Traditional and Neo-Marxist Views of Crime

how is the Marxist view of crime similar to the functionalist view of crime

they are both structural theories, meaning that they both see the source of crime and deviance as located within the structure of society

what structural factors does traditional Marxism see as the source of crime

class inequality and capitalism

according to Marxism, what is crime/ law enforcement part of in society

the ideological superstructure

what word is used to describe capitalism in relation to crime

criminogenicwhat

what does it mean that capitalism is criminogenic

capitalism creates crime

why is capitalism criminogenic

* working class people may have to commit crime because they are living in poverty and it is the only way to survive (eg. stealing)
* capitalism encourages consumer greed and produces relative deprivation - crime may be the only way of satisfying this greed for some working class people
* alienation and the lack of satisfaction at work can lead to frustration and aggression, and thus crime

what sociologist is associated with the idea that capitalism encourages consumer greed and thus crime

Chambliss

Gordon on capitalism as criminogenic

crime is a rational response to the capitalist system and is therefore seen in all social classes

* statistics make it appear that most crime is committed by the working class

what would traditional Marxists see as the solution to the criminogenic nature of capitalism

a communist revolutionq

what is an evaluation to the idea that a communist revolution is a solution to crime

* crime still exists in communist societies
* Marx would however argue that these are failed communist societies
* we will continue to have the subterranean values that make us want to commit crime in any society (Matza)

what functionalist idea is similar to Chambliss’ idea that capitalism encourages consumer greed

Parson’s GAIL structure - wealth is part of goal attainment

how does Marxism see law creation and enforcement

selective

what does it mean that law creation is selective

it is wrong to assume that the law reflects the norms and values of everyone in society - instead it reflects the dominant (capitalist) ideology and thus only laws that benefit the ruling class will be passed

what is an example of a law that may be passed to benefit the ruling class, according to Chambliss

laws protecting private property

Snider on selective law creation

laws that threaten big business, such as fair trade laws and health and safety legislation is unlikely to be passedwhat

what is a criticism of Snider

health and safety legislation is passed, but as a means of creating false class consciousness for the working class - because law, crime, and criminals perform an ideological function for capitalism

what does it mean that law enforcement is selective

crime is punished that criminalises the working class, but upper class, ‘white collar’ crime goes unpunished, and is often not included in statistics

how much more expensive is corporate crim for the USA than street crime

20x

what is corporate crime

crimes committed by large companies (usually for profit), and affecting employees, consumers, and the public - such as failing to implement correct health and safety procedures

how many people in the USA die each year from industrial accidents

14,000

how many people in the USA die each year from occupationally induced diseases

100,000

what are working class people defined as when they commit crime

social failures - suggesting they are responsible for their own criminal activities, not structural factors

what is achieved for capitalism by prosecuting large numbers of working class people

if they make up the majority of prison populations they are unable to stage a communist revolution, and it teaches people that working class people are naturally more criminal

what is occupational crime

theft from companies committed by employees

how does upper class crime often go unprosecuted or remain hidden from official crime statistics

* the ruling class can pay for lawyers to avoid prosecution
* corporate crime may be dealt with by regulatory bodies rather than the criminal justice system, who may be more likely to turn a blind eye
* corporations will often deal with occupational crime ‘in house’ to avoid damaging their company’s reputation
* victims of crimes of the powerful may not feel able to report crimes

which sociologist defined the term white collar crime

Sutherland

how did Sutherland define white collar crime

crimes committed by persons of high social status and respectability in the course of their occupations

what are some examples of upper class crimes

* Akshata Murphy - tax evasion
* Prince Andrew - sexual assault/ pedophilia

what else should be considered besides class when discussing law enforcement as selective

age, gender, and ethnicity

what is an example of a recent event that is considered to be a corporate crime

the building collapses during the Turkey earthquakes

is the Marxist approach to crime still relevant today

yes as class inequality is continuing to grow (eg. cost of living crisis)

what did Ditton and Mars study

occupational crime - bakery delivery men, who often saw theft as part of the job, labelling it as ‘perks’

Clarke on occupational crime

management often turn a blind eye to occupational crime as they allow for it in staff wages

what could be understood in the fact that management often ‘allow’ for occupational crime in staff wages (Clarke)

the proletariat are being underpaid

what did Levi study

occupational crime - 75% of all fraud on banks and building societies is by employees but they don’t prosecute as they want to avoid negative publicity

occupational crime is often not labelled as crime, how would a Marxist explain this

the values of capitalism (self-interest) make it seem acceptable to break the law

Box on corporate crimes

big companies deliberately use less developed countries for unsafe products and factories

why are corporate crimes not always necessarily considered crimes

they may break codes or standards but not always be illegal

what is an example of Box’s idea of corporate crime

the Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal, India, in 1984

* Union Carbide is an American company

how does the Union Carbide gas leak show that crimes of the upper class/ corporations often go unresolved or unpunished

people have still not received sufficient financial compensation (only £500 each) to pay for decades of resulting medical problems

* leaving many people unable to work, the Bhopal Disaster pushed many people into poverty

how is Chernobyl an example of corporate crime

Russia took over a power plant in Northern Ukraine in 1977 (making this an example of Box’s idea) and lied about how bad the radiation levels were, so the public around it became severly ill

what are the four types of corporate crime

* crimes against consumers
* crimes against employees
* environmental offences
* financial frauds

what do crimes against consumers involve

mis-selling goods, false advertising, fixing prices between super markets

what do crimes against employees involve

health and safety breaches, breaking labour laws, unfair treatment

what do environmental offences involve

damaging the environment, breaking environmental laws

what does financial fraud include

not paying taxes, embezzlement, theft of pensions, insider trading

what is an example of a corporate crime against consumers

the Ford Pinto car - rushed through production and became infamous for exploding into flames

what is an example of a corporate crime against employees

Rana Plaza factory collapse:

* killed more than 1100 people
* injured more than 2500 people
* not all companies represented at Rana Plaza joined in collective action to produce long-term compensation for the victims/ survivors

what is an example of a corporate environmental offence

the Bhopal Disaster

what is an example of a case of corporate financial fraud

Philip Green pension theft (BHS)

what are some examples of capitalist countries that have low crime rates, but why might this be

Japan and Switzerland, but they both have better welfare systems than the USA

why might politicians find it important to pass laws that benefit large companies

because the economy controls politics, which is part of the superstructure according to traditional Marxism; for example, large companies will often donate to political campaigns