Functionalism - Crime Flashcards
What is Durkheim’s theory?
Social Cohesion and Anomie
What is Durkheim’s overriding view on crime?
It is an integral part of healthy societies and is beneficial. Crime is a function
What are Durkheim’s 4 functions of crime?
1) Enables social change
2) Strengthens collective values
3) Acts as a ‘safety valve’
4) Acts as a warning device
How does crime create social change?
Enables a ‘march of progress’. Deviance is necessary to allow new ideas to develop and enable society to change and progress. E.g. oil spills have created new environmental laws
How does crime reinforce social cohesion?
Defines moral boundaries which reinforce society’s norms and values. Without punishment crime could become dysfunctional.
- Punishment preforms a boundary maintenance function which prevents anomie
How does crime act as a safety valve?
Releases the stresses in society.
AK Cohen - prostitution provides a release from the stress of family life without undermining the family
How does crime act as a warning device?
Can show society isn’t working properly, indicating something is wrong and needs solving before it becomes a serious threat to social order
What are 4 negative evaluation points of Durkheim?
1) Fails to explain why some groups are more/less likely to commit deviant acts
2) Stresses value consensus but never asks what these values are or who has the power to define what is criminal or deviant (Box)
3) Does not explain why/how crime occurs
4) Is all crime functional? E.g 911
What is a positive evaluation point of Durkheim?
Provided sociology with its first sociological explanation fro crime. Challenged the early biological and psychological theories.
What is Merton’s theory?
Strain Theory - tries to explain why crime happens in the first place
What are manifest and latent functions of crime?
Manifest = intended functions such as setting an example to other people so they do not attempt to commit crime Latent = unintended functions such as the anomie or break down of society
What does the Strain theory suggest?
That there is a strain between the goals of society (e.g. high income) and the accepted means of achieving them.
- Not everyone can achieve society’s goals through legitimate means, people respond differently to this strain e.g. through crime
What are Merton’s 5 responses to strain?
1) Conformists - accept culturally defined goal and take the socially accepted means of achieving them
2) Innovators - accept the goal but do not follow societies rules
3) Ritualists - do not believe they can attain the goal but continue to try to get it through accepted pathways
4) Retreatists - reject the finical goal of wealth
5) Rebels - redefine society’s goals and create new mean of pursing their own goals
What are 4 negative evaluation points of Merton?
1) Assumes there is value consensus in American society and people only deviate due to structural strain. In reality groups have different values.
2) Fails to address who makes laws and who benefits from them. Power - who decides society’s goals and the correct means of achieving them.
3) Does not explain non-utilitrain crime so assumes a materialistic culture
4) Ignores other key variables apart from social class
What are 2 positive evaluation point of Merton?
1) Provides sociology with a developed functionalist theory of crime and deviance.
2) Tries to show why people commit crime and why certain groups are more likely to
How do subcultural functionalists differ from structural?
- They believe that crime is dysfunctional and harms society
- Crime and deviance can be removed if subcultural values adapt to those of the mainstream, functional culture
What is AK Cohen’s theory?
Structure of Delinquency
Why does AK Cohen suggest W/C boys carry out the most crime?
- They want success but cannot achieve their goals due to cultural deprivation which has led to educational failure and dead-end jobs.
- Turn to delinquency to gain status among peers
What subculture does AK Cohen describe?
W/C boys suffer status frustration so turn to delinquency to gain status.
- An alternate set of norms and values are adopted, such as valuing stealing, vandalism etc.
= solves problem of status frustration as they gain higher status from other members of the subculture
How does Steven Box criticise AK Cohen?
Believes he was wrong to assume W/C boys originally had accepted mainstream values. Believes delinquency is a result of feeling shame, guilt and resentment at being called failures by teachers - causing them to rebel.
What is Cloward and Ohlin’s theory and what do they try to achieve?
Delinquency and Opportunity - try to explain different types of W/C delinquency.
What did C+O call achieving society’s goals through accepted means?
Legitimate opportunity structure
What are the 3 subcultures C+O suggested?
1) Criminal = develops in areas where there are established organised crime patterns where young people are exposed to deviant values and role models - an illegitimate opportunity structure to gain money
2) Conflict = areas where there is little access to either legitimate or illegitimate opportunity structures - no IOS due to high turn over of population and low cohesion = prevents establish crime developing only gangs which vent anger + a mean to achieving prestige in the subcultures values
3) Retreatist = organised mainly around illegal drug use and occur because members are ‘double failures’ - failed though IOS + LOS.
What is a strength and weakness of C+O?
S: explain W/C deviance which is not concerned with material/monetary gain
W: ignore overlap between their different types of subcultures e.g. gang members often deal drugs
