Crime Prevention & Social Control Flashcards
Social Control
way soc tries to ensure mems don’t break norms / commit crime - makes ppl conform to rules
Informal Social Control
how we are persuaded to conform through being taught what = acceptable
Situational Approach
Right Realist
involves changing physical environ of an area to make harder for crims to commit crime eg gated communs, improv lighting & surveillance cameras
based on rational choice theory - crims X try commit crime if likely will fail
Clarke (1992)
Situational Crime Prevention
derives from oppur theories of crime - rational & routine choice theories
former suggests:
1. suitable target for offen (person place object)
2. no capable guardian (neighbour CCTV police)
3. potential offen = present who thinks 1st 2 = present
Felson (1998)
Situational Crime Prevention
pols rela to SCP to try red risk of offending by designing out crime (CCTV anti climb paint) by hardening target (locks)
Evaluation of the Situational Approach
Chaiken (1974) situ app don’t always red crime - just displace
spatial - move elsewhere - dif house if 1locked
temporal - dif time - m likely unlocked in day
target - dif target - chose child X w/ parents to kidnap
tactitcal - dif method - limit paracetamol
strat focuses on crimes - vandalism theft & pther local disorders X pro / gov crime - some socios situ crime prev only deals w/ symps X factors causing ppl to resort to crime
Environmental Crime Prevention
Right Realist
tries to stop spec areas = vul - keep clean & environ in good repair so = obvs ppl care
eg fixing vandalised prop & clearing rubbish to prev dec & = target for crime
Environmental Crime Prevention
Strategies
broken windows thesis - Wilson & Kelling refs disorderly neighbourhoods w/ absence of formal soc control (police) & informal soc control (commun) - police = concerned w/ serious crime & turn blind eye to nusiance behav
**0 tol pol **- Wilson & Kelling (1982) - anti-soc behav targted swiftly & strictly - serious crime nay = prev by combo policing & maintenance of environs - police crack down on disorder & repair eg graffiti
Environmental Crime Prevention
Evaluation
deals w/ symp X cause
targets WC & street crime X corp crime
displacement
Social & Community Crime Prevention
Left Realist
strucs - caused by soc inequals - wealth - need to tackle to red crime
indus - some groups = m likely - need to change group - target disadvan backgs children
soc & commun approaches need LT commit - try to address crim b4 develops
Social & Community Crime Prevention
Example
Perry Preschool Project - attempted on group of young disadvan black children - given 2 yr intellec enrich programme to dec future criminality = longitudinal - at 40 had fewer arrests & m = in £ employ comp control
Social & Community Crime Prevention
Evaluation
assumes VC in commun & ignores institu racism & rela dep which can dec effectiveness of pols
doesn’t deal w/ corp / white collar crime
Does Prison Work
Downing Street Strategy Unit (2003) - 22% inc in prison pop 1997 = pred to have red crime by 5% when crime had red by 30% - X work
prison pop inc Eng & W has highest in EU
Home Office shows 65% released 2004 = reconvic w/in 2 yrs
Managing Crime in Culture of Control
Garland - shift from penal welfarism meths to cul of control to help dec - attempt to catch impris & rehab X working 60% reoffen
includes intervention - Homestart & helps prob fams to help pols ach sense crime = falling
Left Realist - Crime Prevention
Social & Commun Crime Prev - youth groups & sure start
Non-custodial sentences - commun service & restorative justice
Community Policing - actively recruit from EMGs to improv rela
Right Realist - Crime Prevention
Situational Crime Prev
Environ Crime Prev
Militaristic Policing
Prison
Increased Social Control
linked to strengthing BofAs thro insitus - intergrate ppl into communs encours conformity over dev & crime
Criticisms of Right Realists
don’t address wider soc causes of crime
some ppl may be targeted unfairly by police
assume offens act rationally when choosing to commit & offens be from commit
SCP crit = geo lim only prev in some locations removes focus from alt meths & can displace
Left Realism
emph soc causes - recognition offens & vics - m in disadvan communs
emph need to tackle mat & cul dep espec young ppl
done thro pols - building strong communs to work out logical solus & create cohesion & m democratic & commun control of policing to win public confidence
Criticisms of Left Realism
soft on crime & downplay offen role - almost become vic
explans = inadeq maj of ppl in communs X turn to crime
deflect atten from prac crime prev - tighter soc control & SCP measures - RR
Displacement Theory
Felson & Clarke - SCP diverts poten offens to commut elsewhere where risks of getting caught = lower
SCP has pos impact - CCTV may mean X burgal but may shoplift instead
Chaiken et al (1974) found a crackdown on subway robberies correl w/ inc in street roberries above ground
