Functionalism & crime

Durkheim - Laws reflect value consensus

• Small amount of deviance performs positive functions, i.e. contributes to maintenance of society → people agreeing that something is collectively wrong/against norms and values

• Too much crime leads to anomie

• Crime is inevitable and normal, part of a healthy society. Not everyone can be equally commited to collectively shared norms and values.

• If we had a society of saints (no crime), we would have such high standards of behaviour that the smallest deviant act would stand out too much

• Boundary maintenance - Punishment reaffirms society’s shared norms and values and reinforces social solidarity

Davis - Safety valve

• Some crimes/deviance allow people to release frustration and protects other institutions e.g. prostitution

• It can act as a safety valve for men’s sexual frustrations in a way that does not threaten the stability of the monogamous nuclear family. 

• The ‘crime’ of prostitution is seen as functional for maintaining social order

Cohen - Warning sign

• Some crimes act as a warning sign to indicate its not functioning properly

• This explains both utilitarian and non-utilitarian crimes

• e.g. high levels of youth crime could indicate issues with socialisation in the family or education

Merton - American dream

• All Americans want the American Dream i.e. big house, loads of money, great car, life of luxury

• Anomie occurs when people were unable to achieve this ‘American dream’ (due to economic structures - being poor)

• This is a ‘strain to anomie, suggesting working class people are more likely to commit crime

Merton - Strain Theory

• Stressful trying to achieve mainstream goal for some individuals who cannot meet these goals in a societally agreed way (working hard, getting a good job etc) 

• e.g. Conformity - Accept goals of the American dream, and the conventional ways of achieving it through working hard. Don’t commit crime

• e.g. Rebellion - replacing the goals of the American dream with new ones that meet the norms and values of their particular group/culture. Rejects the conventional ways of achieving mainstream cultural goals as a result e.g. hippies → want freedom and love

Cohen - status frustration

• Working class boys in the education system lack skills to succeed

• Leads to status frustration = frustrated by social position

• Form a subculture and results in non-utilitarian crime to gain status (instead of traditional norms and values)

Cloward & Ohlin - subcultures

• Working class denied opportunity to succeed, adapting to unequal opportunities through pursuing crime and criminal careers (different norms and values). 

• 3 different subcultures, depending on neighbourhood illegitimate opportunities available

• Criminal = longstanding history of crime, stable criminal culture, utilitarian crime

• Conflict = Socially disorganised areas with high population turnover → gangs and ‘turf’ ware, violence releases frustration

• Retreatist = can’t succeed legitimately or illegitimately so drop out of society → illegal drug use

Functionalism Evaluation

• Too deterministic → not all WC deviate

• Relies on crime statistics which over-represent WC (policing WC areas, will find more WC crime, cycle repeats)

• Marxists: Ignores ruling class power enforcing laws which criminalise poor (culture of WC)

• WHat about crimes not for monetary gain (Cohen may explain)