Crime And Deviance Flashcards
define crime
crimes are an illegal act for which someone can be punished by the government more so a gross violation of law.
define deviance
deviance is any behaviour that violates social norms, and is usually of sufficient severity to warrant disapproval from the majority of society. deviance can be criminal or non-criminal.
why is crime and deviance a social construct?
neither of them are universal concepts, meaning the although the definitions are agreed around the world, example are not. they are cultural, locality, historical and age relative.
how is crime and deviance affected by cultural differences?
there are certain laws which no matter where you go I the world you know are illegal to commit, e.g. murder.
adultery is not illegal in most countries around the world, however it is illegal in Taiwan. in Michigan you can receive life imprisonment for adultery.
how is crime and deviant affected by contextually?
when thinking of deviance context is necessary, not only in terms of geographical location but in terms of place and time.
e.g. it is not deviant to wear a Bikini at the beach, but to wear it at a job interview it is deviant.
examples of age affects deviance not crime.
- it is legal for a child aged 5-16 to drink alcohol at home.
- at the age of 14 you can get a part time job for a max of 2 hours on a school day.
- in UK nations the age of consent is 16.
- you can apply to a dart a child at 21.
how is crime and deviance historically relative?
what may. have been considered deviant in the past is no longer so and acts that were once legal have become illegal.
e.g slavery was once considered a sign of wealth and privilege, today it is illegal across the world.
e.g homosexuality was in ancient times very common practice, it was then considered deviant and in todays society it is common practice.
examples of when acts became illegal.
1991 - rate within marriage was made illegal.
1994 - informally organised raves were made illegal.
2007 - the smoking ban.
2016 - the psychoactive substance act.
what is the ideological state apparatus (ISA)?
maintain the role of bourgeoisie by controlling peoples ideas, values and beliefs.
what is the repressive state apparatus (RSA)?
maintain the rule of the bourgeoisie by force such as police, army and courts.
who created the the ISA and RSA?
Althusser
give an example of the RSA.
the Black Lives Matter movement - the media was key to promote ideological control around the riots and ideologies of conformity however, when this broke down the police and polices effectively went to criminalise protests.
what are Durkheim’s three key ideas about crime and deviance?
1 crime is inevitable and necessary.
2 crime has multiple positive functions for society.
3 too much crime is bad for society.
how does Durkheim say that crime is inevitable?
crime is present in all societies that exsist and it always will.
he does however say that crime is mow industrialised societies is higher.
why Is crime inevitable?
this is because people aren’t as equally connected to the collective sentiments because of the variations in individuals lives, meaning that it becomes impossible of one true collective as nobody has the same lived experiences.
what is a society of saints?
a society assists is exactly what it sounds like. a society filled with perfect behaviour.
what would a society of saints cause?
a society of saints would cause the general expectations in society to be so high that the slightest slip would be deemed as a serious offence, resulting in awful prosecutions.
how is crime and deviance necessary?
Durkheim argues that all social change begins with some form of deviance. in order for changes to occur, yesterday’s deviance becomes today’s norms.
crime and deviance sociologists and statistics.
there are a lot of crimes that arnt deviant and vice versa … give a government department of transport.
according to the government department of transport, over 52% of drivers exceed the speed limit on 30mph roads.
what is Althusser’s repressive state apparatus?
Althusser argued that the state consists of two apparatuses which keep the bourgeoise in power, one of which is repressive state apparatus.
- repressive state apparatuses maintain the rule of the bourgeoise but force, such as the police, army and the courts.
give an example of the repressive state apparatus.
when considering the Black Lives Matter movement, the media was key to promote ideological control around the riots and ideologies of conformity. however, when this broke down, the police and policies effectively went to criminals the protests.
what are Durkheim’s 3 key ideas about crime and deviance?
- crime is inevitable and necessary.
- crime has multiple positive functions for society.
- too much crime is bad for society.
what are the positive functions of crime - the publicity function (Erikson)?
Erikson pointed out that the dramatic setting of the courtroom where the lawyers and judges dress in special clothes, and where there is a ceremony, condemns a persons actions in a public arena. in contemporary society, newspapers also help to perform the publicity function, with their often lurid accounts of crime acts.