Defining crime and deviance

Question 1

Crime

Answer 1

A legal wrong that can be followed by criminal proceedings or an omission that consistutes offence

Question 2

Deviance

Answer 2

Behaviour which is dissaproved of and does not conform to shared norms and values within society

Question 3

Example of crime/deviance that is relative in terms of time

Answer 3

• Alcohol consumption in 1920s America
• Alcohol consumption aged 21+ in America today

Question 4

Example of crime/deviance that is relative in terms of culture

Answer 4

• Women exposing legs in some Islamic societies
• Women exposing legs in UK

Question 5

Example of crime/deviance that is relative in terms of circumstance

Answer 5

• Murder
• A soldier killing an enemy in the course of a battle

Question 6

Example of crime/deviance that is relative in terms of location

Answer 6

• Smoking weed in the UK
• Smoking weed in Amsterdam

Question 7

How is crime socially constructed?

Answer 7

• There is no act itself that is criminal
• An act becomes a crime when society has labelled it is criminal

Question 8

How is deviance socially constructed?

Answer 8

• Downes and Rock- whether an act is seen as deviant depends on the context in which it occurs, who the person is, what is known about them, and what their motives are

Question 9

How can Becker’s labelling theory be applied to crime and deviance?

Answer 9

• Acts only become deviant when others perceive and define it as deviant (labelling)
• Police use pre-existing conceptions and stereotyping of what they believe to be the ‘criminal type’, which influences their response to criminal behaviour