References and Further Readings Aichhorn, A. (1935). Wayward youth. New York: Viking Press. (Original work published 1925) Freud, S. (1962). The ego and the id. New York: W. W. Norton. (Original work published 1923) Hoffman, M. L., & Saltzstein, H. D. (1967). Parent discipline and the child’s moral development. * Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 45-57. Martin, R., Mutchnick, R. J., & Austin, W. T. (1990). Criminological thought: Pioneers past and present. New York: Macmillan. Wulach, J. S. (1983). August Aichhorn’s legacy: The treatment of narcissism in criminals. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 27, 226-234. Axers, RONALD L.: SoctaL LEARNING THEORY In 1973, Ronald L. Akers published the first of three editions of his seminal work, Deviant Behavior: A Social Learning Approach. In that book, Akers laid out the basic elements of what has become one of the most popular and widely researched theories in criminology: social learning theory. Social learning theory, in its current form, spells out the specific mechanisms by which crim- inal behavior is learned. In particular, social learn- ing theory maintains that criminal behavior is more likely to result when an individual associates 
