CRIME & DEVIANCE MOCK PARI FLASHCARDS

functionalism : definition of crime & deviance

Crime & deviance is explained by the society around it not the individual

DURKHEIM - FUNCTIONS OF CRIME

Crime is actually functional for society

Crime acts as a moral dichotomy to provide us with what’s right and wrong

Binds society together

Boundary maintenance

Promotes value consensus

E.g search parties for jay Slater, Sarah Everard case solidarity

DURKHEIM- PUNISHMENT

Society needs both crime & punishment

Without crime there’s no punishment, vice versa

too much punishment- totalitarian

too much crime- anomie

EVAL FOR DURKHEIM

What is considered ‘too much’

what is right & wrong

Suggesting crime is necessary is harmful, disregards victims experiences

Crime isn’t beneficial, targets minorities more

Marxism - Crime targets WC

Feminism- Crime targets women

COHEN- DEVIANCE IS A SAFETY VALVE

deviance acts as a safety valve

minor deviance stops bigger crime from happening

E.g. prostitution allows men to escape family life without undermining the nuclear family as a societal institution

COHEN- DEVIANCE SHOWS…

deviance shows society something is wrong E.g. mass truancy means there’s something wrong with education system, society needs to change

MERTON STRAIN THEORY

CRIME ARISES FROM THE CULTURE AND STRUCTURE OF SOCIETY

idea of the American dream, in use everyone has a shared dream to have success, wealth, etc… However there’s only focus on the dream, not how to achieve it. This causes unbalanced society, where people focus on ‘winning the game’ through illegal ways. Once rules are ignored, anomie happens.

MERTON SAYS 5 RESPONSES TO THIS ANOMIE:

Retreatist- drop outs, junkies, people who retreat from society,given up on the shared value dream & the legitimate ways of achieving it

Ritualistic- people who know the dream but have given up on achieving it E.g. dead end office job workers, it becomes ritualistic
Rebellion- people who want to create new shared value to aspire for, who want to create new ways to get it E.g. political activists, radicals, protestors

Innovation- people who accept the dream but go about it in illegitimate ways, they innovate ways to get it without doing it legitimately E.g. fraud, drug dealers etc… WC are more innovators

Conformist- Merton says this is the majority of the American citizen, people who are model citizen, conform to the idea of the American dream, accept it and work towards it using legit ways to achieve it (MC more conformist due to them already having means to achieve it)

EVALUATION OF MERTON STRAIN THEORY

Merton sees crime as a mostly WC phenomenon

This is due to overrepresentation of WC in crime statistics (Dark figure of crime)

only accounts for utilitarian crime, not impulsive crimes or crimes of passion

ignores state crimes like torture & genocide

only focus on the individual not a group, fails to acknowledge the role of subcultures in deviance such as delinquent and deviant subcultures

Marxists- focuses on WC not mc crime

E.g. SNIDER:white collar crime is more costly and harmful than street crime yet the CJS doesn’t focus on the unfair nature . ie. Grenfell corporate witnesses that were granted immunity

HIRSCHI CONTROL THEORY

Social Bonds of attachment 

Suggests that people are less likely to commit crime if they have strong social bonds and more likely if these bonds are weakened or compromised. 

WC have weaker/less social bonds and are therefore more likely to commit crime.

The four bonds that prevent people from commiting crime

A- Attachment- Attached to people or society and don't want to jeopardise that by being deviant E.g. having friends and family and don’t want to sacrifice that by committing crime

C- Commitment- Commitment to something shared in society such as a job which means it is more difficult to leave that and thus means less likely to commit crime. 

I- Involvement - Involvement in activities that means there is less time to commit crime E.g. working a 9-5 means you're likely to be tired when back and sleep rather than having energy to commit crime

B- Beliefs- Committing a crime goes against moral beliefs of individuals and society. This prevents them from committing a crime. E.g. certain religious groups are less likely to commit crime as it goes against their beliefs.

EVAL FOR COMMITMENT

CHRIS BROWN ABUSER BUT STILL HAS STATUS

DONALD TRUMP RAPIST STILL PRESIDENT

SUBCULTURAL FUNCTIONALISM

Deviance is a collective rather than an individual response

COHEN - STATUS FRUSTRATION

Agrees with Merton Strain theory that crime is majority WC

Due to less means of achieving it (E.g. material possessions), they commit crime

However he criticises Merton on two things:

It only focuses on the individual and fails to acknowledge group deviance such as in deviant subcultures.

It only accounts for utilitarian crime and ignores crimes of passion and violence E.g. murder, rape, abuse, vandalism etc…

Cohen focuses on deviance within WC boys

They are in anomie in a MC dominated school system, suffer Cultural deprivation and lack the skills to achieve, this leaves them at the bottom of the status hierarchy

Due to this, they suffer status frustration, they resolve this frustration by rejecting MC ideologies and norms, they turn to other boys in the same situation and create a delinquent subculture. This leads to value inversion, the subculture offers the boys an alternative status hierarchy where they are at the top instead of the bottom.

E.g Willis the Lads

EVALUATION - COHEN STATUS FRUSTRATION

He assumes that people purposely invert values E.g. someone trashing a bus stop seems unlikely to be praised by society or the subculture they are in. 

Postmodernists like Lyng & Katz argue that the individual is actually doing it for a ‘buzz’ or because of boredom, not status frustration. (Lyng Edgework, individuals weigh up risks and rewards and the reward outweighs the risk) 

(However, it could be countered that delinquents can be conscious of how deviant acts might provide an access to rewards and status within their group without individually inverting mainstream values every time they deviate)

Feminists would argue that he only focuses on boys, that women are also sufferers of the status hierarchy and may experience status frustration but they don’t go and create delinquent subcultures 

(Though can be counter argued by McRobbie bedroom culture as girls are less likely to be able to deviate due to it).

MARXISM

CAPITALISM IS CRIMINOGENIC

HOW IS CAPITALISM CRIMINOGENIC

Crime is inevitable as capitalism is criminogenic- by its very nature it causes crime

Poverty means that the only way the WC can survive is through crime

Capitalism encourages consumer goods and pushes consumerism onto the WC- promoting over consumption and a consumer culture- this may lead to them wanting to commit utilitarian crime like theft to attain the goods 

Utilitarian crimes are common in WC due to poverty and oppression by the RC

Capitalism creates a feeling of needing to keep up with the Joneses

For Non utilitarian crimes, due to alienation and marginalisation by the RC, this may turn into frustration and in turn cause them to lash out- thus leading to crimes such as violence and vandalism

Crime is not confined to the WC- capitalism creates competition for monopoly over goods and profit, leading to high rates of crime in all classes.

SUTHERLAND- CORPORATE CRIME

Crime committed by a person of high social status and respectability in the course of his occupation

GORDON

crime is a rational response to the system of capitalism so it is found in all social classes

CAPITALISM IS DOG EAT DOG

TOMBS

white collar crime is more costly than blue collar crime

THE STATE & LAW MAKING

Law making & law enforcement only benefits the RC

Law enforcement agencies are RSA’s, repressive state apparatus- althusser

School is ISA- ideological state apparatus

CHAMBLISS- PRIVATE PROPERTY

Laws protecting private property is the cornerstone of the capitalist economy

This is illustrated by Chamblisses East African British Colonies Study- Britains capitalist and monetary interests lay in the tea and plantations in east africa, so they introduced a tax that was only payable by the people of those colonies by working on the plantations.

SNIDER

The capitalist state is reluctant to pass laws that may regulate or effect the profitability of their business

They are also reluctant in reporting corporate and white collar crimes even though corporate crimes are more costly than street crimes E.g. Grenfell corporate witnesses granted immunity

SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT

explains that the CJS focuses on ethnic minorities and the WC whilst ignoring the crimes of the powerful

IDEOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS OF CRIME & LAW

The law, crime and criminals also perform an ideological function for capitalism 

Laws are often passed in order to benefit the RC but sometimes are passed to make it seem as if it is for the benefit of the WC such as workplace health & safety laws

IDEOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS OF LLAW- PEARCE

Pearce argues that these laws benefit the ruling class E.g. by keeping workers fit for capitalism’s needs, by giving capitalism a ‘caring face’ - these laws create a false class consciousness amongst the workers as they believe that they are equals when in reality they are being exploited by the ruling class.

These supposedly positive laws for the WC are rarely enforced.

E.g. Despite a law for corporate homicide being passed, only one company was arrested within 8 years of the law being passed, despite many thousands of deaths due to corporate negligence.

EFFECT OF SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT

Due to the state selectively enforcing laws, crime appears to be mainly WC, this divides the WC by encouraging them to blame the criminals within their class instead of looking at the elite who commit larger and more costly crimes too

EVALUATION OF MARXISM

Marxism offers a useful explanation of the relationship between crime and capitalist society - it shows the link between law making and enforcement and the interests of the capitalist class - by doing so, it puts into a wider structural context the insights of labelling theory regarding the selective enforcement of the law

HOWEVER

It largely ignores the relationship between crime and non class factors such as gender and ethnicity

NOT ALL CAPITALIST SOCIETIES HAVE HIGH CRIME RATES, Homicide rates in Japan or switzerland are ⅕ of that in the USA, however marxists would argue that this could be due to the lack of welfare benefits in the USA which means a higher crime rate.

Too deterministic and overpredicts the amount of crime in WC- not all poor people commit crime despite societal pressures E.g. NR argues elderly are poorer but less crime rates

The CJS does sometimes act against the ruling class, prosecutions of corporate crime do happen, E.g. Bernie Madoff was arrested and sentenced to a long sentence with no leniency despite his societal status and wealth.

Left realists say MARXISTS ignore intra-class crimes where both are WC, eg: Burglary in a WC household and mugging too..

INTERACTIONISM

They don’t look at the causes of crime but rather the context surrounding the crime & the criminal

They ask how and why someone or an act has been labelled as deviant and the effect this has on them and society

They don't regard official statistics as hard evidence but as social constructs as they don’t paint the whole picture

Society is based on the interactions between individuals

Crime is the product of interactions between suspects and the CJS rather than the product of wider societal structures like blocked opportunities or poverty

BECKER- SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF CRIME

Becker says that social groups create deviance by making rules individuals have to follow and if anyone breaks those they are deemed as deviant and outsiders

A deviant is simply someone who’s been successfully labelled as one, deviant behaviour is just behaviour that has been labelled as deviant

BECKER- MORAL ENTREPRENEURS

PEOPLE WHO LEAD A CRUSADE TO CHANGE THE LAW- MORAL ENTREPRENEURS

TWO EFFECTS OF MORAL ENTREPRENEUR

The creation of a new group of outsiders (people labelled as deviant)

The creation or expansion of a new agent of social control (whether that be police, laws, etc…) to impose rules and label offenders

BECKER- SPHERE OF CONTROL

Notes that social control agencies may act as moral entrepreneurs or may campaign for a change in the law in order to expand their sphere of social control or increase their power

E.g. the federal narcotics bureau campaigned for the passing of marijuana tax law making it illegal for recreational use, this wasn;t on the grounds that it had negative effects on the minds of young people but rather becker argues to expand their sphere of social control

PLATT - JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

Argues that the idea of juvenile delinquency was created as a result of upper class victorian moral entrepreneurs who wanted to protect young people at risk

This established juvenile as a separate category in the court of law and enabled the state to extend its powers beyond criminal offences involving the young into so called status offences

WHO GETS LABELLED?

Whether a person is arrested, charged or convicted depends on factors such as 

Their interactions with agents of social control

Their appearance, background and personal biography

The situation and circumstances of the offence

PILLAIVIN & BRIAR

Found that police decisions to arrest a youth were based on physical cues, from which they made judgements about the person's character

Officer's decisions were also influenced by age, sex/gender, class & ethnicity, as well as the time and place.

CICOUREL- NEGOTIATION OF JUSTICE

JUSTICE IS NOT FIXED BUT NEGOTIABLE

Cicourel found that officers typifications led them arresting certain groups or individuals more and concentrating on certain types of offenders to arrest

This resulted in the law enforcement showing a class bias!

POLICE PATROLLED WC AREAS MORE FREQUENTLY, THUS INCREASING ARRESTS

E.g. BRIXTON RIOTS AND THE PROJECT SWAMP

E.G. A MIDDLE CLASS OLD WOMAN IS LIKELY NOT GOING TO BE CHARGED AS SHE WONT MEET THE OFFICER’S TYPIFICATIONS, WHEREAS A WC YOUNG BLACK MAN WOULD MEET THESE THEREFORE BEING MORE PRONE TO BEING ARRESTED, ALSO- THE WOMAN CAN NEGOTIATE HER JUSTICE

EXAMPLE - NEGOTIATED JUSTICE

 BROCK TURNER a Stanford student raped a female classmate but got his parents to negotiate his justice and get him to 6 months from a 15 year sentence, in which he only served 3 months and got out

SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF CRIME STATISTICS

CRIME STATISTICS ARE SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED- They only tell us about the actions of the police and the CJS rather than the amount of crime in society or who does it

At each stage of the CJS, agents of social control decide whether to move on to the next stage. 

E.G. getting arrested, being charged, being in custody/bail, hearing, trial, sentencing, jail, etc…

DARK FIGURE OF CRIME

The difference between official statistics and the real stats is often called the dark figure of crime as we don’t know for certain how much crime goes unreported or undetected

ALTERNATIVE METHODS TO OFFICIAL STATISTICS

Some sociologists use Victim Surveys (where people are asked what crimes they’ve been victims of) or Self report studies (Where they are asked what crimes they have committed) to gain a more accurate view of the statistics of crime

EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE METHODS

ALTHOUGH this helps us understand the bigger picture, it has limitations

E.g. people may forget, exaggerate or conceal/lie

Additionally, surveys usually only include not very serious offences as people may be scared to open up otherwise for fear of being arrested etc…

LEMERT PRIMARY DEVIANCE

LEMERT- PRIMARY & SECONDARY DEVIANCE

PRIMARY DEVIANCE- is an act of deviance that hasn’t been labelled publicly by society as deviant

LEMERT- it is useless to find the causes of primary deviance as it is widespread and unlikely to have a single cause, it is often trivial E.g. tfl fare dodging mostly goes uncaught

LEMERT- SECONDARY DEVIANCE

SECONDARY DEVIANCE- Act that has been labelled as deviant due to societal reaction 

Being caught and publicly labelled as a criminal can cause shame, lead them to become outsiders or be judged or even push them further into a life of crime due to the stigma attached to them . E.g. many ex convicts don’t get jobs due to their record so turn back to crime to make a living

EFFECTS OF LABELLING

Once an individual is labelled, they are only seen as that label, it becomes their MASTER STATUS

This can provoke a crisis for the individual’s self concept, leading to a self fulfilling prophecy where they act out their deviant label 

This leads to more hostile reactions from society, further reinforcing their outsider status, which may lead to more deviance and a deviant career.

EXAMPLES OF EFFECTS OF LABELLING

E.g. A man is no longer a father or husband but a thief, junkie or outsider, etc…

E.g. luigi Mangione, someone who graduated from ivy league but known only for murdering ceo brian thompson

RIGHT REALISM

Crime is a REAL and growing problem, needs to be nipped in the bud

It undermines social cohesion and causes issues in wider society

RIGHT REALISM BRIEF: CAUSES OF CRIME

Reject marxists and other theories that suggest that factors such as material deprivation, WC exploitation etc are reasons for crime

E.g. they point out that the elderly are more likely to be poor but they commit less crime

CRIME IS THE PRODUCT OF BIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES

Certain genetic backgrounds are more predisposed to crime (E.g. Lombroso- women crime features)

WILSON & HERRNSTEIN - BIOSOCIAL THEORY OF CRIMINALITY

Wilson & Herrnstein suggest a biosocial theory of criminality.

Biological differences such as higher impulsivity, more aggression, less risk averse and extroverted means they are more likely to commit deviant acts.

WILSON & MURRAY - MAIN CAUSE OF CRIME

The main cause of crime is due to lower intelligence (synoptic link to New Right view that less IQ meaning less educational achievement, leading to criminality)

CAUSE OF CRIME- SOCIALISATION

If a person is socialised correctly then the risks of them being deviant even if they have biological predisposition decreases.

E.g. not all ADHD people commit crime despite them having many traits that make them supposedly more likely to deviate.

CAUSE OF CRIME- UNDERCLASS - MURRAY

According to Murray, the underclass is growing due to welfare dependency

Murray calls the welfare states ‘generous revolution’ since the 1960’s the reason for welfare dependency by the underclass.

This has led to the decline of marriage, higher divorce rates, higher lone parent households (especially afro caribbean single mothers- sewell synoptic link new right).

This also means less men are working due to them getting paid by benefits and not needing to support families, and therefore more likely to have free time to commit crime. (

Can link to Hirschi's bonds- commitment- are able to commit crime as that bond is not there).

Higher rates of absent fathers means lone mothers have to raise children, lone mothers are inadequate socialisation agents as they are only maternal not paternal., cannot equip young boys with the discipline and appropriate male role models (Sewell)- therefore they may turn to delinquent youth subcultures, look up to male role models in gangs or in the music they listen to E.g. Drill & Grime.- thus leading to more deviancy. More common in black males.

RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

People have free will and reasoning, just because they have certain circumstances such as deprivation doesn’t mean they should commit crime, not every poor person steals and it’s not a valid excuse for it. 

CLARKE - RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Decision to commit crime is a rational choice made by thinking and calculating the potential consequences. If the risks don’t outweigh the rewards they may commit the crime. (Can link to Postmodernist Lyng , edgework)

Wilson- Due to the fact that the perceived costs of crime are lesser, there is a higher risk of it being committed again.

E.g. In Chicago, due to high levels of murder cases going unsolved due to people being scared to ‘snitch’, the murder cases increase and crime gets worse.

FELSON- ROUTINE ACTIVITY THEORY

For a crime to occur, there must be a motivated offender, a suitable target and the absence of a guardian- as offenders act ‘rationally’ if there is a guardian it will deter them from committing the crime. (Can apply to gender as some men don’t commit crimes to a woman if there's a man with her- higher risk less reward- deterrent)

WILSON & KELLING - BROKEN WINDOW THESIS

Visible signs of antisocial behaviour and crime create an environment which is more prone to further crime. As there is an absence of both informal and formal social control, there is a higher risk of crime occuring. If police turn a blind eye to petty crimes and only focus on serious crimes, soon it will become normalised and send the neighbourhood into a spiral of decline. E.g. NYC subways are graffitied and is an area of transition, higher crime rates due to nobody doing anything about it.

DOWNES - SUPPORTS BROKEN WINDOWS THESIS

Described as ‘perhaps the most influential single article on crime prevention ever written’. (Downes, 1992)

EVALUATION OF RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

IGNORES WIDER STRUCTURAL CAUSES SUCH AS POVERTY

Overstates offenders rationality- it may explain calculated crime but doesn’t explain impulsive 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

TACKLING CRIME - RIGHT REALISM

Main focus is on control, containment & punishment, not the reasons or structural factors to why the crime occurred or rehabilitating them

WHAT SHOULD CRIME PREVENTION STRATEGIES FOCUS ON

Reduce the rewards and increase the risks of the behaviour - TARGET HARDENING, making better use of prison and speeding up the process to prevent further offending like E.g. offender breaking bail conditions thus increasing their sentence. DETER DETER DETER!

ZERO TOLERANCE

Building on the broken windows thesis, it shows that neighbourhoods with displays of even petty crime should be dealt with immediately to prevent more serious crime occurring.

Zero tolerance crime prevention strategies are encouraged for crimes such as drunk and disorderly, prostitution, begging & drunkenness.

Military police style, patrol the streets and crack down, - this makes law abiding citizens feel safer.

SUPPORT & EVAL OF ZERO TOLERANCE

TO SUPPORT- Citizens of NYC claimed there was a huge change when zero tolerance policing was introduced in the city

HOWEVER- LEFT REALIST YOUNG argues that this NYC success was just a myth created by politicians to take credit for less crime.

LEFT REALISM

LR was created in response to increase in right realism- by YOUNG, LEA AND MATTHEW'S

Focuses on practical and REAL ways of solving crime, links to marxism and new criminology but they are both too idealistic and have unrealistic ideas on solving crime

As a criticism of Marxism, Left realists say not to focus as much on elite crime as the most crime happens to WC people BY WC people.

Young says not just to be tough on the criminal but to the social factors which create environment where crime thrives and has an impact on crime rates and to ensure the CJS promotes social justice

Since WW2, rising living standards and the dependency on welfare provisions have gone hand in hand to increase crime

3 REASONS FOR CRIME - LEA & YOUNG

Relative deprivation

Marginalisation

Subculture

TACKLING CRIME

LEFT REALIST crime prevention strategies focus on both the criminal and the social context around it causing the crime.

TWO STRATEGIES TO PREVENT CRIME

Intervention- identifying groups more at risk to commit crime & intervening and preventing it

E.g. Perry preschool project, putting CCTV in certain areas etc…

Community based approaches- Involving the local community in combatting crime

E.g. Neighbourhood watch

PERRY PRESCHOOL PROJECT

One of the best-known intervention programmes aimed at reducing criminality is the Perry pre-school project for disadvantaged black children which took place in Michigan, USA.

In this programme a group of 3-4 year olds were offered a two-year intellectual enrichment programme, during which time the children received weekly home-visits.

A longitudinal study following the children’s’ progress showed significant differences between the experimental group and a control group.

By age 40, they had had significantly fewer arrests for various types of grime, and a higher percentage had graduated high school and made it into full-time employment.

It was calculated that for every $1 spent on the programme, $17 were saved on welfare, prison and other costs.

This demonstrates that left realists recognised where proportionally more crime occurs (disadvantaged areas), and that it is easier to instil norms and values in the youth

RELATIVE DEPRIVATION

Relative deprivation can occur by any economic or social group looking up at a higher class and feeling deprived as relative to their own wealth or status, they are envious of others having more.

An example could be the working class people being included into consumerist culture through music, TV and advertisements however excluded from the economic structure which would allow them to buy such products

SOCIALLY INCLUDED, ECONOMICALLY EXCLUDED

ABSOLUTE POVERTY

Absolute poverty comprises of people who are struggling to get by on a day to day basis

ECONOMIC MARGINALISATION

The working class not getting enough financial support from the government

POLITICAL MARGINALISATION

A totalitarian state making views against the government illegal

SOCIAL MARGINALISATION

Nationalist Brits taking a strong dislike towards immigrants

EVALUATIONS OF LEFT REALISM

Left realist solutions are the most costly of crime prevention solutions- if done properly however, they can save money & turn the criminal into a taxpayer

Marxists argue that these tackle deprivation but ignore the wider structural inequalities caused by capitalism

It isn’t very representative as they only focus on inner city crime and makes it appear to be a bigger problem than it is

Foucalt & Garland interpret LR prevention strategies as surveillance rather than social change- which prevents it more. - panopticon- idea of prisons and guy watching them they are only not committing crime as they're being watched not because they don't want to commit crime. Social change can change that and make them not want to commit crime as they like the society they are in.

Marxists-  LR fail to acknowledge corporate crime - harmful to WC

Milovanovic- LR accepts the authorities definition of crime as being street crime by the WC and does not identify the MC and Elite as people who do harm to the WC by committing crimes.

Interactionalists argue that LR use quantitative data from victim surveys and are thus not able to explain the offenders motive

They use subcultural theory, meaning they acknowledge that value consensus is there and that crime occurs only when consensus breaks down

SEX ROLE THEORY- PARSONS - GENDER & CRIME FUNCTIONALISM

Men & Women are socialised differently

Men socialised into more rowdy, physical , risk taking, rough and tough, aggressive ways which leaves them more predisposed to committing crime

Parsons says that crime goes back to the differences in the nuclear family, Men take on the instrumental role, being the breadwinner, disciplinary authority and the women the expressive role, the emotional role, taking care of children, doing domestic tasks , etc…they socialise the children mainly.

Men are more likely to commit crime to fulfill the instrumental role such as stealing food and money for the family

Due to this, females are given a good female role model but males may reject this and opt for compensatory compulsory masculine behaviour- aggression and anti-social behaviour which may lead to delinquency

COHEN - STATUS IN GROUPS

 According to Cohen, the lack of a male role model leads males to turn to all male gangs and street violence as a form of status and gaining that masculine status.- crisis in masculine identity

In these groups, status is earned by risk taking, impulsive and violent behaviour.

Supported by new right, SEWELL

EVALUATION - SEX ROLE THEORY

Assumes that the biological differences are accurate

Ladette behaviour challenges this idea of females not being in delinquency

WALKLATE- FEMINIST

Criticises sex role theory and says that its too deterministic. It assumes that just because females can bear children they are immediately inclined to be the expressive role- proven wrong as there r matrifocal houses where the female are the breadwinner- postmodern society family is different now

CAUSE OF CRIME - FEMINISM

Feminists say it’s because of the oppression of women by men

PATRIARCHAL CONTROL - HEIDENSOHN

The most striking thing about crime is how females are so conformist and don't commit crime as much or of a serious nature than men

This is due to the increased control patriarchal society imposes on women, thus limiting their opportunities to commit crime

The patriarchy controls women at home, in the public domain & at work

CONTROL IN THE HOME

Women are confined to their houses, fulfilling domestic and expressive roles for the family, leaving them with no time to even commit crime

If a woman tries to reject the domestic work shes doing, it can lead to force or violence - domestic abuse from the partner

E.G. Dobash & Dobash interviews of DV survivors found that many cases of abuse are because the breadwinner are not happy with the women not fulfilling expressive roles

Men also exercise control through the financial sphere- such as denying funds for leisure activities, confining them to the home

Daughters are also subject to this patriarchal control- they are less likely to be allowed to go out until late- bedroom culture mcRobbie- they stay at home instead of going outside

Girls also do more housework than boys, leaving them with less time to be deviant

EG: Study of south asian parents and the daughters having to come home early and do housework but males were allowed to do as they please !

CONTROL IN PUBLIC

Women are controlled in public spaces due to the fear of being victims of a crime, especially SA & Rape

Islington crime survey found that 54% of women didn't go out after dark as they were scared to be victims of crime, compared to only 14% of men.

Heidensohn notes that the sensationalist media which make it seem as if a random crazy man will attack u in the alleyway frightens women to stay indoors- HOWEVER STATS SHOW THAT 6 in 7 women who have been raped are by people they know!

Females are also controlled in the public by their fear of being perceived as a slut due to their clothing choices, dress, makeup and way of speaking can cause them to have a ‘bad reputation’.

E.g. women tend to avoid going into pubs (where high criminality occurs) due to the fear of being perceived as ‘loose’ or even prostitutes.

Furthermore, Sue LEES notes that in school, boys maintain control by sexualising verbal abuse, calling girls slags, if they don't conform to gender role expectations.

CONTROL AT WORK

Women’s behaviour at work is highly influenced by their male superiors such as their male bosses or coworkers

Sexual harassment is rampant in the workplace

⅗ women experience harassment at work

Women's subordinate position at work stops them from engaging in criminal activity at work

E.g. due to the glass ceiling, women are less likely to become CEO’s where there is greater chance to commit fraud , therefore they are less likely to commit white collar crime

HOWEVER… HEIDENSOHN NOTES…

Heidensohn notes that this patriarchy can also PUSH women into crime

E.g. women are more likely to be poor due to gender inequalities in the labour market and may turn to theft or prostitution to get a decent way of living.

EVALUATION OF PATRIARCHAL CONTROL

Its too deterministic, patriarchy isnt the only thing that controls women

They have a choice

E.g. lucy letby, gypsy rose

LIBERATION THESIS - ADLER

If society becomes less patriarchal, then crime stats will be more equal in gender

Adler argues that as women become more liberated by men, female crime will increase

E.g. when womens liberation movement in 1960’s happened female crime spiked

As opportunities have become more equal, women have begun to adopt more ‘masculine’ roles in both legit work and in crime

So, women have stopped just committing minor crimes like shoplifting or prostitution and have developed into more

The fact that women have greater opportunities and confidence allows them to commit more crimes like white collar crimes or violent crimes

More women in senior positions- higher white collar crime

More rise in girl gangs and violence, armed robbery, etc…

EVALUATION OF LIBERATION THESIS

Middle class women have also benefited from the growing women's liberation yet they are more likely to commit crime compared to working class women

Box argues that increase in women crime is more to do with poverty, (esp as lone parents) rather than their liberation

Box- increasing number of female policemen at the same time as increasing rate of female violent criminals

Criminal subcultures such as gangs still exploit women and expect them to act in their role ‘be prostitutes’ etc.. E.g. in mobs

CARLEN - CLASS & GENDER DEALS

Used unstructured tape recorded interviews - Carlen 

Did a study of 39 15-46 year old WC women who had been convicted of a crime

The crimes varied from theft, prostitution to arson murder and grand theft auto, armed robbery , drugs etc…

20 were in prison or youth custody at the time of the interviews

Although Carlen knows there are some MC criminals, most are WC women

She adopts Hirschi's control theory to explain female crime, which suggests that humans act rationally for a reward when doing crime

If risks less than reward they'll do it

WHAT WERE THE CLASS & GENDER DEALS?

Carlen says WC women will conform to these deals

CLASS DEAL- WC WOMEN ARE OFFERED MATERIAL THINGS THEY DON'T HAVE LIKE LEISURE OR GOOD PLACE TO LIVE

GENDER DEAL- PATRIARCHAL IDEOLOGY PROMISES WOMEN MATERIAL AND EMOTIONAL REWARDS FROM FAMILY FOR BEING DOMESTIC

Therefore- if these rewards are not there, crime is more likely

THIS WAS THE CASE IN CARLEN’S STUDY

Although drugs and alcohol etc made it more likely to do crime, most issues stemmed from the women's upbringing such as being sa or in care

EVALUATION OF CLASS & GENDER DEALS

HEIDENSOHN AND CARLEN ARE TOO DETERMINISTIC

THEY SEE WOMENS BEHAVIOUR AS BEING CONTROLLED BY PATRIARCHY OR CLASS AND GENDER DALS

THIS UNDER PLAYS THE IMPORTANCE OF FREE WILL AND CHOICE IN OFFENDING, SOME WOMEN MAY CHOOSE TO COMMIT CRIME

 Furthermore, Carlen’s sample size was small and unrepresentative

YOUNG LEFT REALIST SAYS THEY ARE DEFINING DEVIANCE UP- MAKING WOMEN'S CRIMINALITY DUE TO THEIR DEVIANCE CHOICE NOT WELFARE ETC, MAKING THEM BEING LABELLED AS BAD WOMEN NOT MAD WOMEN

CHIVALRY THESIS- POLLACK

THE CJS IS INHERENTLY MORE PATRIARCHAL AS ITS MALE POPULATED BUT IT MAKES THEM BIASED AND MORE LENIENT TOWARDS WOMEN

POLLACK- CHIVALRY THESIS EFFECTS ON GENDER & CRIME

Men have a protective attitude towards women and want to protect them from the punishment of their crimes

‘They hate to accuse women and thus send them to their punishment’

Therefore, female crimes are less likely to be in official statistics (link to dark figure)

Therefore!!! It exaggerates the rates of male offending and ignores female offending

E.g. officials stats find that a higher rate of female offenders are convicted than male offenders for property offences except burglary. - DARK FIGURE OF CRIME 

EXAMPLE OF AN EVENT THAT SUPPORTS CHIVALRY THESIS

E.g. lavinya woodward was let off by the judge due to her being in oxford and female white mc woman

SELF REPORT STUDIES- DEBATES CHIVALRY THESIS

EVIDENCE FROM SOME SELF REPORT STUDIES SUGGESTS THAT THE CJS IS MORE LENIENT WITH WOMEN

E.G. GRAHAM AND BOWLINGS RESEARCH OF 1000+ 14-25 YEAR OLDS FOUND THAT ALTHOUGH MALES WERE MORE LIKELY TO OFFEND, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GENDERS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER THAN IN OFFICIAL STATISTICS

THEY FOUND THAT MALES WERE 2.33 MORE LIKELY TO ADMIT TO AN OFFENCE IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, HOWEVER THE OFFICIAL STATS SAY MALES ARE 4X MORE LIKELY TO COMMIT CRIME

Flood-Page et al found that 1 in 11 female self reported offenders had been cautioned or prosecuted whereas the figure for males was 1 in 7.

IN SUPPORT OF CHIVALRY THESIS

OFFICIAL STATISTICS

At first sight, court stats look like they support the chivalry thesis

E.G : Females are more likely than males to be released on bail rather than remanded in custody

Females are more likely to receive a fine or a community service sentence than be sentenced to prison

On average women receive shorter prison sentences

1 in 9 women receive sentences for shoplifting but 1 in 5 for men

Hood- did a study found that WOMEN WERE ⅓ LESS LIKELY TO BE JAILED FOR SIMILAR CASES

AGAINST CHIVALRY THESIS

FARRINGTON ET ALS STUDY OF 408 OFFENCES OF THEFT IN THE MAGISTRATES COURT FOUND THAT WOMEN WERE NOT SENTENCED MORE LENIENTLY

BOX- review of US and UK self report stats found that women were not treated favourably

BUCKLE AND FARRINGTON FOUND 2X MORE MALE SHOPLIFTERS THAN FEMALE EVEN THOUGH OFFICIAL STATS SAY THEY ARE ABOUT THE SAME AMOUNT- shows women more likely to be prosecuted than male counterparts

HALES ET ALL found females to be more likely to have been offenders in all major offences category

Other studies say the gender gap only increases as the offences get more serious

Under reporting of male crimes against women- some women are scared etc

E.g. 60% of rapes are not even reported due to fear or embarrassment or judgement

Only 8% SA reported and only after 35 assaults do women report domestic violence

Women offenders have more remorse so less sentence

BIAS AGAINST WOMEN

UNLIKE POLLACK, SOME FEMINISTS ARGUE THAT THE CJS IS BIASED AGAINST WOMEN NOT TOWARDS WOMEN

HEIDENSOHN -DOUBLE DEVIANCE

Courts treat females harshly when they deviate from gender norms 

SEEN AS DOUBLY DEVIANT, DEVIATE FROM THE LAW AND GENDER EXPECTATIONS

DOUBLE STANDARDS

E.G. Courts punish girls not boys for underage or promiscuous sexual activity - wayward girls can end up in care without committing an offence

E.g. victim blaming a woman for sending a nude rather than the male for spreading them

CARLEN- WOMEN & JAIL

When women are jailed its less because of the offence and more because of the courts assessment of them as mothers, daughters or wives

CAROL SMART- SEXIST JUDGES

There have been numerous cases of male judges making sexist, victim-blaming remarks.

Carol Smart (1989) quotes Judge Wild as saying that 'Women who say no do not always mean no. It is not just a question of how she says it, how she shows and makes it clear. If she doesn't want it she only has to keep her legs shut.'

WALKLATE- RAPE TRIALS

In rape trials the defendant isnt on trial the victim is as she has to prove shes reliable and ‘good’ and ‘not promiscuous’ and respectable, etc…

ADLER- RESPECT IN COURT

Women who go against gender norms find it more difficult to be believed and respected in court

E.g. punks and peace protesters