New Right thinkers

New Right (1)

• They beleive that if people experience inequality it is either their fault of the fault of the state for providing benefits and therefore encouraging people to be lazy

• So believe in a meritocracy

Murray (1)

^Underclass: A group below the working class, characterised by welfare dependency, criminal activity and a lack of work ethic, and increasingly disconnected from mainstream values.

^America: In ^{Losing Ground} (1984), Murray argued that government welfare policies encouraged benefit dependency and discouraged self-sufficiency, increasing the underclass and resentment among taxpayers.

^{Britain (1989):} In a ^{Sunday Times} article, Murray argued that Britain had developed an underclass, blaming poor parental socialisation, juvenile delinquency and parents' inability to maintain employment.

Murray (2)

‘Murray who described himself as a visitor from a plagued area coming to see if the disease had spread, found signs that Britain had too been infected’

Charles Murray even went on to co-author an incredibly decisive book called The bell curve (1994) The book argued that poor people, and particularly poor black people, were inherently less intelligent than white or Asian people by IQ.

OVERALL: Murray argued that poverty and inequality result partly from individuals rejecting the values of hard work and self-sufficiency, with the welfare state encouraging dependency. He also argued that IQ differences

Sewell (1997) (1)

did not identify explicitly with the NEW right but some of his ideas align  

Sewell argues that inequalities experienced by some ethnic minority groups can partly result from factors within the minority community itself.

Sewell echoes some of the arguments made by Murray in his study as he argued that a high proportion of African Caribbean boys in the UK are raised by lone-parents family's (usually headed only by women)

Sewell (1997) (2)

• In his research he highlights that in 2001, 57% of African Caribbean families with dependent children were headed by lone parents, compared to only 25% of white families being headed by lone parents. 

He argues that 'absence of a male tole model’disciplinarian withing the family makes young African Caribbean boys more vulnerable to peer pressure’ 

For example, many young boys are drawn to gangs that emphasise aggression and how to be a ‘macho man’. Therefore, members disregard the police and the only importance they give is to the most recent fashion trends and music. 

Evaluation (1)

Murray focused on the cultural attitudes of the working class but overlooked important economic issues like racial prejudice and discrimination that contribute to the existence of an underclass.

• Instead of understanding the struggles of the underclass, he blamed them for their situation suggesting that their own behaviour was at fault.

Evaluation (2)

Sewell’s study (1997) has been heavily criticised and depicted as an oversimplification of complex issues because he blames African Caribbean people for their inequalities that they experience.

He has been accused of blaming black fathers for deserting their families, black women not being able to socialise their male child properly and blaming black communities for failing to support their young people, mainly through socialisation.