Crime control and prevention

What do left realists argue?

Left realist view of crime is that crime is caused by social factors such as marginalisation, relative deprivation and subcultures.

Relative Deprivation is where people feel deprived compared others in society. This can lead them to become marginalised within society and form sub cultures which have deviant or criminal goals.

Right realist

Right realist view of crime is more individualistic. They feel that crime is a rational choice and that criminals are able to commit crime because the benefit outweighs the cost of being caught and there are too many opportunities to commit crime.

MURRAY also argues that the rise in single parent families and teen parents has led to a lack of socialisation into appropriate values which leads to youth delinquency

Situational Crime Prevention

(Right Realist)

Pre-emptive approach that aims to make it harder to commit crime in the first place by designing out crime

Target hardening through bars and bolts on Windows, alarm systems, park benches that prevent homeless sleepers.

More CCTV, more police on the streets

Hostile architecture.

PEASE (2002) “Bars, Bolts and Barriers”

Hostile Architecture

Marcus Felson 1998: NYC Port Authority Bus Terminal

CORNISH AND CLARKE (2003) - Notices

Displacement theory – doesn’t reduce crime but moves it to a different area.

Doesn’t deal with corporate or white collar crime.

Unfairly targets the working class who can’t afford the target gardening systems.

Environmental Crime Prevention

(Right Realist)

By improving the local area and dealing with low level criminal activity such as vandalism, graffiti and loitering.

Zero tolerance policing - sweat the small stuff and deal with small petty crimes which will prevent the movement into more serious crimes.

WILSON AND KELLING - Broken window policy = target hardening

Deals with the symptom not the cause .

Targets working class people and street crime rather than ,corporate or white collar crime.

Displacement theory.

Social and Community Crime Prevention

(Left Realist)

Left realist approach which suggests that be dealing with the social inequalities that lead to crime then it will reduce the crime rate. They believe that it is social inequality that is the biggest cause of crime.

Youth groups and community centre which will help to create a sense of community. Parenting groups to help with socialisation. Increasing community police officers and the bobby on the beat to improve community relations with the police which will help cries to be solved.

Community action programs: Prey pre school program

Intervention programs: Troubled families program.

Assumes a value consensus within a community and ignores issues such as relative derivation and institutional racism which can limit the effectiveness of community and social policies.

Doesn’t deal with corporate or white collar crime.