Right Realism

When and why did realist theories approach

Emerged in the 80s as a response to rising crime

What is realism a backlash to

A backlash to Marxism and the labelling theory

how do realists see crime

Sees crime as a real problem to be tackled due to its significant raise especially in street crime

What is it concerned about

About the widespread fear of crime and impact of crime on its victims

Why were realist criminologies called on

They take the seriousness of crimes covered by official crime statistics and sought to develop policies that could reverse the upward trend

What does Right realism emphasise

Right realism emphasises the freedom over equality and see a ‘big state’ as a threat to such freedom

What did right realism governments favour

Rolling back the welfare state together with a strong commitment to law and order

What stance did they take

The favoured a ‘get tough’ stance on crime, with increased use of prison and a ‘short, sharp shock’ approach to dealing with young offenders

how does right realism see crime

sees crime, especially street crime as a real and growing problem that destroys communities, undermines social cohesion and threatens society

How do right realists critique other theories

For failing to offer any practical solutions to the problem of rising crime

How do they regard labelling and criminal criminology

Too sympathetic to the criminal and too hostile to the forces of law and order

What the assumptions of a right realist to being selfish

Some people are naturally selfish which must be controlled by laws

What do these selfish people weigh up

People weigh up the costs and benefits of actions, therefore those who choose crime are responsible for their own actions

What does this result in

Crime rises because the costs are not high enough to dissuade people and crime can only be reduced through harsher sentences

What 3 factors is crime the product of

•biological

•inadequate socialisation

•individual’s rational choice to offend

What do Wilson and Hernstein suggest on biological differences

Wilson and Hernstein- suggest some people are innately more strongly predisposed to commit crime than others, especially those who have personality traits like aggression, risk taking and low impulse control

What does Hernstein and Murray say the main cause of crime is

Hernstein and Murray - main cause of crime is low intelligence, which they also see as biologically determined

What does socialisation and the undercalss do rather than biology

While biology may increase the chance of an individual offending, effective socialisation decreases the risk

What does socialisation and the underlclass involve

Learning self-control, and internalising moral values of right and wrong

What do right realist reject on the cause of crime

Reject that poverty causes crime as they argue that a rise in crime occurred during periods of rising living standards

What approach do they take instead of poverty

Cultural factors, such as declining morality and respect for authority

What do Hernstein and Wilson argue on parents failing to socialise children

Hernstein and Wilson- if parents failing to teach their children right from wrong, and particularly if they fail to punish for misbehaving, those prone to crime become more likely to commit criminal acts in later life

What happens in close knit nuclear families

Nuclear family children can be conditioned to have a conscience which will keep them out of trouble with the law

What do Hernstein and Wilson argue on absent families

Effective socialisation is unlikely. They believe that the quality of socialisation has declined with the development of a more permissive society in which anything goes

What does Murray argue on welfare state

Murray- the USA and UK blamed the welfare state for creating dependency and for weakening the work ethic.

What happens in fatherless families

An underclass comprising ‘fatherless families’ with boys growing up without suitable male role models and passing on anti-social behaviour to future generations, is seen as responsible for a lot of crime

What did Murray argue on features of the underclass

Murray- argued that the underclass was characterised by three distinctive features- crime, illegitimacy and economic inactivity

What is crime to Murray

Murray- a very high proportion of violent and property crime in society is carried out by the underclass

What is illegitimacy to Murray

Murray- illegitimacy- a high proportion of children in the underclass are born outside marriage, particularly to never-married women and the fathers feel no obligation to support their children

What is economic inactivity to Murray

Murray- economic inactivity- men in the underclass are happy to draw down state benefits and work in the shadow economy

What does Bennet say on crime

Bennett- crime is the result of growing up surrounded by deviant delinquent and criminal adults in a practically perfect criminogenic environment

What is the rational choice theory

A theory that assumes that individuals have free will and the power of reason

What does Ron Clarke argue on the rational choice theory

Ron Clarke- the decision to commit a crime is a choice based on a rational calculation, if the perceived rewards of crime outweigh the perceived costs to crime, then people will be more likely to offend

What does Wilson argue on the perceived costs of crime

The perceived costs of crime are low and this is why the crime rate has increased, there is often little risk of being caught and punishments are lenient

What is Felson’s Routine activity theory

Felson argues that for a crime to occur, there must be

A motivated offender with criminal intentions and ability to act on these

A suitable target (victim and/or property)

The absence of a ‘capable guardian’ (such as the police or neighbours) who can prevent the crime from happening

What does Felson argue on informal and formal guardians

Informal guardians are more effective than formal ones such as the police

Evaluations

→

what impact has right realism made (strength)

Impact on criminal and social policy for example the adoption of situational crime prevention strategies, attention paid to anti-social behaviour by

What is the weakness of overstating offenders

Right realism overstates offenders’ rationality and how far they make cost- benefit calculations before committing a crime

What does right realism ignore

ignores the role of the emotions in criminal behaviour and because it assumes that offenders typically consider the legal consequences of their actions before acting

What is most offending like

Much offending it’s impulsive and focused on immediate rewards rather than on the long-term consequences if caught

What did Tunnell find in the interview research with prisoners

Tunnell- found that all 69 respondents reported that they simply did not think about the legal consequences of their actions

What did the criminals do in Tunnells study

They knew their actions were criminal and therefore tired to avoid capture, more than half were unaware of the severity of the punishment for the offence

What does Routine activity theory focus on

Focuses on individuals and their choices while ignoring the social constraints and conditions that shape an individuals circumstances, though processes and life chances.

What does this exert

These exert a considerable possible targets for efforts to control crime

What does Murray claim on the routine activity theory

Murray- claims that a self- reproductive, criminality inclined an underclass exists in Britain, and the USA has been fiercely contested by left-wing sociologists

What does the idea of high rates of illegitimacy feature

High rates of illegitimacy are a distinctive feature of an underclass is undermined by evidence which shows that the proportion of children born outside marriage/civil partnerships in England and Wales in 2012 was 47.5%

What does this theory ignore

Ignore wider structural cause of crime such as poverty and the unequal distribution of power and wealth

What does this theory not explain

while it may explain some utilitarian crime for financial reward, it may not explain violent crime

What conflicts the view that criminals are rational actors

The view that criminals are rational actors freely choosing crime conflicts with their view that behaviour is determined by their biology and socialisation

What does this overemphasise

It also over-emphasises biological factors. Lily et al argues that IQ differences account for less than 3% of differences in offending