feminist crim

Question 1

Feminist criminology

Answer 1

-Early crim research has generally not considered the unique social, cultural and biological conditions of female victims and offenders
-Crime primarily viewed through a ‘male standard’
-Differences between men and women initially attributed to inherent bio factors
-Feminist crim developed to examine crime and the CJS through the lens of gender more directly

Question 2

some key concerns

Answer 2

-Why do males offend at higher rates than females for nearly all ‘serious’ types of crime
-Why are women disproportionately impacted by several types of crime?
–> Domestic abuse, human trafficking, SA
-How do the unique experiences of men and women differ with respect to victimization, offending, motivations, criminal intent..etc
-How does the CJS serve to benefit, punish, or ignore the actions of men and women in ways that are diff or unequal?

Question 3

Question why do men tend to offend at higher rates than women

Answer 3

-It is simply a matter of bio (masc aggression, testosterone levels..etc)
-Or does it have more to do with how boys and girls are socialized differently by society, the media, education..etc)
-Most feminist criminologists would argue it is the latter

Question 4

2 hyp of feminist crim?

Answer 4

the evil woman hyp, the chivalry hyp

Question 5

the evil woman hyp

Answer 5

-When women commit serious and violent crime they are acting in ways that are outside of conventional societal gender norms
-Breaking ‘two’ laws instead of one
-It takes more evilness for a women to be violent than a man
-Female offenders should therefore be punished more severely

Question 6

the chivalry hyp

Answer 6

Female offending seen as less severe, more justifiable, or based on female
‘helplessness.’
* Women offenders need to be ‘protected’ by the state in ways that men are
not.
* Female offenders should therefore be punished less severely.

Question 7

Masculinist theory

Answer 7

-Gender based theory for why men and boys are conditioned towards violence/crime
-Less to do w/ biology and more to do with cultural attitudes, expectations stigma surrounding men and masculinity
-Emphasis on exp on male victimization
-Men are also more likely to be victims of violence
-Lower class male identity and ways it can encourage, perpetuate, or inspire violence and crime as a means of coping w/ life situations
-Hegemonic or toxic masculinity often used to describe the social/cultural expectations of ‘masculinity’ that can encourage violence of aggression
–> Lines of age, race, class
–>Masculinist crim seeks to challenge