Gender & Crime Flashcards
What is the nature of male offending?
- Bulk of crime is committed by males
- Higher rates of violence, aggression, assault, burglary and sexual offences
What is the nature of female offending?
- Woman are more heavily involved in property crime e.g. theft, shoplifting and higher rates in fraud, deception and forgery
Why do females offend?
- To provide/support children or family
- Having no money, no job, family problems, association with the wrong crows, drug and alcohol use
What can explain the rise in female offending?
- Changes in socialisation processes
- Rise in feminism
- Greater opportunities and participation in society
- Increased rate of mental illness
- Childhood abuse
- Higher prosecution rate
What are some facts on female victimisation?
- A high proportion of woman experience violence by someone they know well
- Women are at higher risk of domestic violence and becoming a vicim of theft
- Women have a lower risk of becoming a victim of violent crime
What are some facts on male victimisation?
- Males are victimised at a higher rate but less likely to report
- Masculinity affects reporting rates - a victim identity signifies weakness
- Greater risk of stranger violence
- Male victims not taken as seriously as female victims
What are some female experiences with the criminal justice system?
- Woman make up very small minority of the prison population
- There is a higher cautioning rate for women (due to the increased likelihood that they will admit that offence - a prerequisite of receiving a caution)
- Prison sentences are usually shorter than males
- For indictable offences females are more likely to be discharged or given a community sentence
What is the chivalry thesis?
The view that the criminal justice system tends to take a protective and patriarchal view of female offending
What is provocation?
- When a person is considered to have committed a criminal activity partly because of a preceding set of events that might cause a reasonable person to lose self control
- Makes them less morally culpable
What is self defence?
A counter measure that involves defending the well-being of oneself from harm, the person is right to act the way they did - not responsible
What are the changes in self defence laws?
- Traditionally self defence was written in a way where it presumed equality between two individuals and the response had to be proportionate and immediate
- Today if there is a clear history of on-going abuse and psychological affects and a person can establish they were in fear of their life they can claim self defence
- Today it does not have to be proportionate or immediate