Gender and Crime Flashcards
What is the chivalry thesis?
It isn’t that women commit less crime than men, it’s that they’re less likely to be charged or convicted of the crime due to the CJS being made up mostly of men who are brought up to be chivalrous towards women.
What are some evaluations of the chivalry thesis?
- There are now more women in the CJS which disregards the chivalry thesis.
- Women may get treated more leniently as their crimes tend to be less serious.
- Women face double deviancy in the CJS especially when their crimes go against traditional gender norms.
What are the reasons for why women commit less crime than men?
- Less detectable offences
- Sex role theory
- Control theory
- Class and gender deals
- Socialisation
What is sex role theory and how does it lead to women committing less crime than men?
Females commit less crime than men due to the socialisation that they receive as children and their access to adult role models. Boys have less access to adult role models in the home so are more likely to turn to all male gangs for masculine identity.
What is control theory and how does it lead to women committing less crime than men?
Women commit less crime than men due to the amount of patriarchal control women are subjected to. This control is in the home, workplace and public areas which mean that women have less opportunities to commit crime.
How do class and gender deals lead to women committing less crime?
Class deals: material rewards for being paid in work which enable women to purchase consumer goods.
Gender deals: conforming to traditional roles of wife and mother and gains emotional rewards and male support.
Not all women are able to access these rewards so they may turn to crime.
How does socialisation lead to women committing less crime?
Women are socialised into being ‘guardians of domestic morality’ and therefore risk more social exclusion than men if they are to commit crime. Therefore women face a double jeopardy of being condemned twice: once for committing the crime and once for behaving in an unfeminine way.
What is an evaluation for sex role theory as an explanation for why women commit less crime?
- Makes a biological assumption about the roles of men and women. It assumes that women are more nurturing due to childbearing and therefore find their role models in their mothers.
What are some evaluations for control theory as an explanation for why women commit less crime?
- Patriarchal control can push people into crime rather than preventing it.
- Equal opportunities could be reducing patriarchal control.
What are some evaluations for class and gender deals as explanations for why women commit less crime?
- Sample in original study makes it hard to generalise to all women.
- Suggests that women are influenced by external factors which underplays the role of free will.
What are some reasons for increased female crime?
- Liberation thesis
- Feminisation of poverty
What is liberation thesis as an explanation for increased female crime?
As women have become more liberated from patriarchal control there will be an increase in the level of female crime as well as an increase in the seriousness of these crimes due to greater self confidence and assertiveness in women as well as greater opportunities.
What is feminisation of poverty as an explanation for increased female crime?
Women are more likely to be living under the poverty line which can force them into criminal activity in order to make ends meet.
What are some evaluations for liberation thesis as an explanation for increased female crime?
- Crime rates in women started growing in the 1950s before the liberation movement.
- A majority of female criminals are working class so less likely to be influenced by liberation movement.
- Women branching into male crimes is linked to female crimes.
What are some evaluations of feminisation of poverty as an explanation for increased female crime?
- Not all women who live below the poverty line turn to crime to support their family.
- Doesn’t explain non-utilitarian crime.
