ac 2.3 + 3.2 - social structure (sociological) Flashcards
what theories come under social structure?
- functionalism
- marxism
what do functionalists believe?
they believe that crim serves a purpose in society as it maintains social order
functionalism - Durkheim
Durkheim argues that deviance itself was functional, normal and inevitable and he said that crime only becomes dysfunctional when it’s either too high - there will be chaos - or too low - there will be no change in society. Durkheim used an organic analogy to demonstrate the function crime serves, e.g. the human body grows and develops and so does society due to policy development for crimes/changes in the laws
boundary maintenance
this is the idea that having people who commit crime help maintain the norms and values in society as, if people see those who deviate being punished, they are less likely to deviate themselves
safety valve
this is the idea that certain crimes act as a safety valve and release pressure which prevents more serious crimes, e.g. prostitution allows men to meet their needs and prevents them committing worse crimes like sexual assault/rape to fulfil their needs
functionalism - Albert Cohen
Cohen argues that the result of people being unable to achieve societies’ goals by legitimate means is a sense of ‘status frustration’ which leads to people using alternative means to gain status in society or their subculture. Cohen said people - particularly working class males - commit crimes that have no monetary value in order to release their frustration over having no status, he called them ‘non-utilitarian crimes’
strengths of functionalism
- Durkheim was the first person to realise that crime can serve a purpose in society. for example, he said that it reinforces boundaries between right and wrong. therefore, this can help us to develop ideology surrounding criminality.
- there is support from Cloward and Ohlin for Cohen’s theory. showed how different types of neighbourhoods give rise to different illegitimate opportunities and different subcultures. therefore, adds credibility.
weaknesses of functionalism
- Durkheim’s theory is descriptive. It doesn’t explain why people commit crime only the effect of them doing so. therefore, this is a limited explanation of criminality.
- Cohen’s theory is a bias explanation. over-estimates working class crime and ignores the crimes of the wealthy. limited explanation/lacks credibility.
what is marxism?
marxism says that crime happens as a result of the economic system in society (capitalism)
bourgeoisie
the ruling class, property owners who own the means of production and employ and exploit the proletariats. they create inequality by maintaining power
proletariat
the working class, only means of substance is to sell their labour for a wage
criminogenic
marxism says that society is criminogenic, this is a crime causing system
capitalism is a criminogenic system because:
- capitalist systems exploit people and make them poor, so crime becomes the only way to survive
- capitalism makes consumer goods desirable, and even seem necessary, so committing crime to gain them is the only viable option for some people
- feelings of inequality and exploitation cause people to act in a non-utilitarian way to express their frustration
- capitalism encourages the profit motive and this promotes crime amongst business people, such as white collar crime
selective law enforcement
the police are more likely to suspect the poor/working class and treat them more harshly. white collar crime is much less likely to be prosecuted than street crime and if it is it tends to be much less severely
strengths of marxism
- there is support from carson for selective law enforcement. he found that only three out of two hundred companies who had broken safety laws were prosecuted. therefore, this adds credibility to marxism as an explanation of criminality.
- application. if we know that the media presenting consumer goods as desirable leads to crime, we can attempt to prevent this. reduce criminality in society.
weaknesses of marxism
- ignores individual differences. largely ignores other non-class inequalities, e.g. ethnicity and gender. 95% of the prison population is males. therefore a limited explanation of criminality.
- not all capitalist societies have higher crime rates. Japan’s rate is only about a 5th of the USA’s. therefore, credibility is questioned.
