Crime and Deviance P2 Flashcards
Official Statistics on Ethnicity and Crime:
Q: What do official statistics reveal about ethnicity and crime?
A: Black people are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. For example:
• Black people make up about 3% of the population but 13% of the prison population. • Asians are also overrepresented in arrests compared to their population size.
Q: What are the limitations of official statistics?
A:
• Over-reliance on police data: Reflects police bias and stereotypes rather than actual crime rates.
• Selective enforcement: Targeted policing in certain communities inflates crime figures for ethnic minorities.
Victim Studies:
Q: What do victim studies show about ethnicity and crime?
A:
• Higher rates of victimisation reported among ethnic minorities.
• Most crimes are intra-ethnic (e.g., black-on-black crime).
Q: What are the limitations of victim studies?
A:
• Racial bias: Victims may overidentify offenders as being from a certain ethnic group.
• Unreported crime: Many incidents go unreported, skewing data.
Self-Report Studies:
Q: What do self-report studies reveal about ethnicity and crime?
A:
• White respondents have higher rates of self-reported offending than black and Asian respondents.
• Challenges the stereotype that ethnic minorities commit more crime.
Q: What are the limitations of self-report studies?
A:
• Social desirability bias: Respondents may underreport crimes.
• Small sample sizes: May not accurately represent all ethnic groups.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Studies on Ethnicity and Crime:
Advantages:
• Offers a comprehensive understanding of racial disparities.
• Highlights the role of institutional racism.
Disadvantages:
• Overfocus on minorities, potentially ignoring white working-class crime.
• Racial bias in data collection undermines validity.
Explaining Stop-and-Search Patterns:
Q: Why are ethnic minorities disproportionately stopped and searched?
A:
• Institutional racism: Macpherson Report (1999) found evidence of racism in the police after the Stephen Lawrence case.
• Stereotyping: Reiner suggests the police operate with a “canteen culture” of racial bias.
Q: What are the impacts of stop-and-search on ethnic minorities?
A:
• Alienation and distrust of the police.
• Reinforcement of negative stereotypes.
Prosecution, Trials, and Conviction Sentencing:
Q: How does ethnicity affect prosecution and sentencing?
A:
• Bowling and Phillips: Ethnic minorities are more likely to be charged but less likely to be convicted due to lack of evidence.
• Convictions: Black offenders are more likely to receive custodial sentences for the same crimes compared to white offenders.
Q: What are the reasons for disparities?
A:
• Racial bias in judicial decisions.
• Socioeconomic factors influencing legal representation.
Social Composition of Ethnicity and Crime:
Q: What role does social composition play in crime rates?
A:
• Ethnic minorities are overrepresented in deprived urban areas with high crime rates.
• Structural factors like unemployment, poverty, and lack of educational opportunities contribute to higher offending rates.
Q: Which sociologists support this view?
A:
• Left Realism (Lea and Young): Relative deprivation, marginalisation, and subcultures explain higher crime rates among ethnic minorities.
Neo-Marxist Perspectives on Ethnicity and Crime:
Q: What do neo-Marxists argue about ethnicity and crime?
A:
• Hall et al. (Policing the Crisis): Moral panics around black mugging in the 1970s were used to distract from the economic crisis and justify tougher policing.
• Crime is a socially constructed label to control ethnic minorities.
Q: What are the criticisms of neo-Marxist perspectives?
A:
• Overemphasis on media manipulation.
• Ignores real issues like intra-ethnic violence and victimisation.
Crime Victimisation:
Q: What patterns exist in crime victimisation by ethnicity?
A:
• Ethnic minorities are at higher risk of hate crimes and street crime.
• Victimisation often occurs in deprived areas where minorities are concentrated.
Q: What explanations are there for these patterns?
A:
• Structural factors: Poverty and high-risk living environments.
• Cultural vulnerability: Hate crimes targeting minorities.
Macpherson Report (1999):
- Institutional racism in policing.
Hall et al. (1978):
- Moral panics and policing minorities.
Bowling and Phillips (2002):
- Ethnic disparities in arrests and sentencing.
Lea and Young (1984):
- Left realism – structural causes of minority offending.
Reiner (2000):
- “Canteen culture” in police forces.
Media Representation of Crime:
Point: Media over-represents violent and sexual crimes.
Sociologist: Ericson et al. - Found that 45% of media reports focus on violent or sexual crime.
Evaluation:
* Strengths: Explains public fear of crime and distorted perceptions.
* Weaknesses: Doesn’t reflect actual crime statistics (e.g., most crimes are property-related).
Moral Panics:
Point: Media creates moral panics by labeling groups as “folk devils.”
Sociologist: Stanley Cohen - Mods and Rockers study (1972).
Evaluation:
* Strengths: Demonstrates how media exaggerates deviance and creates societal reactions.
* Weaknesses: Outdated in the era of social media where moral panics are decentralised.
The Cycle of Moral Panic:
- Folk Devils
- Warning period
- Event
- Impact: labels attached to deviants
- Inventory: people form a picture
- Reaction: try to make sense
- Social control: can amplify the situation, making the fold devils a group with greater solidarity
Folk Devils definition:
- Folk devil is a person or group of people who are portrayed in folklore or the media as outsiders and deviant, and who are blamed for crimes or other sorts of social problems.
Deviancy Amplification:
Point: Media exaggeration increases deviance through a “self-fulfilling prophecy.”
Sociologist: Leslie Wilkins - Concept of deviancy amplification spiral.
Evaluation:
* Strengths: Supported by interactionist theories (e.g., Becker’s labelling theory).
* Weaknesses: Ignores structural causes of crime, such as poverty or systemic inequality.
Fear of Crime:
Point: Media increases fear of crime disproportionately to actual risks.
Sociologist: Gerbner et al. - Cultivation theory; media promotes “mean world syndrome.”
Evaluation:
* Strengths: Highlights the psychological effects of prolonged media exposure.
* Weaknesses: Fear may not translate into actual behavior changes (e.g., Ditton and Duffy suggest the link is overstated).
Media as a Cause of Crime:
Point: Media glamorises crime, leading to imitation or copycat behaviour.
Sociologist: Albert Bandura - Bobo Doll experiment on observational learning.
Evaluation:
* Strengths: Explains how violent media can influence behaviour.
* Weaknesses: Overly deterministic; Livingstone argues most people can differentiate between media and reality.
