Revision

Crime and Deviance

Evaluate the usefulness of the New Right perspective compared with other sociological theories in explaining crime and deviance in society (30 marker)

The usefulness of the New Right perspective can explain the reason of crime and deviance in society e.g. welfare dependency, lone-parent families and broken window theory. On the other hand, other sociological theories can also explain the crime and deviance in society such as Functionalists and Marxists. Functionalists explain the functions of crime (e.g. Durkheim) and Merton’s strain theory. Whereas Marxists talk about how crime is criminogenic and it’s the result of capitalism.

The New Right share similar views with functionalists and the traditional nuclear family, but they look further into polices. New Right theorists believe the increase of crime is because of the rise of single-parent families. For example, Murray suggests that a growing underclass is created by a welfare system that encourages dependency and a lack of proper socialisation. He blames this on single mothers, as they believe the traditional nuclear family, meaning having an instrumental father and an expressive mother. Murray believes the rise of other family types, in particular lone-parent families, is the main reason for social problems and crime. Due to the absense of the father means boys lack a positive male role model, and this can lead them to turn to other males as their model to learn about masculinity from peers in a way that encourages deviant or criminal behaviour. Murray also links single-parent families to welfare dependency because there is no ‘breadwinner’ to provide financial support. However, the New Right doesn’t cover individual differences, as children who suffer from this will not always want to seek another role model, or they may turn to a relative who can teach them non-criminal behaviour (someone who teaches them the correct norms and values and forms moral behaviour).

The New Right blames the lack of discipline for the cause of crime and deviance in society, not poverty or inequality. New Rightists, Wilson and Kelling created the Broken Windows Theory, which outlines that signs of disorder in a neighbourhood, e.g. graffiti, vandislism and littering, signal that no one cares, leading to a spiral of decline and attracting more serious crime. Right realists emphasise the influence of the media as a factor in crime because it can glamorise criminal and deviant acts. Right Realism has zero tolerance and tougher policing. They also believe poor socialisation, weak disciplines, lack of role and exposure to crimonogenic cultures can reduce self-control and increase the appeal of criminal behaviour. To apply to the real world, the New Right focuses on Anti-social behaviour (ASB), which includes acts like public drunkness, intimidation, vandalism, and rowdy behaviour. However, critics point out that it is difficult to isolate lone-parent families as the sole factor, and children from these families are more likely to be involved in low-level anti-social behaviour rather than serious crime.

Another sociologists also explain the crime and deviance in society. Functionalists, Durkheim believes crime is inevitable and universal, which means that all societies have it and its impossible not to. He states that there are 3 functions of crime: Boundary maintenance, Adaptation and change, and Social Cohesion. Boundary maintenance refers to publicly punishing crime, which reinforces shared norms and values. This gives society a reminder of what is accepted and what isn’t, which can minimise the rate of crime. Adaptation and Change (social and moral reform) allow societies to evolve by highlighting outdated laws and values. Lastly, Social Cohesion, which is when a severe crime can unite a community in outrage, strengthening social solidarity and a sense of belonging e.g. protests of women’s rights. Durkheim also emphasises on Anomie, which is the normlessness during periods of rapid change where society’s shared rules and moral guidelines break down. He suggests that too little crime can make society overly rigid and unable to adapt, while too much crime signals a breakdown of shared values and the disintegration of social order. However, this is too deterministic and ignores free will. This suggests that individuals are simply products of social structure, which ignores the role of individual choice and free will.

Another sociologists, Merton (functionalists) explains crime and deviance in society. Mertons strain theory builds on Durkheim’s concept of anomie. Strain between cultural goals (success like ‘The American Dream’) and means to achieve them legitimately. However, some people cannot achieve this so they turn to illegitimate means. He put together 5 adaptations to strain: conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism and rebellion. For example, innovation is when an individual uses illegitimate means to achieve a goal (crime). They accept the goals and want to succeed however they reject as they have no choice i.e. commit crimes for wealth. A real life example can be, fraud/drug dealing or cheating on examples. However, Mertons strain theory doesn’t explain all crimes as it focuses on utilitarian crimes (theft,fraud) not accounting for crimes that are not for profit (e.g.vandialism, assault).

Marxists view crime as the result of capitalism, inequality and exploitation. They believe that capitalism is criminogenic and is a response to class inequality and alienation. Gordon, in crimogenic capitalism, it encourages greed, competition and exploitation, meaning crime is inevitable. Therefore, this causes social class frustration and exclusion. Gordon believes that the legal system benefits the ruling class. The criminal justice system reflects dominant ideology as the large majority of the population doesn’t have a say. This applies to most laws other than the main ones like murder, rape, and violence. Marxists examine power and inequality as it shows how laws favour the wealthy, leading to a system that more often criminalises working-class individuals. However, It doesnt sufficiently consider other forms of inequality, such as those based on gender and ethnicity and only focuses on class.

Overall, Functionalists have the most useful view on crime and deviance in society because it recognises the social function of crime and emphasises social stucture and values and consensus. Marxists analyse crime across classes, but it is too deterministic as it only focuses on class rather than other factors that can cause crime in society. Furthermore, the New Right is also criticised for only focusing on certain crimes like street crime and ignoring more violent, corporate, white-collar crimes, as they focus on more utilitarian crimes. In conclusion, New Right focuses on factors like the media and how it can impact crime and deviance in society but functionalists have the most useful views on crime and deviance in society compared to other sociological theories because its like the foundation for other theories.