Gender & Crime Flashcards
2 stats on women in crime
Ministry of justice:
- Women account for 4.5% of the prison population
- 82% of women are more likely to be sentenced to a crime
Who spoke about the feminist approach to the conflict theory
Heidensohn:
- Informal social controls deter women from committing crime.
what are the three main spheres
- Private domestic sphere = bedroom culture = young girls expected to stay in their room, if a boy comes over they are subject to supervision
- Public sphere = women can’t break through the glass ceiling = women can’t get to top jobs, fears of going out alone
- Reputation = women lose their reputation if they’re deviant = due to lack of femininity
Who talks about the feminist approach to rational choice theory
Carlen:
- women are expected to conform to the class/ gender deal
Define class and gender deal
- 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
Is this available to all women
no due to poverty, unemployment, abusive partners
so they take a rational choice to turn to crime
2 criticisms of Carlen
- Not all WC women turn to crime
- only focuses on utilitarian
2 criticisms of Heidensohn
- Too deterministic = too much emphasis on patriarchy
- There is more gender equality in contemporary society
brief overview of labelling and gender stereotypes
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
Give 2 statistics that suggest that things may be changing
- 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%
Who talks about the chivalry thesis
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
Provide some evidence for this
- If women are imprisoned they face smaller sentences
- Female offenders are regarded as less of a threat to the police = benefit from informal approaches
how does the double jeopardy counter the chivalry thesis
CJS = women are doubly punished for the law breaking and breaking gender conformity
who supports the D.J
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
Who talks about the LIberation thesis
Adler:
due to changing gender roles and women being more independant and successful there is a weakening of patriarchy and social control
what does this result in (Lib thesis)
Women spending their leisure time out on the streets so they are visible to formal and informal surveillance
Who introduced the Ladette subculture
Denscombe:
Women are adapting behaviour traditionally associated by young males e.g. gang culture, binge drinking etc
What does Heindensohn and Silvestri suggest
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
What does the media and Sharpe say
- 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
Give an overview of male crime: Labelling and offending
- 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
Who suggested Hegemonic Masculinity
Connell:
The dominant form of male identity is a ‘real man’ - don’t want to be regarded as gay, soft or abnormal
what are the features of a ‘real man’ and how does it lead to male crime
-toughness
- Independance
- aggressive
- risk taking behaviours and control
= The male peer group reinforce these tendancies which could lead to more male crime
2 ways of showing masculinity + sociologist
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
who talks about motivating factors for crime
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.
