functionalist views of crime and deviance

main view of crime and deviance

crime and deviance is related to:

• functionality - must be functional for society

• the value consensus - strengthening / breaking it

• the strength of socialisation and social control

• crime is functional and fits the organic analogy

Durkheim and Cohen key ideas + evaluation points

• crime is inevitable - no society of saints

• crime is functional in managed amounts (eg. creates jobs)

• too much crime is dysfunctional and causes anomie within society

DURKHEIM FUNCTIONS OF CRIME

• Boundary maintenance - crime defines and clarifies boundaries via punishment to deter others (eg. southport stabbing)

• social cohesion - people come together in solidarity in the aftermath (eg. George Floyd and BLM, London riots and the big clean up)

• social change - people deliberately break the law to make boundaries change for a better society and progress (eg. civil rights movement, womens suffragettes)

COHENS ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS OF CRIME

• safety valve - allows people to release pressure in a harmless way / petty crimes (eg. drinking, drug use, vandalism)

• warning device - to express to the stage that something isn’t working so they can address it (eg. protests and riots such as southport stabbing and BLM)

evaluation

• victim neglect - fails to acknowledge suffering and harm caused

• justification / glorifying crime - emphasising positive functions can appear to justify or promote crime or deviance, rather than condemn it

Merton - strain theory

• explains the structural causes of crime - society is structurally unequal

• focuses on the consensus in America (American dream)

• social approved goals - wealth, status, happiness

• socially approved / legitimate means - education, hard work, promotion, savings

• problem = society is unequal therefore some peoples means to achieve goals are blocked due to marginalisation and inequality

• this mean that people are under pressure or strain achieve their goals, so they must respond in five ways:

— conformity - accept institutionalised means and cultural goals, so achieves through legitimate means (eg. promotions and working hard)

— innovation - reject institutionalised means but accept cultural goals, so uses illegitimate means to get them (eg. drug dealers, serial burglars)

— ritualism - accepts institutionalised means but rejects cultural goals, so conforms to legitimate means but given up striving for success (eg. bored m/c worker)

— retreatism- rejects institutionalised means and cultural goals - drops out of society (eg. homelessness, petty crimes, drug abuse and alcohol)

— rebellion - challenges cultural goals and means and creates new ones (eg. travellers, monks, nuns, illegal protestors)

evaluation

• explains high levels of w/c crime

• explains why some w/c commit crime and some don’t

• too reliant on official crime statistics which over represent w/c crime

• assumes a consensus

• fails to explain non-utilitarian crime such as sexual, violent abuse

Hirshi - control theory

Hirshi explains why people conform and therefore why people deviate, he says most people are potential criminals because they are naturally selfish.

• there are 4 social bonds with others abs society which encourage conformity, therefore weak social bonds create crime.

— commitment - to future goals and success such as work, qualifications, raising a family, building a legitimate future.

— involvement - in the community - paid work, family life, social life (no time / opportunity for crime)

— attachment - to others around, caring about wishes of peers and family (relationships with conformers)

—beliefs - about what is morally right and wrong, people respect and obey the law

evaluation

• helps policy makers / professionals strengthen bonds to encourage conformity

• over simplifies the causes of criminality and deviance

• ignores biological and psychological factors

Cohen - status frustration

• many young women/c males are denied status in wider society legitimately (eg. qualifications / opportunity), so feel frustrated, spite, and a need for revenge

• response - form a delinquent subculture with opposing norms and values (eg. petty crimes, vandalism, swearing, drug use)

• this makes them achieve status and respect within their peer groups by committing mainly non-utilitarian crime - trophy crimes.

coward and ohlin - differential opportunity structure

• there are= different responses to w/c youth strain - not just revenge culture

• this depends on the opportunity structures available to them

criminal subcultures - become part of existing criminal networks and so role models to be supported / mentored by (achieve success illegitimately through utilitarian crimes)

conflict subcultures - conflicts between peer groups / criminal gangs (achieve success illegitimately through turf wars, gang culture, street crime and violent crime)

retreats subcultures - lack criminal role models and gang opportunities, drop out of society (do not achieve success legitimately or illegitimately, participate in illegal drug use, petty theft, prostitiution)

evaluation

• explain non-utilitarian crimes (unlike merton)

• explain patterns and stats in crime

• explain types of subcultures

• over predicts w/c crime and ignores white collar crime

• assume youths share the same goals

• criminality is assumes - more conform

• victim blaming - focuses on male, w/c youths.