My Family Background and Early Influences

My father is one of the main reasons I am the person I am today, for better or for worse. Neither of my parents has pushed me towards a specific career path; instead, they have always encouraged me to strive for what I love to do. My mother has always been nurturing and supportive of me, while my father has been tough on me; being a former military father does not help with that. Although he tries his best to be a great father, he does not always meet my mother’s expectations as a husband. He has been disloyal since I was 7 years old, and at times, he has been physical with my mother. Despite his faults to our family, my sweet mother would always tell me never to let their relationship dictate my relationship with him. My father and I are somewhat close, but we are so alike that we get into intense arguments, leading us to not speak to each other for months at a time. During these heated arguments, he tells me to be thankful I have parents who care enough to correct me. My father’s mom left him as a teenager, while his father was shot in front of him at the age of 10. The more I learn about his childhood, the more I understand his behavior towards me. In psychology, we learn that childhood trauma influences behaviors later in life, and knowing about these traumatic events in his life has helped me understand why he treats us the way he does. However, these behaviors are not excused just because of his childhood; I do believe that he could change with enough help. 

First Encounter with Law Enforcement

In 2020, my family experienced a significant event that changed my perspective towards the criminal justice system. We had to call the police after my father got physically aggressive towards my mother and my sister. It was my first actual interaction with a police officer. They calmly asked questions to gather information about the situation and made sure I was safe. A female cop calmed me and my sister down and told me he doesn’t have to keep hurting us. She told us the story of her own father being abusive to her family, and she assured us that pain does not last forever. It made me trust police officers more than society made me believe we were supposed to.

Because of the incident, my father was placed on probation for two years. Watching this process unravel gave me a new perspective on the criminal justice system. Since it was his first offense, the system did not incarcerate him, but he had to be monitored while still participating in the community. This showed me that the criminal justice system does not revolve around punishment, but it gives people a chance to change and rebuild their lives. This significant event changed interest in careers. 

Understanding Criminal Behavior

As I got older, I became more interested in understanding why people commit crimes. In most of the shows and movies I watch, I have always found the antagonists more psychologically interesting than the protagonists. I enjoy psychoanalyzing antagonists to understand the motivation behind committing heinous acts. Was it because of their childhood? Most likely. For example, I have studied the psychological background of villains, such as the Joker. These stories often portray villains as individuals who have trauma or mental illness that contributes to their destructive behavior. Similarly, true crime shows and movies always dissect the perpetrators’ childhoods to show how early trauma, neglect, and parental instability influence their future behaviors. Although not every child with trauma grows up to be a criminal, these patterns emphasize the importance of a positive environment and stability, and how it shapes behaviors. After examining my father’s stories and my coursework, I believe that uncontrollable factors influence people who commit crimes. 

Changing Perceptions of Law Enforcement

My perception of law enforcement has changed over time, for the better. My parents always used “calling the police” on me as a scare tactic when I was a child. If I misbehaved in a public area, my mother would say the cops would come and get me if I did not start behaving. Because of this, I associated the police with fear and punishment. At the same time my dad’s incident happened, 2020 was when the police brutality issues were at their peak. Society saw police officers and law enforcement as adversaries because they believed that they were against citizens, and in some cases, it may be true. I was one of the people who looked at the law enforcement as if they were the “bad guys.” However, my personal interaction with the police officers the day my family needed them made me reconsider the police brutality issues. Of course, there will always be room for improvement, but I started seeing them as individuals who are capable of compassion. I think about the impact the female police officer had on me and wish I could, one day, have the same impact on someone. To this day, when I tell people about my dreams of being in law enforcement, whether local, state, or federal, I get backlash for it. People call me the “feds” or say I want to be part of the problem. They’re not wrong for thinking wrongly about the police department we have in America. However, what I try to explain is that I most likely will not be a police officer, but a probation officer or a career that helps individuals rehabilitate. 

McAdams (2001) states that thematic coherence occurs when a person’s life is surrounded by the same values or themes that influence their choices. My whole life, I have psychoanalyzed people to understand why they became the person they are today. Because of the people I have encountered, the media I have consumed, and what I have learned in school, I know that people have a chance to change if they want it hard enough. This is the main reason why I chose to be a criminal justice major; I want the community to have law enforcement they can trust and feel safe with. Additionally, I want the Asian community to be represented in law enforcement, so being an Asian woman will help people confide in me. On the other hand, I want offenders to feel as if someone believes that they can change and be rehabilitated. 

Career Goals

No class or subject has interested me the way government and criminal justice courses have. I cannot see myself working in a traditional office environment and feeling like I have no real purpose. Although these career paths involve paperwork, I will be serving the public and helping drive change. I have always enjoyed debating politics and learning how laws work. However, becoming a lawyer was never my end goal. It has always been to become an FBI agent. Similarly, as much as I love understanding people’s mental states, psychology involves a lot of math, which I do not enjoy. I don’t just want to help people who seek help; I also want to motivate troubled individuals to improve themselves. 

Corruption in the system led me to pursue a career in law enforcement and to major in criminal justice. My goal as a public safety officer is to earn the community’s trust. I want people to believe I am working to keep people in the community safe. In a world where criminals believe everyone is against them, I want to be the one who believes they can change their ways. Additionally, I want to be the change in law enforcement. I dream of inspiring my peers to gain the trust of the community, regardless of whether it is an “us vs. them” issue. There will always be corruption issues in law enforcement, but I want to fix the relationship between police and the community.

The recidivism rate in the United States is high, and part of the reason is the Labeling Theory. The Labeling Theory is “a sociological and criminological theory that says that a strong, negative societal reaction to an individual’s wrongdoing can lead the individual to become more deviant” (Vance, 2024). When society assigns labels to these individuals, such as “criminals,” these labels can influence how they perceive their own character. These titles can influence their behaviors, leading to further crimes. This theory contributes to the recidivism rate in the United States. People who have been labeled as criminals by society have trouble reintegrating. They have limited employment opportunities that make it difficult for them to make a living. Additionally, they have little to no support once being released back into society. These challenges they face make it hard for them to live a stable life after being released. It pushes them to re-offend shortly after. 

Conclusion

My personal experiences and studies encouraged me to make a positive change in the criminal justice system. Witnessing the court’s decision to put my father on probation allowed me to see how the system can give people an opportunity to change rather than incarcerating them. It also made me realize that law enforcement is not as “evil” as society has engraved in my mind. As I continue with my courses, I grow more confident that I chose the right path. The classes I take help me understand the sociological and psychological factors behind criminal behaviors. My ultimate goal in being a part of the criminal justice system is to push for a balance between accountability and rehabilitation. I hope to help individuals rehabilitate or reintegrate into society and encourage them to change their behavior.  

References

Vance, N. (2024). Labeling Theory | Social Sciences and Humanities | Research Starters. EBSCO. Retrieved March 20, 2026, from https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/social-sciences-and-humanities/labeling-theory

McAdams, D. P. (2001). The Psychology of Life Stories. Review of General Psychology, 5(2), 100–122. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.5.2.100