Crime and Deviance

Crime

Activities and behaviours that break the laws set out by the Criminal Justice System of a society. Formal agent of control enforced by formal powers with formal sanctions. e.g. the police.

Deviance

Acts that go against norms and values, that are considered anti-social.

Generational examples of crime and deviance

Driving, getting married, having children.

Cultural examples of crime and deviance

Homosexuality, piercings, tattoos, eating with your hands.

Historical examples of crime and deviance

Slavery, taking drugs, littering, being left handed.

Contextual examples of crime and deviance

Stealing, bin diving, cursing, lying.

Psychological explanations (Freud)

Personality Flaws
-if your superego is really weak, then your id will take over and lead to becoming deviant.

Psychological explanations (Bowlby)

Maternal Deprivation
-those that were deprived maternally were more likely to commit crimes or become deviant.

Psychological explanations

Mental Abnormalities
-based on Western norms and values, mental illness could be reason for crime and deviance.

Biological explanations (Lombroso)

Evolution
-studied the skulls and brains of criminals in order to, find a pattern or commonality. However, this study was hyperfocused on African Americans.

Biological explanations

Genetics
-it is theorised that there could be a generational link that could be genetic as a reason for crime and deviance.

Do Functionalists believe a society can exist without crime?

NO!
1. Because not everyone is effectively socialised.
2. Because of inequality (meritocracy).

Durkheim

Crime is inevitable in society and a certain amount of crime and deviance is necessary for society to function.

Anomie

Too much crime and deviance in society. Normlessness.

Stagnation

Too little crime and deviance in society.

Functionalists believe crime and deviance can lead to...

-Adaptation and Change
-Boundary Maintenance
-Social Cohesion

Davis

Minor criminal behaviour and deviancy can act as a safety valve preventing more serious deviant behaviour.

Polsky

Crimes such as prostitution should be legal as release sexual frustrations and prevent worse crimes.

Clinard and Cohen

An increase of a certain criminal behaviour or deviancy can indicate a problem in society.

Evaluation- Davis

The amount of crime is unquantifiable, how much crime is required to prevent 'serious crime'

Evaluation- Polsky/Durkheim

Fails to acknowledge the impact the crime may have on the victim.

Evaluation- Functionalist view

Isolation and Ostracisation
-being excluded from mainstream society.

Merton's Strain Theory

Crime and deviance occurs when culturally approved goals cannot be achieved by culturally approved means

Conformists (Merton's Strain Theory)

Accept the cultural goals and the means of getting that goal. e.g. Liking your job and going to university to get a degree.

Innovators (Merton's Strain Theory)

Accept the cultural goals but reject the institutionalised means. e.g. having a lot of money through illegal means like selling drugs.

Ritualists (Merton's Strain Theory)

Accept the institutionalised means but reject the cultural goals. e.g. going through the motions.

Retreatism (Merton's Strain Theory)

Individuals reject both goals and legitimate means and drop out of society.

Rebellion (Merton's Strain Theory)

Individuals replace existing goals and means with new ones with the aim of bringing about social change. e.g. finding a new way to live, they won't conform to mainstream society.

Merton's Strain Theory (Evaluation)

Underestimates white collar crime & middle class crime.

Merton's Strain Theory (Evaluation)

Assumes goal and value consensus within society

Merton's Strain Theory (Evaluation)

Deterministic. These groups cannot be applied for all of society for their whole lives. e.g. someone could rebel in their teens then decide to conform later on in life.

Merton's Strain Theory (Evaluation)

Only talks about utilitarian crimes, fails to discuss crime that is only committed in order to cause pain , violence and anarchy.

Merton's Strain Theory (Evaluation)

People may not necessarily choose the response but instead fall into these categories due to life circumstances.

Cohen- Status Frustration

Agrees with Merton that we share the same goals. WC delinquents feel anomie due to failure in the school system. So crime is caused by inability to succeed in the MC world.

Cohen- Status Frustration (Evaluation)

Cohen ignores females delinquency, adult and MC crimes.
Willis- Learning to Labour

Cloward and Ohlin - Illegitimate Opportunity Structures

Criminal- e.g Mafia, Socialisation- Organised crime, most common
Conflict- e.g Gangs, response to anomie- Aim for violence
Retreatist- e.g. Unable to access legitimate or illegitimate structures- Outcasts of society, sometimes self-destructive

Miller- Focal Concerns

Subcultures don't arise from an inability to achieve success. WC have a different set of values- focal concerns.
Excitement- engaging in criminal/deviant behaviour
Toughness- hypermasculinity/ hegemonic masculinity
Smartness
Autonomy- freewill to choose to do what they want
Fate
Focal concerns lead to crime and deviance in order to achieve status.

Matza- Subterranean Values

We all have criminal urges and delinquent values
Neutralisation of deviant acts proves the 'drift'
Neutralisation techniques
-denial of responsibility
-denial of injury
-denial of the victim
-condemnation of the condemners
-appeal to higher loyalties

Hirschi- Bond Theory

4 social bonds that encourage conformity
Belief- People share morals, norms & values and as a result follow laws to reinforce these
Attachment- Commitment to normal activities such as going to school or work meaning they must conform or lose it.
Involvement- People are busy in different groups so there is little opportunity.
Commitment- People are committed to eachother and society and thus avoid crime.

Hirschi- Bond Theory (Evaluation)

Doesn't actually explain why some people have weaker social bonds that others. e.g. communities may be divided by social class.

Hirschi- Bond Theory (Evaluation)

Ignores various types of crime and deviance

Hirschi- Bond Theory (Evaluation)

Assumes that individuals are all naturally bad, so they need social bonds to make them good.

Hirschi- Bond Theory (Evaluation)

Can you have social bonds and still be deviant (labelling theory)

Criminogenic Capitalism (Marxism)

The nature of capitalism causes crime.
Working class crime may be the result of poverty, which means crime is the only way to survive.
Ruling class crime may be corporate crimes eg. tax evasion.

Gordon (Marxist)

Crime is a rational response to capitalist foci, stats make it seem like a w/c problem

Selective Law Making

Corporate crime is more dangerous than street crime but less regulated. Within the CJS there is a selected bias when applying the law, meaning that the police are much more likely to target WC areas so the WC are far more likely to be criminalised than the MC.

Snider- Selective Law Making (Marxist)

Argues that the capitalist state is reluctant to pass laws that regulate activities of businesses or threaten their profitability.

Chambliss -Selective Law Making (Marxist)

Laws to protect private property are the cornerstone of the Capitalist economy. The ruling class have the power to prevent the introduction of laws that would threaten their interests.

Reiman -Selective Law Enforcement (Marxist)

The ruling class are more likely to commit crime but less likely to be treated as a criminal in the offence. e.g. tax evasion vs benefit fraud

Reiman -Selective Law Enforcement (Evaluation)

The police and the criminal justice system would argue in defense of professionalism because they are both professional institutions and therefore should comply with regulations

Pearce- Ideological Functions of the Law (Marxist)

Argues that the law gives capitalism a 'caring' face and creates a false conscious among the workers. They pass laws which on the surface benefit the WC but actually benefit the bourgeoisie. And because the law is enforced selectively, it appears to be a WC phenomenon, thus dividing the WC and cause blame on the criminals rather than capitalism.

Criminogenic Capitalism (Marxism) (Evaluation)

If capitalism was criminogenic, why does it occur in communist societies.

Reiman -Selective Law Enforcement (Evaluation)

The criminal justice system do sometimes act against the interests of the ruling class by punishing corporate crime.

General Critiques of the Marxist View on Crime and Deviance

Too deterministic in assuming all WC people commit crime
Ignores relationships between crime and other social factors. e.g gender and ethnicity
Not all capitalist societies have high crime rates

Neo-Marxist agree with Marxists that...

Capitalist societies are based on exploitation and class conflict
Capitalism should be replaced by a classless society
The state makes and enforces law in the interests of the capitalist class

Taylor et al

Criticise Marxists for economic determinism. They see crime as meaningful action and a conscious choice by the actor. In particular, they argue that crime often has a political motive (for instance, to redistribute wealth from rich to poor). Criminals are not passive puppets whose behaviour is shaped by capitalism: they are deliberately striving to change society.

Taylor et al 'a fully social theory of deviance'

comprehensive understanding of crime that help change society for the better - marxist ideas of unequal distribution of wealth and whos power to enforce laws and labelling ideas of meaning of deviant act, societal reactions, effects of label / theory unites aspects:
- wider origins of deviant acts\= unequal distribution of wealth and power in capitalism
- act itself and meaning for actor e.g. rebellion of capitalism
-immediate origins of social reactions\= those around deviant reactions to deviance
- effects of labelling\= on deviants future actions where it leads to deviance amplification for some not others

Taylor et al 'a fully social theory of deviance' (Evaluation)

Left realists- neo marxists do not take crime seriously and ignores its effects on victims.
Left realists- neo marxists romanticise WC criminals and make them 'Robin Hoods' who are fighting capitalism by redistributing wealth. In reality, criminals prey on the poor.
Neo- marxism is too general to explain crime and too idealistic to tackle crime. (Burke)

Clarke- Rational Choice Theory (Right Realist)

The decision to commit a crime is based on a rational calculation of consequences. If the perceived rewards outweigh the cost, crime is inevitable.

Herrnstein & Wilson- Biological Factors (Right Realist)

Biological differences between individuals makes some individuals more predisposed to crime. (Biosocial Theory) e.g. levels of testosterone in males and females could give reason as to why crime is committed. Low intelligence is also a factor.

Murray- Inadequate Socialisation (Right Realist)

Crime is rising due to the growth of an underclass who are defined by their deviant behaviour and fail to socialise their children properly.

Clarke- Rational Choice Theory (Right Realist) (Evaluation)

The upper class who are 'adequately socialised' also commit crime
Overstates the offenders rationality... cost benefit analysis
Does not explain non-utilitarian crime such as murder

Herrnstein & Wilson- Biological Factors (Right Realist) (Evaluation)

If only low intelligent people commit crime then why do some of the smartest countries have the highest rate of criminals.
Marxist- fail to acknowledge social facts and how some commit crime out of necessity.
Doesn't explain non utilitarian crime

Murray- Inadequate Socialisation (Right Realist) (Evaluation)

Those who are 'adequately socialised' still commit crimes.
Deterministic, 'underclass' of society are not always inadequately socialised.

Zero Tolerance Policing

A zero tolerance policy to undesirable behaviour such as prostitution, begging and drunkeness. Police should patrol the streets and take a 'short, sharp, shock' approach, and carry out stop and search on suspicious characters. e.g Bill Clinton introduced a 3 strike policy on arrests, leading to mass incarceration

Wilson and Kelling- The Broken Window Thesis

It is essential to maintain orderly characteristics of neighbourhoods and reduce any signs of crime immediately.

Target Hardening

If you make it harder to commit crime (e.g. by locking doors, CCTV) this will reduce the rewards of commiting the crime and act as a deterrent.

Lea & Young- Relative Deprivation (Left Realism)

People who are deprived resent others for having more material goods than them , thus resorting to illegal means.
Young- "the lethal combination is relative deprivation and individualism" causes crimes at the pursuit of self-interest at the expense of others.

Marginalisation (Left Realism)

Marginalised groups lack clear goals and organisations to represent them, leading to frustration and resentment. In turn they express this frustration through criminal acts.

Subcultures (Left Realism)

These form as a collective solution to 'relative deprivation' and some may turn to crime to close the 'deprivation gap'.

Lea & Young- Relative Deprivation (Left Realism) (Evaluation)

Explains utilitarian crime but not all types of crime
Deterministic. Many people who are materially deprived abide by the law
Many wealthy turn to crime. e.g. white collar crime

Subcultures (Left Realism) (Evaluation)

People who are not a part of subcultures still commit crime.
Not all subcultures are criminal.

Marginalisation (Left Realism) (Evaluation)

No explanation of WHY crime is an outlet for frustration rather than other behaviours e.g deviance

Policing and Control (Left Realism)

Policing must be made accountable to local communities, and need to improve their relationship with such communities by spending more time investigating crime, and involving the community in policing policy

Tackling Structural Causes (Left Realism)

Tackle the structural causes of poverty by reducing inequality of opportunity and discrimination, and providing jobs for everyone

Crime Statistics

There has been a steady decline in crime from 1981 to present day.

Crime Statistics

As of 2019, you are least likely to be the victim of a robbery but most likely to be victim of fraud.
-news values; the media does not represent this

Crime Statistics (Definition)

information (i.e. data) collected by authorities such as the police and analysed to track the level of crime or offending in the community. Crime statistics also track the types and levels of sentence given to convicted offenders

Crime Statistics

Over a 1/3 of violence against the person offences are flagged as being domestic abuse related.

Crime Statistics

Sexual crimes are on the rise
-could this be because crime is on the rise or people are reporting it more?

The Official Crime Survey

Police reported crime
Court records
Prison records
Published quarterly

Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW)

Interview with households
Continuous survey
Published quarterly
Random sample of 35,000
Adults and children aged 10-15

Official Statistics

Gives a 'snapshot' of the number of crimes committed. Published by the Home Office, includes Court and Prison records.

Victim Surveys

A method of gathering crime data that directly surveys participants to determine their experiences as victims of crime. 50,000 households are randomly chosen to report.

Offender Surveys

Individuals volunteering details of the number and types of crime they have committed
Self-report indicators of repeat offending
Trends in prevalence of drugs and alcohol

The Official Crime Survey (Evaluation)

Gives a 'snapshot', we don't get the whole picture
Not all crimes are reported, victims fear disbelief
Not all crimes are recorded
Government Manipulation, presents data that shows them in the best light
Invisible crimes/victims

Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) (Evaluation)

Relies on memory, can be very unreliable
Lack of specialist knowledge, the accuracy of the information is low
Crimes in the wrong category
Researcher effects, may answer in a way to please the researcher
Invisible crimes, e.g. fraud

Dark Figure of Crime Statistics

The proportion of crime that goes unreported for varied reasons

Moore, Aiken and Chapman- Police Reported Crime

Promotion and relations at work
Classification of crime
Social status of the victim
Seriousness of the crime
Police discretion

Court Reported Crime

Not all crimes are taken to court for prosecution. The CPS takes a two stage test:
Likelihood of conviction based on the evidence presented
It is in the public interest to prosecute

Functionalist View on Statistics

Share the view of positivists and tend to accept crime statistics uncritically
The functionalist inspired sub-cultural theory for example started with the view that crime is a young, working class, male phenomenon

Marxist View on Statistics

Recognise the systematic bias in favour of the powerful in application of the law
As a general rule, the higher people are in a social system the less likely they are to be arrested, charged, prosecuted and found guilty
Marxists stress the importance of the 'dark side' of white collar and corporate crime that is largely invisible and absent from crime statistics.

Interactionist & Labelling Theory View on Statistics

Sees crime statistics as largely useless and a distortion of reality
They argue statistics are a social construction and tell us nothing about the real level of crime, only who compiled them and how
Labelling theory is more interested in questions such as why some acts are viewed as more deviant than others and why some groups are viewed as more deviant that others.

Left Realist View on Statistics

Almost unique (apart from Functionalists) in accepting that official statistics have some value and should not be rejected out of hand.
They accept the statistical view that typical offenders are young, male, WC and disproportionately black
Using victim studies, they highlight how people (especially the poor and vulnerable) have real fears of crime.

Feminist View on Statistics

Feminists argue that crime statistics underplay the extent of females as victims: personal attack; domestic violence
Until recently the police viewed attacks in the home as "domestics" and were reluctant to get involved
Many female victims of physical and sexual abuse are reluctant to report offences

Gender & Crime Statistics

4 of 5 convicted offenders in England and Wales are male.

Gender & Crime Statistics (Ministry of Justice)

Only 15% of arrests are women
69% of those have mental health issues

Gender & Crime Statistics

Females are more likely to be convicted of property crime, males are more likely to be convicted of violent or sexual crime

Gender & Crime Statistics

Males are more likely to be repeat offenders, have longer sentences and commit more serious crime

Gender & Crime Statistics- Conclusion

Men are committing more crime than women according to official statistics