Crime & Deviance Flashcards
Name the functionalists of crime
Durkheim
Hirschi
Merton
Albert Cohen
Name the Marxists of crime
Chambliss
Gordon
Snider
Name the Neo-Marxists of crime
Taylor, Walton and Young
Hall et al
Name the Interactionists of crime
Becker
Cicourel
Stan Cohen
Jock Young
Name the Feminists of crime
Heidensohn
Walby
Archer
Adler
Name the Postmodernists of crime
John Lee
Katz and Lyng
Name the Left Realists of crime
Lea and Young - Jock Young
Kinsey, Lea and Young
Young and Matthews
Name the Right Realists of crime
Murray
Wilson and Hernstein
Clarke
Explain the Functionalist Durkheim’s theory
Crime is functional and inevitable because
- strengthens social cohesion: bad crime eg against children/terrorism, brings people together
- change and reform: too many people committing the crime = changing the law, allows society to move forward
- clarify social boundaries: tells us what is good/bad, seeing punishments to deter you, ‘society of saints’
- anomie: period of normlessnees, caused by rapid social change. this would happen if there was too much/too little crime
Explain the Functionalist Hirschi’s theory
Explains why people don’t commit crime
- attachment: friends/family
- commitment: career
- belief
- involvement: school activity/community organisation
Explain the Functionalist Merton’s theory
Strain theory:
- all of society is trying to achieve the value consensus (material wealth)
- if this can’t be reached people feel like they don’t belong
- this is bc they aren’t given the opportunity to/cannot reach the value consensus through conventional ways they turn to crime eg stealing for material wealth
Explain the Functionalist Albert Cohen’s theory
Safety valve - M/C white males use prostitutes as a stress outlet, so that he doesn’t take it out on the nuclear family
Give an evaluation of Durkheim’s theory
Assumes all laws reflect the value consensus of society e.g. squatting act/non-dom status
Give an evaluation of Hirschi’s theory
Explains why NEETs are more likely to commit crime
Give an evaluation of Merton’s theory
Ignores why WCC happens
Give an evaluation of Albert Cohen’s theory
Ignores the impact this has on women
Explain the Marxist Chambliss’ theory
Laws made by the ruling class to benefit the ruling class e.g. non-dom status, vagrancy law 1300s, means W/C are naturally criminalised by capitalism
Explain the Marxist Gordon’s theory
Capitalism itself causes crime -
- W/C commit utilitarian crime for survival
- W/C commit non-utilitarian crime for hatred on society eg vandalism
- M/C commit crime out of greed (keeping up the jones’ - WCC)
Explain the Marxist Snider’s theory
Courts ignore WCC
- WCC costs 24x the amount street crime does
- Crime stats are biased and unreliable because they don’t show WCC
Explain the Neo-Marxist Taylor, Walton and Young’s theory
Capitalism is root but not only cause of crime
- People actively choose to commit crime
- Poor people steal to redistribute wealth
Explain the Neo-Marxist Hall et al’s theory
Scapegoating -
- media turned the W/C against each other saying that all muggings were committed by black muggers
- takes attention away from failing capitalism and stops W/C from revolting, they’re less powerful when divided
Give an evaluation of Chambliss’ theory
Ignores health and safety laws put in place to protect employees
Give an evaluation of Gordon’s theory
Gives an explanation for all crime
Give an evaluation of Snider’s theory
Ignores that WCC is less emotionally harmful
Give an evaluation of Taylor, Walton and Young’s theory
Views criminals as robin hood, heroic
Give an evaluation of Hall et al’s theory
Ignores what happens when capitalism works
Explain the Feminist Heidensohn’s theory
Women are socially controlled so can’t commit crime
- home: burdened with housework & childcare
- work: can’t get to top jobs can’t commit WCC
- public: aren’t allowed out late/to certain places, avoid places bc male dominance
- women who offend are doubly deviant eg bad mother + criminal
Explain the Feminist Walby’s theory
Need to address crimes against women - domestic abuse cases go unconvicted
Explain the Feminist Archer’s theory
Girls in gangs are empowered
Explain the Feminist Adler’s theory
Female crime is increasing because more equal and liberated
- men are more involved in housework and childcare
- more women reaching top jobs = WCC
- less religious expectations
Give an evaluation of Heidensohn’s theory
Pollack - less women are in prison bc males judges are chivalrous and want to protect women
Give an evaluation of Walby’s theory
The percentage of convicted tape cases has decreased but reports gone up
Give an evaluation of Archer’s theory
She only used secondary research
Give an evaluation of Adler’s theory
Heidensohn accepts the rise in female crime but says its due to marginalisation
Explain the Right Realist Murray’s theory
The underclass - the welfare state is responsible for crime, it allows the nuclear family to break apart as the men can leave, leads to inadequate socialisation of children by mother, they grow up without working values and turn to crime
Explain the Right Realist Clarke’s theory
A person commits a crime by weighing up pros/cons - how likely it is they’ll be caught, what they’ll gain. Young BME makes more likely to commit crime, have less to lose
Explain the Right Realist Wilson and Hernstein’s theory
Crime is due to biological and social factors. Biological = testosterone. Social = inadequate socialisation. Young men who have been inadequately socialised more likely to commit crime
Give an evaluation of Murray’s theory
Makes unfair assumptions on women
Give an evaluation of Clarke’s theory
Makes unfair assumptions of BME’s
Explain the Left Realist Lea and Young’s theory
Relative deprivation causes crime - being poorer than those around you causes resentment/jealousy - leads to crime
Explain the Left Realist Kinsey, Lea and Young’s theory
Police need a good relationship with public as the public report most recorded crimes. If the police use ‘military policing’ the public won’t trust them
Explain the Left Realists Young and Matthews theory
Community policing - creating a relationship between police and public would create decrease in crime because people would feel a sense of community and would respect them more
Give an evaluation of Lea and Young’s theory
Everyone can feel relatively deprived not just W/C
Give an evaluation of Kinsey, Lea and Young’s theory
The police still need to hold authority
Give an evaluation of Young and Matthews theory
Community police officers aren’t often taken seriously
Explain the Interactionist Becker’s theory
Crime stats are a social construction. A crime is only deviant depending on who commits it/who sees it and how they react
Explain the Interactionist Cicourel’s theory
Crime stats are a social construction. Institutional racism in the police creates stereotypes and some groups are more likely to be targeted, therefore records aren’t a true reflection of crime
Explain the Interactionist Stan Cohen’s theory
Moral panic - mods and rockers, media exaggerating the event made it worse
Explain the Interactionist Jock Young’s theory
Labelling theory - Hippies labelled as drug users became a self-fulfilling prophecy as it becomes a central part of their culture
Give an evaluation of Becker’s theory
Ignores crimes like murder
Give an evaluation of Cicourel’s theory
Supported by Piliavin and Briar - police are less likely to arrest white M/C as they interact with them in a similar way
Give an evaluation of Stan Cohen’s theory
Fails to explain why initial act of deviance happens
Give an evaluation of Jock Young’s theory
Ignores those who reject the labels
Explain John Lee’s theory
Society is individual - not 1 solution/explanation to crime
Give an evaluation of John Lee’s theory
Doesn’t help our understanding of crime
Explain the Post-Modernists Katz and Lyng’s theory
Media portray crime and seductive and exciting, young people engage in crime to build an exciting identity
Give an evaluation of Katz and Lyng’s theory
Gives and explanation of utilitarian and non-utilitarian crimes
Give an evaluation of Wilson and Hernstein’s theory
Assumes all W/C are inadequately socialised
Explain the meaning of anomie (20)
Durkheim - meaning of anomie, period of normlessness, loss of values that unite society, social chaos, lots of crime
Durkheim - some crime can help prevent anomie. It reminds us what’s right and wrong, when we observe others be punished it clarifies social boundaries
Merton - strain theory, when we lack the opportunity to achieve the value consensus we get a feeling of normlessness
Hirschi - Anomie hasn’t occurred because we have attachments, commitments, beliefs and involvements
Explain the meaning of White Collar Crime (20)
Snider - WCC costs 24x the amount of street crime
Gordon - Capitalism causes crime, M/C commit WCC due to jealousy
Hughes and Langhan - Courts ignore WCC, it has low visibility, complexity, diffusion of responsibility and diffusion of victimisation
Nelken - whole corporations can be involved with WCC therefore it is harder to track who is held responsible
Explain the meaning of moral panic/news values/deviance amplification
Stan Cohen - mods and rockers, news values and moral panic
Jock Young - hippies, labelling theory, news values and deviance amplification
Fawbert - hoodies, moral panic
Cicourel - the media stereotypes ethnic minorities as it has news values, this is where the polices institutional racism comes from
Explain the meaning of Social Control (20)
Heidensohn - women are socially controlled through home, work and public
Althusser - ideological control
Hirschi - we are controlled through our attachments, commitments, beliefs and involvements
Clarke - rational choice controls us
Explain the meaning of Surveillance (20)
Foucault - panopticon prison
Wilson and Kelling - broken widows theory, zero tolerance, police always surveying will mean less crime
Clarke - rational choice, CCTV will reduce crime
Kinsey, Lea and Young - the community is the best form of surveillance as most reported crime comes from public
Explain the reasons why crime is seen as functional and inevitable (20)
Durkheim - social solidarity, change and reform, clarify social boundaries
Hirschi - crime is inevitable because some people will always be without attachments, commitments, beliefs and involvements
Merton - crime is inevitable because some people will always lack the opportunity to achieve the value consensus
Albert Cohen - prostitution is functional as it allows M/C working males to take their stresses out on something other than the nuclear family
Explain the reasons why crime is regarded as a social construct (20)
Becker - an act is only seen as criminal depending on who commits it, who sees it and how they react
Cicourel - institutional racism means ethnic minorities are targeted and seen as more criminal
Hughes and Langhan - WCC is ignored
Stan Cohen - a crime is only a big deal when the media decides it is news worthy
Explain the reasons why crime statistics are regarded as biased and unreliable (20)
Becker - act is only deviant depending who commits it, who sees it and how they react
Cicourel - institutional racism means ethnic minorities are more likely to be targeted
Hughes and Langan - courts ignore WCC as it has low visibility, complexity, diffusion of responsibility and diffusion is victimisation
Walby - rape reports aren’t convicted
Explain the reasons why certain patterns of victimisation exist (20)
Hughes and Langan - WCC is not convicted therefore society is always a victim of it
Walby - women are victims of domestic abuse
Cicourel - ethnic minorities are victims because of racism
Kinsey, Lea and Young - if most reported crimes come from the public this means the public are victims
Explain the reasons why some groups offend more than others (20)
Katz and Lyng - crime is portrayed as exciting in the media so young people want to build an identity off it
Heidensohn - women are socially controlled therefore men commit more crime
Murray - the W/C commit more crime because they are inadequately socialised
Wilson and Hernstein - W/C men commit more crime because they have more testosterone and are inadequately socialised
Explain the reasons why the police are viewed as ineffective (20)
Cicourel - ethnic minorities are seen as offenders not victims when they report a crime, there is institutional racism in the police
Walby - women are scared to report domestic violence as the police don’t take them seriously
Young and Matthews - community policing
Kinsey, Lea and Young - the police need better relationship with the public in order to be effective
