Contempory Issues In Crime - Postmodernism

Question 1

The causes of crime

Answer 1

Most socioloigcal theories of C&D explain it using social structure and core values that the criminal goes against.
E.g. focusing on marginalisation, relative deprivation, strain theory etc.
Society is characterised by a fragmentation of this social structure, the meta narrative that gave people their identities has been replaced by uncertainty and individual choice of identity - meaning that in todays society everyone now has the choice to be who they want to be. Many barriers have been broken for people.

So this means that each crime a person commits becomes a one-off event expressing whatever they chose their identity to be.

Question 2

Cause of crime AO3:

Answer 2

This doesn’t explain why most people don’t harm others and why certain people engage in harmful activities in order to assert their identities.

Support AO3: this theory recognises other dimensions to the cause of crime, beyond structural factors which have been dominated in the sociology of C&D.

Also offers explanations for non-utilitarian crime.

Question 3

The Control of crime

Answer 3

There is a growing emphasis on private crime prevention, rather than reliance on police.

Police have also become more localised and community based.
Contemporary societies use surveillance to control everyone, not just offenders anymore.
Faucoult - surveillance is penetrating more private aspects of our lives, CCTV monitors everything.

Question 4

Control of crime AO3:

Answer 4

(Support) - this approach explains contemporary developments like widespread surveillance, e.g. using CCTV and consumer tracking.
Expand on this point and use liquid surveillance to support your point as it is most relevant to today’s society.