Assess the use of Criminological Theories in Informing Policy Development (AC 4.1)

Question 1

Which biological theory is linked with polices that are still used today?

Answer 1

Biochemical Processes
(Other biological theories are either discredited today or the policies suggested by them are deemed unethical)

Question 2

What kind of policies do Biochemical Processes enforce?

Answer 2

Due to several biochemical processes, such as hormone levels, insufficient diet, blood sugar, etc, being linked to criminality their policies mainly involve individual treatment programs for offenders
- Drug treatments
- Diet
- Surgery
- Death penalty

Question 3

Policies: Drug Treatments

Answer 3

• Aversion therapy for alcohol using Antabuse, also Methadone as an alternative to heroine
• Chemical castration using Stilbestrol (a female hormone) to repress male sex drive

Question 4

Policies: Diet

Answer 4

• Dietary changes to avoid foods which induce hyperactivity
• Gesch found that supplementing prisoners’ diets with vitamins, minerals and fatty acids reduced anti-social behaviour (up to 37% in the case of violent incidents)

Question 5

Policies: Surgery

Answer 5

• Surgical castration to stop the production of sex hormones in offenders
• Lobotomy, although rarely preformed now, was a procedure used to treat schizophrenia and spontaneous criminals which cut off the connection between the frontal lobe and the thalamus

Question 6

Policies: Death Penalty

Answer 6

The most serious policy involving the ending of a prisoners life for their crime and acting as a deterrent for others

Question 7

Effectiveness of Biochemical Policies

Answer 7

• Drug treatments have side effects such as the use of Stilbestrol causing physical alternations to the male body
• Surgical ‘treatments’ for criminals could be considered unethical procedures
• Crime rates are still incredibly high in countries that have the death penalty, like the USA

Question 8

Sociological policies: Labelling theory

Answer 8

• Decriminalisation
• Diversion policies
• Reintegrative shaming

Question 9

Labelling theory policies: Decriminalisation

Answer 9

Decriminalising offences, like homosexuality (sexual offences act 1967), means fewer people are labelled as criminals, preventing secondary deviance

Question 10

Labelling theory policies: Diversion policies

Answer 10

Diversion policies keep offenders out of the justice system by having an officer to attend management classes of using discretion

Question 11

Labelling theory policies: Reintegrative shaming

Answer 11

Labelling the act but to the actor as criminal, preventing a master status

Question 12

Effectiveness of Labelling theory policies

Answer 12

• Can deal with minor offences and young offenders successfully
• Avoids further labelling and secondary deviance
• Reintegrative shaming is not fully effective, not all criminal feel remorse

Question 13

Sociological policies: Right realism

Answer 13

• Situational Crime Prevention SCP
• Environmental crime prevention, Zero Tolerant Policing ZTP
• Penal populism and imprisonment

Question 14

Right realism policies: SCP

Answer 14

Increasing the risk and decreasing the reward of committing crime by ‘target hardening’ e.g. Security systems

Question 15

Right realism policies: Environmental crime prevention, ZTP

Answer 15

Wilson and Kelling’s broken window theory suggest removing all signs of disorder to make the risk factor seem higher and ZTP can focus on even trivial crimes to ‘fix broken windows’

Question 16

Right realism policies: Penal populism and imprisonment

Answer 16

Tough penalties should deter future criminals and incapacitate present ones, the crime sentences act 1997 introduced mandatory minimum sentences for repeat offenders

Question 17

Effectiveness of Right realism policies

Answer 17

• SCP, if criminals are rational actors they’ll just find another, easier victim (displacement)
• ZTP, crime rates dropped in New York after their introduction of ZTP (other factors could have contributed though), also institutional racism may effect arrests
• Prison doesn’t deter offenders enough to effect crime rates, 48% of adults are reconnected within year of release

Question 18

Sociological policies: Left realism

Answer 18

• Reduce inequality
• Democratic policing
• A multi-agency approach
• New labour policies

Question 19

Left realism policies: Reduce inequality

Answer 19

Proving opportunities such as good jobs and housing for all will reduce relative deprivation and the ‘need’ for crime

Question 20

Left realism policies: democratic policing

Answer 20

Police can win support from communities by allowing them to decide priorities, building a better relationship between the two, preventing groups feeling marginalised

Question 21

Left realism policies: A multi-agency approach

Answer 21

Other agencies must be involved in crime, not just police, e.g. schools, housing departments, NHS, etc… No Knives, Better Lives used this approach and ran a successful campaign

Question 22

Left realism policies: New labour policies

Answer 22

1997-2010 New labour policies aimed at being tough on crime, and the causes of it through investing in deprived neighbourhoods

Question 23

Effectiveness of Left realism policies

Answer 23

• Some success in this approach to crime
• Places priority on more vulnerable groups