Left Realism

What do left realists believe?

They see inequality in a capitalist society as the root cause of crime

Reduce crime by making society fairer and more equal

How is relative deprivation a cause of crime?

The root cause of crime is how deprived someone feels in relation to others

-the media promotes wealth, leading to resentment and pushes people to commit crimes to get that lifestyle

-society is becoming more unequal, rich get richer and poor get poorer

How is marginalisation a cause of crime?

Lack organisation to represent their interests and lack clearly defined goals

-Yong unemployed and ethnic minority groups don’t feel welcome

-can lead to resentment and frustration, expressing feelings through crime (vandalism, riot)

How is subculture a cause of crime?

Some subcultures turn to crime to solve their problems

-Inner city youths are denied legitimate opportunities (education, employment) by those in power and so turn to crime

What is “subculture”

A group of people with different norms/ values to mainstream society

What are the strengths of left realism?

Draws attention to to the importance of poverty, inequality and relative deprivation as the underlying cause of crime.

What are the weaknesses of left realism?

Inaccurate account of crime, focus on working class, ignores middle class

-over predicts amount of working class crime not everyone turns to crime