LEFT REALISM - CRIME AND DEVIANCE

When was LR developed?

1980s

Who is a key figure in LR?

Jock Young

Why did LR develop?

•Create practical solutions to the growing crime rate.

•Influence of right realism on government policy – political backlash.

What is the central idea of LR?

•crime is a real problem which affects disadvantaged groups who are the main victims.

What do they accuse other theories of?

•They accuse other theorist for not taking crime seriously.

When has there been a real increase in crime since?

1950s

How does Young (1997) explain the increase of crime rates?

•– crisis in explanation – denial that the increase is real, they argue that it is the reporting that has increased rather than the crime rate. It is a social construction rather than a reality.

How do LR explain the increase in crime rates?

•the increase is too great to be explained in this way. More people are reporting crime as more crime is taking place. They cite the findings of victim surveys and the British Crime Surveys as evidence of this.

What are Lea and Young’s (1984) 3 related causes of crime?

•Relative deprivation

•Subculture

•Marginalisation

What is Henry and Milocanovic’s (1996) evaluative point against LR?

accepts the definition of street crime being committed by the poor rather than the damage that is done to the poor by powerful groups. It ignores the more harmful corporate crime.

What can interactionists and their qualitative data not explain?

motives of offenders

What does the use of subcultural theory mean for LR?

•assumes that there is a value consensus and crime only occurs when this breaks down.

What can relative deprivation not explain?

•can not fully explain crime as not all of those who experience this commit crime.

What is W.C Runciman’s (1996) concept of relative deprivation?

•how someone feels deprived in relation to others or compared to their own expectations.

What paradox is brought about by relative deprivation?

•we are more prosperous today yet more crime ridden. Made aware through the media which raises expectations for material goods.

What does Young (1999) say about relative deprivation?

•– the “lethal combination is relative deprivation and individualism” – causes crime by the pursuit of self- interest at the expense of others.

What do LR’s as a whole say about relative deprivation?

•increasing individualism is causing disintegration of families and communities by undermining the values of mutual support – this weakens the informal controls which create a spiral of increased crime.

What do LR’s say about subcultures?

a group’s collective solution to relative deprivation.

What do criminal subcultures still subscribe to?

to the goals of society – where the legitimate avenues are blocked these groups resort to crime

What do marginalised groups lack?

•These groups lack clear goals and organisations to represent their interests.

How can the unemployed be seen to be marginalised?

•The unemployed are marginalised – no goals or organisations just frustration and resentment – they express this through criminal means such as violence rather than political means.

What are the three ways that the LRs wish to tackle crime?

• Policing and control

•Tackling the structural causes

•Effect of LR on Government policy

What to Kinsey, Lea and Young (1986) say about the police?

•– police clear up rates are too low to act as a deterrent to crime. Police spend too little time investigating crime.

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What is the issue with the police force at the moment?

•Police depend on the public to provide them with information (90% are reported by the public) but the police are losing support in the inner cities and among EM and young.

How should the police be improved?

police must be made more accountable to the local communities and improve community relationships and changing their priorities. Over policing drug crime and under policing racial crime.

How should we deal with structural causes of crime?

•Must deal with inequality of opportunity, tackle discrimination and provide decent jobs for all, improve housing and be more tolerant of diversity.

Has LR had a strong or weak influence on the gov?

strong, in comparison to most other theorists

What do LR have strong simialrities to?

•NEW LABOUR – tough on crime and tough on the cause of crime

What was the new labour view on crime?

•NL firmer approach to hate crime, sexual assault and domestic violence and introduction on ASBOs is in line with the LR – protect the vulnerable .

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•New deal for unemployed youth attempts to reserve the exclusion of these young people who are at greatest risk of offending.

How does Young view the new labour policies?

•see these policies as doomed attempts to recreate the “golden age” of the 1950s – the New Deal has not lead to permanent jobs and ASBOs have become a badge of honour for disillusioned youth.

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•They have only addressed the symptoms rather than the causes.