Right Realism

What does right realism see crime, especially street crime as?

A real and growing problem that destroys communities, undermines social cohesion and threatens society’s work ethnic.

Where has the right realist approach to crime been very successful?

In the UK, the USA and elsewhere.

What is an example of the influence of right realist theories on crime social policy?

Right realism’s main theorist, Wilson, was special adviser on crime to president Reagan, and it has provided the justification for widely adopted policies such as ‘zero tolerance‘ of street crime and disorder.

What do right realist theories of crime correspond closely with?

Those of neo-conservative governments during the 70s and 80s. For example, policymakers argued the ‘nothing works‘ - criminologists had produced many theories of crime, but no workable solutions to curb the raising crime rate. This led to a shift in official thinking, away from the search for the causes of crime and towards a search for practical crime control measures.

What did right realist theories of crime dovetail with?

The US ans UK governments’ tough stance towards offenders and their view that the best way to reduce crime was through control and punishment, rather than rehabilitating offenders of tackling causes of crime such as poverty.

What do right realists criticise other theories for?

Failing to offer any practical solutions to the problem of rising crime.

What do right realists regard theories such as labelling and critical criminology as?

Too sympathetic to the criminal and too hostile to the forces of law and order.

What are right realists less concerned with?

Understanding the causes of crime, and more concerned with providing what they see as realistic solutions.

Although their main emphasis is on crime reduction strategies, what do right realists offer?

An explanation to the causes of crime.

What ideas do right realists reject?

Ones put forward by Marxists and other that structural factors such as poverty and inequality are the cause of crime. For example, against the Marxist view, they point out that the old tend to be poor yet they have a very low crime rate.

For right realists, what is crime the result of?

Three factors.

What are the three factors crime is a result of according to right realists?

• Individual biological factors.

• Inadequate socialisation.

• The individual’s rational choice to offend.

What do Wilson and Hernstein put forward?

A biosocial theory of criminal behaviour: in their view, crime is caused by a combination of biological and social factors.

What do biological differences make some people more strongly predisposed to do?

Commit crime more than others. For example, personality traits such as aggressiveness, extroversion, risk taking and low impulse control out some people at greater risk of offending.

What do Hernstein and Murray argue?

That the main cause of crime is low intelligence, which they also see as biologically determined.

While biology may increase the chance of an individual offending, what does effective socialisation decrease?

The risk, since it involves learning self-control and internalising moral values of right and wrong.

For right realists, what is the best agency of socialisation?

The nuclear family.

What does right leftists Murray argue?

That the crime rate is increasing because of a growing underclass or ‘new rabble‘ who are defined by their deviant behaviour and who fail to socialise their children properly.

According to Murray, why is the underclass growing in the USA and UK?

As a result of welfare dependency.

What does what Murray calls the welfare state’s ‘generous revolution‘ since the 60s allow?

Increasing numbers of people to become dependent on the state. IT has led to the decline of marriage and the growth of lone parent families, because women and children can live off benefits. This also means men no longer have to take responsibility for supporting their families, so they no longer need to work.

For Murray, what are lone mother innefective in?

They are ineffective socialisation agents, especially for boys. Absent fathers mean that boys lack parental discipline and appropriate role models. As a result, young males turn to other, often delinquent role models on the street and gain status through crime rather than supporting their families through a steady job.

What do Bennet et al. argue crime is the result of?

‘Growing up surrounded by deviant, delinquent and criminal adults in a practically perfect criminogenic environment‘.

What does rational choice theory suggest?

That individuals have free will and the power of reason.

What do rational choice theorists such as Clarke argue?

That the decision to commit crime is a choice based on rational calculation of the likely consequences. IF the perceived rewards of crime outweigh the perceived costs, or if the regards of crime appear to be greater than those on non-criminal behaviour, people will be likely to offend.

Why do right realists argue the crime rate has increased?

Because the perceived costs of crime are low. In their view, there is often little risk of being caught and punishments are in any case lenient.

What does Felson argue in his routine activity theory?

That for a crime to occur, there bust be a motivated offender, a suitable target and the absence of a ‘capable guardian‘ such as a policeman or neighbour. Offenders are assumed to act rationally, so that the presence of a guardian is likely to deter them.

What are criticisms of the right realisr explanation of crime?

• It ignores wider structural causes such as poverty.

• It overstates offenders' rationality and how far they make cost-benefit calculations before committing a crime.
  While it may explain some utilitarian crime, it may not explain impulsive or violent crime.

• Its view of criminals as rational actors freely choosing crime conflicts with its claim that their behaviour is determined by their biology and socialisation. It also over-emphasises biological factors: according to Lilly et al., IQ differences account for less than 3% of differences in offending.

What do right realists believe it is not fruitful to try and do?

Deal with the causes if crime, ie socialisation since these cannot easily be changed. Instead, they seek practical measures to make crime less attractive. Their main focus is on control, containment and punishment of offenders rather than eliminating the underlying causes of offending or rehabilitating them.

For right realists, what should crime prevention policies reduce?

The rewards and increase the costs of crime to the offender, for example by ‘target hardening‘, greater use of prison and ensuring punishments follow soon after the offence to maximise their deterrent effect.

What do Wilson and Kelling argue?

That it us essential to maintain the orderly character of the neighbourhoods to prevent crime taking hold. Any sign of deterioration, such as graffiti or vandalism, must be dealt with immediately.

What do Wilson and Kelling advocate?

A ‘zero tolerance‘ policy towards undesirable behaviour such as prostitution, begging and drunkenness. The police should focus on controlling the streets so that law-abiding citizens feel safe . Supports claim it achieved uge reductions of crime in New York.

When was aero tolerance policing first introduced?

In 1944 and was widely applauded for reducing crime.

What does Young argue about the success of zero tolerance policing?

That it was a myth peddled by politicians and police keen to take the credit for failing crime. In fact, the crime rate in NY had already been falling since 1985 and was also falling in other US and foreign cities that didn’t have zero tolerance policies.

What does Young argue?

That the police need arrests to justify their existence, and New York’s shortage of serious crime led police there to ‘define deviance up‘. That is, they took to arresting people for minor deviant acts that had previously fallen outside of their ‘rnet’, relabelling them now as worthy of punishment.

After zero tolerance was introduced in 1994, what did police and politicians wrongly claim?

That cracking down on these minor crimes had been the cause of the decline. In fact, the ‘success‘ of zero tolerance was just a product of the police’s way of coping with a decline that had already occurred.

What are other criticisms of zero tolerance policy?

• It is preoccupied with petty street crime and ignores corporate crime, which is more costly and harmful.

• It gives the police free rein to discriminate against minorities, youth, the homeless etc.

• It over-emphasises control of disorder, rather than tackling the causes of neighbourhood decline such as lack of investment.

• Zero tolerance and target hardening just lead to displacement of crime to other areas.