Crime & Deviance - Key Studies - Created by Students

Crime & Deviance Key Studies

Lea & Young

Left Realists who argue that crime occurs as a result of cultural deprivation. They argue that subcultures are a response to lacking the means to achieve the cultural goals of society

Stanley Cohen

Studied the mods and rockers - two youth subcultures. The media exaggerated their disagreement. The exaggeration led to a moral panic. Cohen described these two groups as folk devils. The media sensationalises and overdramatises certain crimes leading to deviancy amplification.

Sutherland

A sociologist who discusses differential association theory. He emphasised the importance of focusing on white collar crime and discusses how crimes can be learnt through social interaction.

Durkheim

A functionalist who argues that crime is an inevitable feature of a healthy functioning society. Crime performs positive functions like boundary maintenance, social cohesion and social change.

Katz

A sociologist who argues that crime isn’t necessarily a rational reaction. Some crimes are committed because they are thrilling and emotionally exciting.

South

Distinguishes between Primary and Secondary Green Crime. Primary green crimes are crimes that directly harm the environment such as deforestation and water pollution. Secondary green crimes are crimes that occur as a result of ignoring environmental laws or regulations, such as corporate negligence or inadequate response to environmental disasters.

Winlow

A postmodernist who discusses bodily capital. In his study he looked at the impact of de-industrialisation in North East England. Men gained status through the appearance and perception of toughness and jobs in the night time economy presented opportunities to engage in masculine expressions of identity, in some instances through crime.

Albert Cohen

A Functionalist who discusses Status Frustration. He argues that a lack of legitimate opportunities lead to individuals, particularly young men, experiencing status frustration. Norms and values are flipped as they gain status through deviant acts.

Merton

A Functionalist who discusses strain theory. It explains deviance as a result of a strain between culturally approved goals and the means to achieve them. He identifies 5 responses to strain: Innovation, Conformity, Ritualism, Retreatism and Rebellion.

Murray

A Right Realist who argues that there is an underclass in society which produces a decline in traditional family values, lone-parents, high unemployment and benefit dependency. Poor socialisation because of a lack of father figures in lone-parent households leads boys in particular towards criminality.

Carlen

A feminist who discusses the class and gender deals. Women are constricted to the class and gender deals. They are encouraged to adhere to both to be rewarded financially and emotionally. However, Carlen found that women often turn to committing crimes if one or both of these deals are not met. e.g. many women in her study had been victims of domestic abuse.

Taylor, Walton & Young

Neo-Marxists who discuss critical criminology. Their view combines the traditional marxist view with interactionist/labelling theory ideas. They outline issues with capitalism but argue that the traditional marxist view is too deterministic and they highlight how crime can often be voluntaristic.

Matza

Sociologist who discusses the concept of drift. He argues that individuals may drift in and out of delinquency, influenced by social circumstances and peer pressure, rather than being strictly defined by their social roles.

Becker

An interactionist/labelling theorist who argues that due to people being labelled and stigmatised by society, individuals may internalize these labels, leading to a self-fulfilling prophecy where they engage in further deviant behavior. He argues that those who are labelled as deviants can have it become their master status, over riding all other labels, leading to a deviant career.

Wilson & Kelling

Discuss the ‘Broken Windows’ theory. They argue that if small problems are left unrepaired, it sends a message that no one cares. This then encourages further disorder and more serious crimes. They propose environmental crime prevention strategies with a zero-tolerance approach towards any minor infractions.

Pollack

Discusses Chivalry Thesis and the idea that the criminal justice system is biased towards women, suggesting that female offenders are treated more leniently than male offenders due to societal perceptions of women as less serious criminals.

Heidensohn

A feminist who supports patriarchal control theory. This view suggests that women are underrepresented in crime statistics because they have fewer opportunities to commit crime. This is because they are controlled in the home, in public and in the workplace.