Gender Flashcards
Explanation For LOW CRIME RATES Among Females: Sex-role Theory (Parsons) and Gender Socialisation
Male Crime Rates: Socialisation
- Functionalists - argue women are less likely to offend (take on the expressive role, socialised to be non-aggressive)
- Girls socialised to be kind, caring and obedient (play with dolls to prepare for motherhood) -> not typical characteristics of criminals
- Internalise these characteristics, means they are less likely to commit crime, act of committing a crime causes harm, opposite of being caring and kind
- Boys socialised to be tough and aggressive -> typical characteristics of criminals
- Lack male role models (father at work) and socialised primarily by mother (reject feminine behaviour by acting tough = deviance)
- Women care for their family (partners, children etc.) and are responsible got domestic tasks (cooking, cleaning etc.)
- Avoid risk-taking behaviour - have too many responsibilities at home
AO3 - less women conforming to patriarchal ideas and following the expressive role
More women working and less women getting married or having children
Explanation For LOW CRIME RATES Among Females: Patriarchal Control (Heidensohn)
- Women controlled in every aspect of their daily life: at home, in work and in public spaces - restricts opportunities to commit crime
- At home: responsible for childcare and domestic tasks, girls are supervised by their fathers (restrict when and where they go and who with), reduced opportunity by restricting their time and movement
- At work: sexual harassment by male colleagues (encouraged to quit and stay at home instead), most positions of power occupied by men, glass ceiling (few women get promotions or high status jobs so few opportunities to commit corporate crimes)
- In public: fear of violence from men so only out at specific times and in specific places
AO3 - outdated as more women are in positions of power in the workplace such as manager or CEO
Women and Offending: Class and Gender Deals (Carlen)
- Argue WC women turn to crime if they cannot achieve two deals for conformity
- Class Deal: offer of material rewards for working women (decent standard of living)
- Gender Deal: reward for conforming to the traditional gender roles (loving family)
- Failure to achieve these deals lead to women making the rational choice to commit crime - the rewards of conformity are outweighed by the rewards of crime (have little/nothing to lose)
- Unable to achieve the gender deal if they face abuse from their partner
- Unable to achieve the class deal if they were always in poverty or faced unemployment - commit utilitarian crimes
- Similar to Merton’s strain theory (AO3)
Women and Offending: Liberation Thesis (Adler)
- Women are being liberated from patriarchal control (spend longer in education, financial independence, strong female role models)
- Due to changes in law (Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Equal Pay Act 1970)
- Lead to women committing more crimes that are usually committed by men e.g. women in more senior positions so commit corporate crime
AO3 - female crime rates began rising in the 1950s before women’s liberation movement (late 1960s)
WC least likely to benefit from women’s liberation (affected by poverty and social inequalities)
Women and Offending: Ladette Culture
- Liberation from patriarchy has led to more women engaging in behaviour more typical of men (risk-taking behaviour like heavy drinking, fighting)
- More women out in the streets due to changing gender roles (no longer confined to the home to do all the housework and childcare)
- More coverage in the media due to these women breaking the social norms and values expected of them (rejecting feminine stereotypes and the expressive role)
AO3 - argue ladette culture does not reflect liberation from patriarchy, existence of double standards - women who binge drink are treated more harshly compared to men and have to be more careful (patriarchal control in the public sphere)
Women and Offending: Poverty and Hardship
- Marxist feminists blame patriarchy and capitalism
- WC women forced to commit utilitarian crimes because of poverty and to provide for their children
- More likely to be single parents with part-time jobs to fit around childcare
AO3 - Marxists agree, crime is an inevitable consequence of capitalism, argue criminogenic capitalism creates a culture of envy (want what they can’t have or afford so turn to crime like shoplifting)
Chivalry Thesis: Female Crime LESS LIKELY To Be Prosecuted
Masculinity and Crime: Messerschmidt
- Hegemonic masculinity - dominant form of masculinity shown through success at work, toughness and subordination of women (may use crime to achieve this)
- Commit corporate crimes, white WC boys commit utilitarian and non-utilitarian crimes due to lack of qualification and educational success in school
AO3 - negative view by radical feminists, patriarchal ideology used to explain male crime, concerned about men committing domestic violence to reassert their masculinity
