Gender, crime, and justice

What are the gender differences in crime?

Girls and women appear to commit fewer crimes than boys and men, when they do offend females commit different kind of crime.

How has criminology changed in terms of gender?

Traditionally, male-dominated criminology neglected female criminality as females were seen as committing less crime as their behaviour wasn’t controlling.

Recently, feminists focused on the patterns and causes of female criminality.

What are causes of male criminality?

Relationship between masculinity and crime – crime is a way to express masculinity

What did Heidensohn and Silvestri (2012) observe about gender differences in crime record?

• 4/5 convicted offenders in England and Wales are male.

• By age 40, 9% females have a criminal conviction against 32% males,

• Higher proportion of female than male offenders convicted of property offences.

• Higher proportion of male than female offenders convicted of violence or sexual offences.

• Males more likely to be repeat offenders, longer criminal careers, and commit more serious crime e.g., men are 15x more likely to be convicted of homicide.

What are the two arguments why statistics underestimate the number of females committing crime?

1.    Typically, ‘female’ crimes are less likely to be reported e.g., shoplifting is less likely to be noticed or reported than violent or sexual crimes which often committed by men.

2.    Even when women’s crimes are detected they are less likely to be prosecuted or let off lightly.

What is the chivalry thesis?

This thesis argues that most criminal justice agents (police, magistrates and judges) are men and men are socialised to act in a chivalrous way towards women.

What does Pollack (1950) argue for the chivalry thesis?

Men have a protective attitude towards women.

The criminal justice system is thus more lenient with women so don’t end up in official statistics

What are self-report studies?

Individuals are asked about what crimes they’ve committed

What did Graham and Bowling (1995) research from self-report studies on the chivalry thesis?

Research on sample of 1721 14–25-year-olds found that although males were more likely to offend, the differences was smaller than what’s recorded in official statistics.

Males were 2.33x more likely to admit to having committed an offence in last 12 months but official statistics show males as 4x more likely

What are official statistics showing that court supports the chivalry thesis?

o   Females are more likely than males to be released on bail rather than remanded in custody.

o   Females are more likely to receive a fine or community sentence and less likely to be sent to prison.

o   1/9 female offenders receive a prison sentence for shoplifting, but 1/5 males.

What did Farrington and Morris (1983) study which opposes the chivalry thesis?

Study of sentencing 408 offences of theft in a magistrate’s court found women were not sentenced leniently for comparable offences like crimes against children

What did Box (1981) study against the chivalry thesis?

Review of British and American self-report studies also conclude women who commit serious offences are not treated more favourable than men

How do self-report studies show evidence against the chivalry thesis?

Provide evidence that males commit more offences e.g., young men more likely to report binge drinking and taking drugs. Other studies suggest that the gender gap increases as offences become more serious.

How does under-reporting crimes against women oppose the chivalry thesis?

Chivalry thesis ignores under-reporting e.g., in 2012 only 8% of females who were victims of a serious sexual assault reported it

How does under-representing crimes of powerful oppose the chivalry thesis?

Crimes of powerful also under-represented and these are more likely to be committed by men because of their position in the job market

What do feminists argue about the chivalry thesis?

The thesis is biased against women

What does Heidensohn (1996) argue about the courts treatment of women?

Courts treat females harsher. For example:

o   Double standards (exist because justice system is patriarchal) – courts punish girls, not boys, for premature sexual activity. Sharpe (2009) found from her analysis of 55 youth worker records that 7/11 girls were referred for support as they were sexually active but none of 44 boys.

o   Women who don’t conform to stereotypes are punished harsher. Stewart (2006) found magistrates perceptions of female defendants characters were based on stereotypical gender roles.

What does Carlen (1997) argue about bias against women in crime?

When women are jailed, its less for the seriousness of crimes and more to do with courts assessments of them as wives, mothers and daughters.

Also found Scottish judges more likely to jail women whose children were in care (seen as worse mothers)

What does Walklate (1998) argue about bias against women in crime?

In rape cases its not the defendant who is on trial but the victim as they have to prove respectability to have evidence accepted. Adler (1987): women who are deemed to lack respectability find it difficult to have their testimony believed in court

What is the functionalist sex role theory?

Differences in socialisation of males and females e.g., boys encouraged to be tough and aggressive = more likely to commit violent acts

What does Parsons (1955) find for the sex role theory?

Men take instrumental role (breadwinner) and women take expressive role (homemaker) in nuclear family.

Gives girls role model but makes boys reject feminine models. Instead boys engage in compulsory masculinity with aggression, but it can slip into delinquency.

Men have less socialising role so they find it harder to socialise

What does Cohen argue for the sex role theory?

Lack of adult male role model = boys turn to all-male street gangs to source masculinity

What do new right theorists argue about absence of male role models?

Absence of male role model in lone parent families = boys turn to criminal gangs to get status

What does Walklate criticise about sex role theory?

Criticises sex role theory for its biological assumptions. Parsons assumes women take expressive role as they have biological capacity to bear children

What alternative theories for crime have feminists put forward?

The patriarchal nature of society/women’s position cause women’s crime. They have to main approaches: control and liberation thesis

What does Heidensohn argue about patriarchal control?

The most striking thing about women’s behaviour is how conformist it is, they commit less serious crimes than men due to patriarchal society controlling women more = reduced opportunities

What three places does Heidensohn argue women are controlled?

Home, public and work

How does Heidensohn show that women are controlled at home?

• Domestic role with housework/childcare = restrictions on time and movement and confines them to house = reduced opportunities to offend.

• Women who reject domestic role may have it forced on them through domestic violence.

• Dobash and Dobash: many violent attack’s = men’s dissatisfaction with wives performance of domestic duties. Men show control with financial power e.g., denying funds for women.

• Daughters subject to patriarchal control as girls less likely to be allowed to come and go as they please = bedroom culture to socialise at home with friends not in public = less opportunity to be deviant.

How does Heidensohn show that women are controlled in public?

• Women are controlled by the threat or fear of male violence against them. Islington Crime survey 54% of women don't go out after dark due to the fear of crime opposed to 14% of men. 

• Heidensohn notes that sensationalist media reporting rapes adds to women's fear, as well as distorted media portrayals of the typical rapist being a stranger who carries out random attacks. 

• Females are controlled in public by a fear of not being respectable. Inappropriate ways of acting can give a woman a reputation - not going to pubs alone for fear of being regarded as ‘loose’ or as prostitutes.

• Lees note that boys maintain control through sexual verbal abuse, like calling a girl a ‘slag’ if they fail to conform to gender role expectations.

How does Heidensohn show that women are controlled at work?

• Women's behaviour at work is controlled by male supervisors and managers. Sexual harassment is widespread and keeps women ‘In their place’. Their subordinate position reduces their opportunities to engage in major criminal activity at work. The glass ceiling stops women from rising to a position where they can commit fraud, so they are excluded from white collar crime.  

• Heidensohn recognizes that the patriarchy can also push women into crime, women are more likely to be poor because of gender inequalities in the labour market so may turn to theft or prostitution instead to gain a decent standard of living.

What was Carlen’s study?

Carlen did 39, 15–46-year-old WC women who were convicted of range of crimes like theft, fraud, drugs, prostitution, violence etc…

Carlen recognises there are some MC female offenders and most convicted serious offenders are WC.

How does Carlen use Hirschi’s control theory in his research?

Argues that human act rationally and are controlled by being offered a deal of rewards in return for conforming. People turn to crime if the rewards of crime are greater than the risks.

What are the two rewards that Carlen says WC women are led to conform through?

Class deal (working women offered material rewards and other opportunities) and gender deal (patriarchal ideology promises women material and emotional rewards from family life).

How do women who dont get the class deal use crime?

The women who failed to find legitimate way of earning decent living = victim of injustice: 32 had always been in poverty, some qualifications gained in jail weren’t help in gaining work when released and many experienced problems in trying to claim benefits.

As they gained no rewards, they had nothing to lose by committing crime.

How do women who dont get the gender deal use crime?

Conforming to patriarchal family norms, most women didn’t have opportunity to make the deal or saw few rewards: some were abused by fathers or partners, over half spent time in care = broken family bonds and those running away from care were often homeless.

What does Carlen conclude about class and gender deals?

That these women in poverty and had oppressive family lives committed most crime

Why are Heidensohn and Carlen’s research good?

Heidensohn shows many patriarchal controls and Carlen shows how failure of patriarchal society to deliver deals removes control.

How can Heidensohn and Carlen be criticised?

o   Both theories accused of seeing womens behaviour as determined by external forces like patriarchal controls or class/gender deals, this underplays importance of free will.

o   Carlen’s sample was small and unrepresentative.

What is the liberation thesis?

Patriarchal society exercises control over women to prevent them from deviating so if society becomes less patriarchal crime rates equalise

What did Adler argue about liberation thesis?

As women become liberated, their crimes become the same as men’s = new type of female crime and increase crime rates.

Changes in structure of society = changes in women’s offending behaviour. As patriarchal controls lessened and opportunities have become more equal, women have adopted traditionally ‘men’ roles in legitimate ways = women no longer commit ‘women’ crimes

Give examples of women committing white collar crime?

o   1950s-1990s: female share of offences rose from 1/7 to 1/6.

o   Adler shows rising levels of female’s committing male crimes like embezzlement.

o   Media talk of ‘girl gangs’. Denscombe (2001) study of Midlands teenagers self-images found females were as likely as males to engage in risk-taking behaviour and girls were adopting male stance e.g., desire to be in control.

What are criticisms of liberation thesis (Adler)?

o   Female crime rate began rising in 1950s, before liberation.

o   Most female criminals are WC – least likely to be influenced by womens lib. Chesney-Lind (1997): in USA poor and marginalised women are more likely than liberated to be criminals.

o   Chesney-Lind found evidence of women branching out into male offences but this is usually because of their link with prostitution.

o   Adler overestimates extend to which women became liberated and extend which they are able to act in serious crimes.

What is a strength of Adlers liberation theisis?

It does draw attention to importance of investigating relationship between changes in womens position and changes in patterns of female offending

What other theory supports Adler’s thesis?

Females arrests/conviction of violent crimes

What does Hand and Dodd (2009) find about conviction statistics for violent crime?

Between 2000 and 2008, police statistics show number of females arrested by violence rose by 17% each year.

If this is accurate, shows females are committing more male crimes

What contrasting evidence is there from Steffensmeier and Schwartz (2009) on the criminalisation of females?

While female share of arrests for violence grew from 1/5 to 1/3 from 1980-2003, wasn’t matched by victim surveys – victims didn’t report increase also shown in self-report studies

What did Steffensmeier and Schwartz conclude about net widening?

In reality no change in women’s violent crime, rise in arrests is due to justice system widening the net

What did Chesney-Lind find about net widening in the USA?

Policy of mandatory arrests for domestic violence = steep rise in female violence statistics and females before weren’t labelled as violent offenders

What did Sharpe and Gelsthorpe find about net widening in the UK?

Net widening policies are producing rise in official statistics for female violent crime, growing trend to prosecuting females for low-level physical altercations = most convicted for minor offences

What is the net widening trend an example of?

Young (2011) calls defining deviance up to catch trivial offenders in the net

What is the moral panic about girls?

If female violent crime isn’t increasing, how do we account for increase in criminalisation of this kind of crime?

What did Burman and Batchelor (2009) find about social construction resulting from moral panic over young womens behaviour?

Media depictions of young women as drunk and out of control. Reports of binge drinking, girl gangs may be affecting criminal justice system

What did Sharpe (2009) find about social construction resulting from moral panic over young womens behaviour?

Professionals like judges were influenced by media stereotypes of violent ‘ladettes’ and many believed girls behaviour was rapidly getting worse.

Overall, this is a self-fulfilling prophecy and amplification spiral – reports of girls misbehaving = police and courts take tougher stance = more convictions = more negative media.

What did the crime survey for england and wales (2012) find about gender and victimisation?

Shows gender differences in level and types of victimisation and relationships between victim and offender

What are the homicide victims statistics that show the difference in gender?

Homicide victims: 70% are male. Female victims more likely to know their killer, 60% of these cases it was ex-partner/partner. Males more likely to be killed by friend

What are the gender differences in victims of violence?

Victims of violence: fewer women are victims of violence (2% vs 4%). In addition:

• Women are most likely to be victimised by acquaintance and men by stranger.

• More women are victims of intimate violence (31% vs 18%).

• 10x more women reported having been sexually assaulted by men.

What is the mismatch between fear and risk?

Research shows women have greater fear or crime but CSEW shows they are less at risk of victimisation.

However, Lea and Young found women are at greater risk because female victims of violence may be more likely to refuse to be interviewed (Sparks et al).

What do feminists argue about other theories of male crimes?

Other theories of crime only focused on males and assumed they were explaining all crime

Although they have focused on this, until recently they haven’t generally asked what it is that leads males to offend

What did Messerschmidt (1993) find about masculinity and crime?

• Masculinity is a social construct and men have to constantly work at presenting it to others.

• Different masculinities co-exist within society but one of these – hegemonic masculinity – is the dominant form that most men want.

• Some men have subordinated masculinities (gay men) who have no desire to accomplish hegemonic masculinity and WC ethnic men who lack the resources to do so.

What examples does Messerschmidt give to see crime as resources men use to get masculinity?

• White middle-class youths – subordinate themselves to teachers to get status = masculinity in school. Outside school they get masculinity by drinking, pranking and vandalism.

• White working-class youths – masculinity constructed around sexist attitudes like being tough and opposing teachers authority. The lads in Willis’s (1977) study are good example.

• Black lower working-class youths – few expectations of reasonable jobs so use gang memberships and turn to violence to express masculinity.

• The difference in middle-class men is between committing white-collar crime to achieve hegemonic masculinity and street robbery.

What are the criticisms of Messerschmidt?

o   Is masculinity just a description of male offenders, not explanation.

o   Doesn’t explain why not all men use crime to get masculinity.

o   He over-works concept of masculinity to explain all male crimes.

What different societies has globalisation led to?

Shift from modern to postmodern (de-industrialised) society = loss of many manual jobs which was how WC men could express masculinity and provide for families

Job opportunities in industry declined and service sector has expanded including clubs, pubs and bars = young men got legal employment and illegal criminal opportunities to express masculinity

What was Winlow’s (2001) study?

Study of bounders in Sunderland in northeast England (area of de-industrialisation/unemployment).

Working as bounders for clubs provided young men with paid work and opportunity for illegal businesses in drugs and alcohol and opportunity to demonstrate masculinity using violence

What other theory does Winlow use in his study of postmodernity, masculinity, and crime?

Cloward and Ohlin’s distinction between conflict and criminal subcultures. In modern society there has always been violent, conflict subcultures in Sunderland where men earned status through their ability to use violence.

However, absence of professional criminal subculture meant there was little opportunity for a career in organised crime