Gender & Crime

Question 1

2 stats on women in crime

Answer 1

Ministry of justice:

1. Women account for 4.5% of the prison population
2. 82% of women are more likely to be sentenced to a crime

Question 2

Who spoke about the feminist approach to the conflict theory

Answer 2

Heidensohn:

- Informal social controls deter women from committing crime.

Question 3

what are the three main spheres

Answer 3

1. Private domestic sphere = bedroom culture = young girls expected to stay in their room, if a boy comes over they are subject to supervision
2. Public sphere = women can’t break through the glass ceiling = women can’t get to top jobs, fears of going out alone
3. Reputation = women lose their reputation if they’re deviant = due to lack of femininity

Question 4

Who talks about the feminist approach to rational choice theory

Answer 4

Carlen:

- women are expected to conform to the class/ gender deal

Question 5

Define class and gender deal

Answer 5

• class deal = women work in exchange of pay to buy consumer goods
• Gender deal = Women do domestic labour and give love/ companionship to their husbands in exchange for love and financial support

Question 6

Is this available to all women

Answer 6

no due to poverty, unemployment, abusive partners

so they take a rational choice to turn to crime

Question 7

2 criticisms of Carlen

Answer 7

• Not all WC women turn to crime

- only focuses on utilitarian

Question 8

2 criticisms of Heidensohn

Answer 8

• Too deterministic = too much emphasis on patriarchy

- There is more gender equality in contemporary society

Question 9

brief overview of labelling and gender stereotypes

Answer 9

Women are less likely to be caught and labelled for their crimes because police stereotypes and assumptions think they’re less likely to commit crime

Question 10

Give 2 statistics that suggest that things may be changing

Answer 10

• From 2002-2014 = decrease in male crime and increase in female crime
• 2004-2010 = crimes committed by young girls aged 10-17 = increased by 25%

Question 11

Who talks about the chivalry thesis

Answer 11

Pollak :
CJS is male dominated and they take a protective and patriarchal view of women offending
- Women need protecting and are more vulnerable so they are treated more leniently

Question 12

Provide some evidence for this

Answer 12

• If women are imprisoned they face smaller sentences

- Female offenders are regarded as less of a threat to the police = benefit from informal approaches

Question 13

how does the double jeopardy counter the chivalry thesis

Answer 13

CJS = women are doubly punished for the law breaking and breaking gender conformity

Question 14

who supports the D.J

Answer 14

Walklate:
generally the crimes that result in imprisonment for women are less serious than male crime
Heidensohn:
even though women commit less serious crimes they are treated more harshly due to violating socially unacceptable behaviour
Carlen: evil women theory
- women who are sexually promiscuous are seen as ‘really bad’ in the CJS compared to men

Question 15

Who talks about the LIberation thesis

Answer 15

Adler:
due to changing gender roles and women being more independant and successful there is a weakening of patriarchy and social control

Question 16

what does this result in (Lib thesis)

Answer 16

Women spending their leisure time out on the streets so they are visible to formal and informal surveillance

Question 17

Who introduced the Ladette subculture

Answer 17

Denscombe:

Women are adapting behaviour traditionally associated by young males e.g. gang culture, binge drinking etc

Question 18

What does Heindensohn and Silvestri suggest

Answer 18

An increase in female criminality is due to changes of labelling and criminalisation of girls bad behaviour
- Police & CJS are likely to react more seriously to girls with less formal controls

Question 19

What does the media and Sharpe say

Answer 19

• The media plays a role as they portray images of violent girls and Ladette behaviour
  Sharpe:
  judges, probation officers & police are influenced by the media stereotypes of violent ladettes and now they will arrest girls

Question 20

Give an overview of male crime: Labelling and offending

Answer 20

• Police are more likely to label males as a ‘criminal’ and as potential officers
  = males are subject to closer surveillance = more likely to charge males for crimes = more men appearing in crime statistics

Question 21

Who suggested Hegemonic Masculinity

Answer 21

Connell:

The dominant form of male identity is a ‘real man’ - don’t want to be regarded as gay, soft or abnormal

Question 22

what are the features of a ‘real man’ and how does it lead to male crime

Answer 22

-toughness
- Independance
- aggressive
- risk taking behaviours and control
= The male peer group reinforce these tendancies which could lead to more male crime

Question 23

2 ways of showing masculinity + sociologist

Answer 23

Messerschmidt:
Legitimate
-well paid jobs
- a stable family
- success at skl
Illegitimate:
- Failure at school
- Threatened or use of violence
- violence to women to assert/ authority

Question 24

who talks about motivating factors for crime

Answer 24

Lyng:
the ‘thrills and spills’ involved in ‘edgework’ may be a motivating factor for male crime.
this occurs when legitimate means of asserting masculinity are bloakced.