AC 4.1 (assess the use of criminological theories in informing policy development)

Question 1

Eugenics.

Answer 1

The idea that criminal traits are inherited.
In the early 20th century they believed that the ‘genetically unfit’ should not reproduce and this would destroy the ‘criminal gene’.
Policies favoured Compulsory Sterilisation.

Question 2

Compulsory Sterilisation.

Answer 2

People are forced to be sterilised to prevent reproduction.

Question 3

Examples for eugenics.

Answer 3

US Supreme Court.
Nazi’s racial purity.

Question 4

US Supreme Court.

Answer 4

1927 Buck v Bell made it so it was legal to compulsory sterilise the ‘unfit’ for protection and health of the state. Forced abortions and marriage restrictions.

Question 5

The Nazis and racial purity.

Answer 5

Wanted to ‘purify’ the Master Aryan Race by eliminating those who didn’t fit.
Targeted the physically and mentally disabled and sterilised 400,000 people against their will.
The Holocaust.

Question 6

The Holocaust.

Answer 6

Mass genocide of ‘inferior’ races during WW2.
6 million Jews killed and 1.5 million gypsies.

Question 7

Neurochemicals.

Answer 7

Brain chemistry is influenced by diet.

Question 8

Research for neurochemical.

Answer 8

Gesch - studied 231 inmates at a maximum security prison in the UK. Half were given daily vitamin capsules and half were given a placebo. Antisocial behaviour was recorded.
Those who took the real pill broke prison rules 35% less than those who took the placebo and serious offences (fighting, etc) dropped 37%.
The average number of incidents per 1000 days dropped from 16 to 10.4 for those who took the pill.
All prisons try to adopt the Balance and Good Health model, providing inmates with a good diet to reduce bad behaviour.

Virkkunen et al (1987) found violent offenders had a lower than average serotonin turnover.
This could be treated with salmon and tuna.

Question 9

Balance and Good Health model.

Answer 9

Provide inmates with a good diet to reduce bad behaviour.

Question 10

Capital punishment.

Answer 10

657 people executed in 2019 according to Amnesty International.
Britain temporarily removed the death penalty in 1965 and the murder rate did not increase so it was abolished in 1969.

Question 11

Psychoanalysis.

Answer 11

Freud.
Patients talk about their thoughts with the aim to access unconscious thoughts which are linked to criminal activity.
For example, childhood trauma.

Question 12

Psychoanalysis ‘evaluation’.

Answer 12

Least favoured approach when working with offenders.
Time consuming.
Blackburn (1993) said that there were few positives about using psychoanalysis.
Andrews et al (1990) said therapies should be avoiding within general sample of offenders.
Possible ethical issues.

Question 13

Operant learning and behaviour modification.

Answer 13

Aims to extinguish bad behaviour and promote good behaviour.
Token economy system used in prisons - Incentives and Earned Privileges Scheme.
Prison Reform Trust said that the scheme promotes conforming behaviour through rational choice. Enabling people to earn benefits in exchange for responsible behaviour.

Question 14

Operant learning and behaviour modification ‘evaluation’.

Answer 14

Fo and O’Donnel (1975) created a ‘buddy system’ where adults were assigned to young offenders to promote good behaviours, this was positive for serious offences but not as effective for less serious crimes.
Hobbs and Holt (1976) said that behaviour modification only has short-term effectiveness.
There is cases in the USA where food is withheld in prisons and used as a reward.

Question 15

Penal populism.

Answer 15

Government tries to pass laws to punish people because it will be popular in the general public.
As a result, consensus politics - all political parties think that offenders should be punished and to be tough on crime.

Question 16

David Wilson on penal populism.

Answer 16

Said that it stared because of the James Bulger case.

Question 17

How does media affect crime?

Answer 17

It changes how people perceive crime, what they think is common and uncommon.

Question 18

Tony Blair pledge.

Answer 18

Be tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime.

Question 19

Politics after Tony Blair.

Answer 19

Other parties followed his pledge.
Automatic life sentences for a second serious offence.
3rd class A drug trafficking offence = at least 7 years.

Question 20

Does penal populism work?

Answer 20

Rise in number of people in prison (45000 - 1993, 80000 - 2021). This is bigger than any other country in Western Europe.

2020 - 76 suicides, 65000 incidents of self-harm due to overcrowding and people couldn’t receive help.
2/3 of prisons in UK are overcrowded.`

Question 21

Prison - HM Prison Service.

Answer 21

We run 109/123 prisons in England and Wales.

Question 22

Prison statistics.

Answer 22

Prison population has increased by 70% in the last 30 years.
Short prison sentences are less effective than community sentences at reducing reoffending.
8931 people serving a sentence of less than 12 months were recalled to prison in the year.
Death rate in prisons has increased 50% in the last decade (282 deaths September 2020).

Question 23

Zero tolerance.

Answer 23

Pioneered by New York Police.
All crimes are acted on.
Favoured by right realists (con).

Successful in NY - since 1993 major crime crime fallen by 39% and murder fell by 49%.

Question 24

DSI Ray Mallon.

Answer 24

Cleveland police.
Promised to reduce crime by 20% in 18 months or he would resign.
Crime fell by 35% and he was given the nickname ‘Robocop’.

Question 25

Does zero tolerance work?

Answer 25

More aggression shown by the police.

There is other reasons for falling crime in New York (many of the people responsible for drug offences are in prison).

Crime has fallen in areas with no zero tolerance.

Long term effects are unknown, works well in densely populated areas with high policing and more petty crimes, maybe not where population is dispersed and crime rates are low.

Question 26

Restorative justice.

Answer 26

Victim and offenders meet up and trained facilitators work with them to talk about what happened.
85% of victims said it was a positive experience and 78% would recommend it.

2/3 of those leaving prison are re-convicted in 2 years, RJ reduces this to 1/2.

Question 27

CCTV.

Answer 27

First request made by police at the start of an investigation.
Acts as a deterrent.
Effective to identify potential perpetrator.

Question 28

Does restorative justice work.

Answer 28

College of policing review said ‘small but statistically significant reduction in crime.’
more effective for crimes like theft and has little impact for violent crimes.
can provide compelling evidence, showing the nature and severity of the crime, identifying witnesses and suspects.

Question 29

Multi Agency Approach

Answer 29

Cooperation between agencies working in the criminal justice system to detect crimes and prevent them.

Question 30

Example for multi-agency approach.

Answer 30

Domestic abuse can be prevented with numerous agencies working together.

Question 31

Home Office on Multi Agency Approach.

Answer 31

1984 ‘preventing crime is a task for the whole community’.
This stressed the need for a multi-agency approach.

Question 32

MAPPA.

Answer 32

Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangement.

Police, probation and prison services work together with other agencies to protect the public from harm.
Managing violent and sexual offenders.

Question 33

Informal policy making.

Answer 33

Non official ideas to prevent crime.
- family rules (grounding or withholding pocket money)

Question 34

Formal policy making.

Answer 34

Official ideas to prevent crime.
- prison sentences or community orders (crime control policies - laws designed to reduce criminal acts, state punishment policies - sanctions by the law (prison)).