gender - crime and deviance

Question 1

Explain gender differences in the patterns of record crime and what they show

Answer 1

According to HEIDENSOHN (1996) the most significant feature of recorded crime is that most crime appears to be committed by males. She believes that gender is the best indicator of criminality.

There are striking gender differences in the patterns of recorded crime. Females appear to:
(a) commit fewer crimes than males and when they do offend,
(b) females tend to commit different kinds of crimes from males.

Question 2

state official states in relation to gender and crime

Answer 2

4 out of 5 convicted offenders in England and Wales are male;
By the age of 40, 9% of females had a criminal conviction compared to 32% of males;
A higher proportion of female than male offenders are convicted of property offences (excluding burglary);
A higher proportion of male than female offenders are convicted of violence or sexual offences;
Males are more likely to be repeat offenders, to have longer criminal careers and to commit more serious offences. For example, men are about 15 times more likely to be convicted of murder.

Question 3

How has traditional criminology and sociology explained female crime?

Answer 3

Traditionally male-dominated criminology neglected female criminality, both because females were seen as being less criminal and because their behaviour was seen as less in need of controlling.

However over the last couple of decades feminists have focused their attention on the patterns and causes of female criminality.

Furthermore, more recently sociologists have also turned their attention to the causes of male criminality, in particular there has been considerable interest in the relationship between masculinity and crime.

Question 4

What is the chivarly thesis and what view does it support?

Answer 4

The CHIVALRY THESIS supports the view that the statistics underestimate the amount of female offending as a result of greater leniency within the criminal justice system (CJS).

POLLACK (1950) argued that the official statistics on gender and crime are highly misleading and seriously underestimate the extent of female criminality. He argued that the police, magistrates and other law enforcement officials tend to be male – brought up to be chivalrous, they are usually more protective and thus more lenient with female offenders and therefore as a consequence, fewer females appear in the statistics. This in turn gives an invalid picture that exaggerates the extent of gender differences in the rates of offending.

Question 5

state examples on how the CJS is chivalrous

Answer 5

• female offenders may be given a warning rather than jail
• police more protective and lenient towards women
• woman are given shorter prison sentences
• cautioning of female offenders
• not considering women’s guilt for a crime
• not stopping a group of women as they do not suspect them of a crime

The possibility that women are treated more leniently by the agencies of social control – the basis of the chivalry thesis - while not without criticism, deserves closer analysis:

Question 6

explain arguments to support the chivalry thesis

Answer 6

Evidence to support the chivalry thesis:
Court statistics provide some support for the chivalry thesis. For example, females are more likely than males to be released on bail rather than remanded in custody; they are more likely to receive a fine or a community sentence and less likely to be sent to prison and when they are their sentences tend to be shorter. FLOOD-PAGE et al (2000) found that, while 1 in 11 female self-reported offenders had been cautioned or prosecuted, the figure for males was over 1 in 7. REINER (1992) also supports the ‘chivalry thesis.’ He claims that the reaction of the police is critical in determining whether female offenders are defined and labelled as criminal. He states that police work and police culture strongly emphasises masculinity which leads them to be more lenient towards females due to chivalry. As a result, cautioning is much more widely used for female than male offenders. Furthermore, according to the Ministry of Justice (2009), 49% of females recorded as offending received a caution in 2007, whereas for males the figure was only 30%. Similarly, HOOD’s (1992) study of over 3000 defendants found that women were about one-third less likely to be jailed in similar cases.

Question 7

Explain evidence against the chivalry thesis

Answer 7

there is considerable evidence against the chivalry thesis. FARRINGTON and MORRIS’ (1983) study of sentencing of 408 offences of theft in a magistrates’ court found that women were not sentenced more leniently for comparable offences. Additionally, BOX‘s (1981) review of British and American self-report studies concludes that women who commit serious offences are not treated more favourably than men. He argues that the lower rate of prosecutions of females may reflect the reality that the crimes they engage in are often less serious and less likely to go to trial. Female offenders are also more likely to show remorse and this may help explain why they are more likely to receive a caution instead of going to court. Furthermore, drawing on evidence form self-report studies, HALES et al (2009) found that males were significantly more likely to have been offenders in all major categories. Additionally the chivalry theses ignores the fact that many male crimes go unreported. For example in 2012, only 8% of females who had been the victims of serious sexual assault reported it to the police and YEARNSHIRE (1997) found that a woman typically suffers 35 assaults before reporting domestic violence. Crimes of the powerful are also under-represented in the official statistics and these are more likely to be committed by men.

Question 8

Why do many sociologists and women argue against chivalry thesis?

Answer 8

Arguing against the chivalry theory, many feminist sociologists and criminologists point out that in many cases women are treated more harshly by the CJS than men – it is biased against rather than in favour of them. HEIDENSOHN (1996) argues that the courts in particular, treat females more harshly than males when they deviate from gender norms. For example:

(a) Double standards – courts punish girls but not boys for premature or promiscuous sexual activity: SHARPE (2009) found from her analysis of 55 youth workers records, that 7 out of 11 girls were referred for support because they were sexually active, but none out of 44 boys. ‘Wayward’ girls can end up in care without ever having committed an offence.

(b) Women who do not conform to accepted standards of monogamous heterosexuality and motherhood are punished more harshly: According to HEIDENSOHN the CJS is influenced by attitudes to gender in society as a whole. They are based on dual and confused assumptions about women, which see women as a ‘virgin or whore, witch or wife, Madonna or Magdalene.’ This is known as the virgin/whore dichotomy.

Question 9

How does Stewart and Carlen’s research support against chivalry thesis?

Answer 9

Supporting this, STEWART (2006) found that magistrates’ perceptions of female defendants’ characters were based on stereotypical gender roles. CARLEN (1997) put forward a similar view in relation to custodial sentences. She argues that when women are imprisoned, it is less for the ‘seriousness of their crimes and more according to the court’s assessment of them as wives, mothers and daughters’. She found that Scottish judges were much more likely to jail women whose children were in care than women they saw as ‘good’ mothers.

Question 10

Why do feminists argue that there are double standards within the CJS

Answer 10

Feminists argue that these double standards exist because the CJS is patriarchal. Nowhere is this more evident than in the way the CJS deals with rape cases where male offenders are sometimes treated more sympathetically than their female victims. SMART (1989) argues that rape trials frequently celebrate notions of male sexual need justifying such crimes by reference to masculinity and a critique of inappropriate female behaviour.

There are too many cases of male judges making sexist, victim-blaming remarks, a few she quotes are included below:
* ‘It is well known that women in particular and small boys are likely to be untruthful and invent stories’ (Sutcliffe 1976)

• ‘Women who say no do not always mean no. It is not just a question of how she says it, how she shows and makes it clear. If she doesn’t want it she only has to keep her legs shut’ (Wild 1982)
• ‘It is the height of imprudence for any girl to hitch-hike at night. That is plain, it isn’t really worth stating. She is in the true sense asking for it’ (Richards 1982)

Question 11

Explain Walklate’s view that the female victim ends up on trial rather than the male defendant

Answer 11

WALKLATE (1995) believes that in effect, it is the female victim rather than the male defendant who ends up on trial. Women have to establish their respectability if their evidence is to be believed. She agrees with SMART that rape trials continue to see things from a male point of view, which accepts that men become unable to restrain their sexual desires once women give them any indication they might be available for sex. ADLER (1987) argued that women who are deemed to lack respectability, find it difficult to have their testimony believed by the court.

Question 12

What did sociologist ALLEN find when reviewing female explanations for female criminality

Answer 12

ALLEN (1987):
Allen reviewed explanations for female criminality and concluded that invariably mental health explanations dominate. She states that crimes committed by females are often interpreted as a symptom of emotional or psychological crisis. Male crimes are explained in terms of greed or aggression – a rational response to a particular situation, whereas female crimes are perceived as being much more difficult to understand – as females are viewed as inherently less deviant or criminal than males. As a consequence of this assumption, when females commit crime there is often a search for underlying reasons (PMT, hormonal imbalances etc.) reflecting the idea that ‘normal’ women conform and ‘abnormal’ women do not. Consequently courts are more likely to order reports on female offenders in the search for ‘underlying psychological problems’. There is therefore a real difficulty in viewing female crime as a rational response and explanations tend to reinforce sexist ideologies of women as irrational, emotional and hysterical. What can be interpreted as evidence of chivalry and leniency by the courts could also be seen as disadvantaging women and reinforcing traditional and sexist notions of femininity and masculinity.

Question 13

How have male dominated criminology neglected female criminality

Answer 13

Traditionally male dominated criminology neglected female criminality because females were seen as more conforming and less prone to criminal activities, however more recently sociologists have focused on the patterns and causes of female criminality. Three main explanations of gender differences have been developed by sociologists: 1. Functionalist sex role theory, 2. Control Theory and the 3. Liberation Thesis.

Question 14

Explain the functionalist sex role theory

Answer 14

FUNCTIONALIST SEX ROLE THEORY:

Early sociological explanations of gender differences in crime focused on differences in the socialisation of males and females. For example, boys are encouraged to be tough, aggressive and risk taking, and this can mean they are more disposed to commit acts of violence or take advantage of criminal opportunities.

PARSONS (1955) links gender differences in crime to gender roles in the conventional nuclear family. Because men have much less of a socialising role than women in the conventional nuclear family, socialisation can be more difficult for boys. Girls are provided with an adult role model in the home in terms of their mother who takes on the expressive role, but boys seek to distance themselves from such models by engaging in ‘compensatory compulsory masculinity’ through aggression and anti-social behaviour, which can slip over into delinquency.

According to COHEN (1955), this relative lack of an adult male role model means boys are more likely to turn to all-male street gangs as a source of their masculine identity. Similarly, New Right theorists argue that the absence of a male role model in matrifocal lone parent families leads to boys turning to criminal street gangs as a source of status and identity.

Question 15

Why have Walklate and Oakley criticised the funcitionalist sex role theory

Answer 15

However, WALKLATE (2003) argues that although sex role theory attempts to explain gender differences in crime in terms of behaviour learned through socialisation, it is ultimately based on biological assumptions about gender differences in behaviour. OAKLEY (1981) denies a biological link, but argues that male socialisation encourages assertiveness, aggression and independence, whereas female socialisation encourages nurturing, passivity and dependence. The misbehaviour of females is often corrected by references to femininity, whereas in contrast the boundaries between masculinity and criminality are often blurred, with the latter often understood as an expression of the former. More recently feminists have located their explanations in the patriarchal nature of society and women’s subordinate position in it.

Question 16

Explain Heidensohn’s control theory

Answer 16

HEIDENSOHN (1996) argues that the most striking thing about women’s behaviour is how conformist it is – they commit fewer and less serious crimes than men. Basing her explanation on Control Theory she argues that as a result of gender socialisation and ideology, patriarchal societies control females more successfully than they control males – reducing their opportunities to offend – they are constrained by the roles they are expected to play in society.

Question 17

According to control theory, how is control exercised at home, in public and at work

Answer 17

Control at home: Women’s domestic role imposes severe restrictions on their time and movement and confines them to the house for long periods, reducing their opportunities to offend. Many men exercise control through their financial power and this can restrict their time outside of the home. Daughters too are subject to patriarchal control and as a result develop a ‘bedroom culture’ socialising at home with friends rather than in public spaces. This coupled with the fact that they are often required to do more housework than boys means they have less opportunity to engage in deviant behaviour on the streets.

Control in public: Women are controlled in public places by the threat or fear of male violence, especially sexual violence (the Islington Crime Survey found that 54% of women avoided going out after dark for fear of being a victim of crime, compared to only 14% of men) and by their fear of being defined as not respectable. Dress, make-up, demeanour and ways of speaking and acting that are defined as inappropriate can gain a female a ‘reputation’. Similarly, LEES (1993) notes that in school, boys maintain control through sexualised verbal abuse, for example labelling girls as ‘slags’ if they fail to conform to gender role expectations

Control at work: Women’s behaviour at work is controlled by male supervisors and managers. Sexual harassment is widespread and helps to keep women ‘in their place’. Furthermore, their subordinate position reduces their opportunities to participate in major criminal activity at work. For example, the ‘glass ceiling’ prevents many women from rising to senior positions where there is a greater opportunity to commit fraud – as a result they are less likely to commit white collar crime.

Question 18

How does Carlen explore heidensohn’s ideas of control theory

Answer 18

In general, patriarchal restrictions on women’s lives mean they have fewer opportunities for crime. However, HEIDENSOHN recognises that patriarchy can also push some women into crime. For example, women who are poor may turn to theft or prostitution to gain a decent standard of living. This theme is explored by CARLEN.

CARLEN (1988): Using unstructured taped interviews she conducted a study of 39 15-46 year old working class women who had been convicted of a range of crimes including theft, handling stolen goods, burglary, drugs, prostitution, violence and arson. 20 were in prison or youth custody at the time of the research. Although she realises that middle class women commit crime, she argues that most convicted serious criminals are working class. CARLEN uses Control Theory to explain female crime and argues that working class women are generally led to conform through the promise of two types of rewards or deals: (a) the class deal: women who work hard will be rewarded with a good standard of living or (b) the gender deal: patriarchal ideology promises material and emotional rewards from family life by conforming to the norms of the conventional domestic gender role. If these rewards are not available or worth the effort, crime becomes more likely. CARLEN argues that this was the case with the women in her study.

In terms of (a) the class deal: the women had failed to find a legitimate way of earning a decent living and this left them feeling powerless, oppressed and the victims of injustice. 32 had always been in poverty, had few qualifications and little work after prison and therefore did not gain anything from the class deal. They felt they had nothing to lose by using crime to escape from poverty. In terms of (b) the gender deal: most of the women had either not had the opportunity to make the deal or saw few rewards and many disadvantages in family life. Some had been abused by their fathers or partners, over half had spent time in care which broke their family ties and many had been homeless. Many of the women reached the conclusion that ‘crime was the only route to a decent standard of living. They had nothing to lose and everything to gain.’

She concluded that for these women, poverty and being brought up in care or an oppressive family life were the two main causes of their criminality. Drug and alcohol addiction and the desire for excitement were contributory factors, but these often stemmed from poverty or being brought up in care. Being criminalised and imprisoned made the class deal even less available to them and crime more attractive.

Question 19

How does Jones reflect on control theory

Answer 19

Reflecting on Control Theory, JONES (1980) analysed a number of murders and found that males tend to murder strangers or friends whereas females are likely to murder their husbands or partners. When females murder, they do so in their own home, in the domestic sphere – using kitchen implements!

Question 20

Why has control theory been criticised?

Answer 20

Control theory and feminism have been criticised for seeing women’s behaviour as determined by external forces such as patriarchal controls or class and gender deals. Critics argues that this underplays the importance of free will and choice in offending. Furthermore, CARLEN is criticised for her small and unrepresentative sample

Question 21

Explain liberation thesis

Answer 21

THE LIBERATION THESIS:

According to ADLER (1975) if patriarchal society exercises control over women to prevent them from deviating, then it would seem logical to assume that, if society becomes less patriarchal and more equal, women’s crime rates will become similar to men’s. This is the ‘liberation thesis’ which is based on the notion that as women become more liberated, their crimes will become as frequent and as serious as men’s. That women’s liberation has led to a new type of female criminal and an increase in women’s contribution to crime. Based on a review of criminal statistics from a number of countries, ADLER observes increasing female involvement in crimes: ‘the female criminal knows too much to pretend or return to her former role as a second-rate criminal confined to ‘feminine’ crimes such as shoplifting and prostitution and is increasingly participating in robbery, mugging, violence and murder.’ Because of women’s greater opportunities in the legitimate structure, they also have more opportunities to commit serious white-collar crimes.

Question 22

evaluate liberation thesis

Answer 22

There is evidence to support this view: the overall rate of female offending and the female share of offences rose in the second half of the (20th; the pattern of female crime has shifted into more traditional ‘male’ crimes; more ‘girl gangs’ have emerged where girls are adopting more ‘male’ stances such as wanting to look ‘hard’.

However, LAIDLER and HUNT (2001) found that female gang members in America were expected to conform to conventional gender roles in the same way as non-deviant girls. Also in the US, CHESNEY-LIND (1997) found that poor and marginalised women are more likely than liberated women to be criminals and whilst they found some evidence of women branching into more typically male offences such as drugs – this was usually linked to prostitution, a very ‘unliberated’ female offence. Responding to Adler’s ‘liberation thesis’ as a way of explaining female criminality,

BOX and HALE (1983) used a range of variables to measure women’s liberation (decline in birth rate, increases in the number of single women and increased participation in HE) and found no statistical relationship between crime and liberation. However, they did find a relationship between increasing numbers of female police officers and the recording of violent crime by women. They suggest that the theory of female liberation increasing female criminality has sensitised the authorities to the problem and has resulted in female crime being more likely to be recorded. They also found that most female offenders who committed serious crimes tended to come from lower class backgrounds – females who had been least touched by liberation and emancipation. Therefore, BOX and HALE concluded that it was possible that unemployment and economic marginalisation among women had increased their participation in crime

Question 23

Is there any statistics or trends that support Adler’s liberation thesis

Answer 23

FEMALES AND VIOLENT CRIME

One trend in the official statistics that supports ADLER’s liberation thesis is the increase in the female arrest rate and conviction statistics for violent crime. According to HAND and DODD (2009) police statistics show the number of females arrested for violence rose by an average of 17% each year between 2000 and 2008.

Question 24

Explain the criminalisation of females and violent crime

Answer 24

THE CRIMINALISATION OF FEMALES:
However, evidence from other sources paints a different picture of the relationship between females and violent crime. STEFFENSMEIER and SCHWARTZ (2009) argue that in reality there has been no change in women’s involvement in violent crime and claim that the rise in arrests is due to the criminal justice system ‘widening the net’ – arresting and prosecuting females for far less serious forms of violence than previously. According to SHARPE and GELSTHORPE (2009) there is a growing trend towards prosecuting females for low-level physical altercations where most convictions are for minor offences not involving weapons. This trend is an example of what YOUNG (2011) calls ‘defining deviance up’ to catch trivial offences in the net. WORRALL (2004) argues that in the past, girls’ misbehaviour was more likely to be seen as a ‘welfare’ issue, whereas now it has been re-labelled as criminality.

Question 25

Explain moral panic about girls

Answer 25

A MORAL PANIC ABOUT GIRLS:
If female participation in violent crime is not in fact increasing, how do we account for the increase in the criminalisation of females for this kind of crime? One view is that it is a social construction resulting from a moral panic over young women’s behaviour. For example, BURMAN and BATCHELOR (2009) point to an increase in media reports featuring binge drinking, girl gangs etc. and SHARPE (2009) found that professionals such as judges, probation officers and police were influenced by such media stereotypes of violent ‘ladettes’. The overall effect is a self-fulfilling prophecy and an amplification spiral: reports of girls’ misbehaviour sensitise police and courts, who take a tougher stance, resulting in more convictions, which produces further negative media coverage and so on.

Question 26

What do crime survey statistics tell us about gender differences in crime and the type of victimisation

Answer 26

The Crime Survey for England and Wales (2012) shows gender differences in the level and types of victimisation and in the relationship between victims and offenders:

About 70% of murder victims are male. Female victims are more likely to know their killer and in 60% of these cases, this was a partner or ex-partner.

Fewer women than men are victims of violence generally (2% compared to 4%), but more women are victims of intimate violence: domestic abuse, sexual assault and stalking (31% compared to 18%).

Ten times more women than men reported having been sexually assaulted than men. Only 8% of females who had experiences serious sexual assault reported it to the police.

Research shows that women have a greater fear of crime, but the CSEW shows they are less at risk of victimisation.

However critics of victimisation studies such as the CSEW, point out: women are more likely to refuse to be interviewed, more likely to be victims of multiple incidents and they experience more severe violence and control – which may not be reflected in victimisation surveys.

Question 27

How does Messerschmidt explain the link between masculinity and crime

Answer 27

MASCULINITY AND CRIME:

Messerschmidt (1993) explains how masculinity is a social construct or ‘accomplishment’ and men have to constantly work at constructing and presenting it to others. He argues that there are different masculinities available which exist in different societies and communities, often a reflection of class, ethnicity, sexuality, locality etc. however he identifies hegemonic masculinity as the most dominant and prestigious. This is the expression of masculinity that most men wish to achieve, however some men may find it easier than others as they have more resources to draw upon. He states that this type of masculinity is defined through ‘work in the paid labour market, the subordination of women, heterosexism (difference from and desire for women) and the driven and uncontrollable sexuality of men.’

On the other hand, some men have subordinated masculinities. This form of masculinity involves men having no desire or wish to achieve hegemonic masculinity. According to Messerschmidt these men may be gay and/or lower class and some ethnic minority men who lack the resources to gain a hegemonic masculinity. He states that crime and deviance are acts used by some men to accomplish certain masculinities, usually when other resources to achieve masculinity are unavailable

Question 28

state examples of different types of crime in relation to masculinity of the different types of groups

Answer 28

An example of this is how different groups of males turn to different types of crime in an attempt to be masculine and convey their masculinity in different ways:

White middle class youths: often feel like they have to accept an inferior and subordinate status to teachers in order to maintain/achieve middle class status. This in turn leads to a form of masculinity called accommodating masculinity. However, such youths’ behaviour and masculinity takes an oppositional form outside of the school environment, through drinking, pranks and vandalism.

White working class youths: less likely to achieve hegemonic masculinity that their masculinity is oppositional inside and outside of the school because they have less chance of achieving educational success. They often find school itself as emasculating and therefore their form masculinity attempts to overcome this; it is based around sexism, acting tough and rebelling against teachers and opposing their authority.

Black lower working class youths: may use violence and gang membership to assert their alliance and express their masculinity. They may also have few expectations of a reasonable job. In extremes, individuals may turn to serious crimes to gain material possessions and/or success.

As well as explaining the different ‘types’ of youths committing crime, Messerschmidt recognises that middle class men also commit crime. He explains how different classes are identified as committing different forms of crime. Middle class men are more likely to commit white collar crimes which allow them to obtain hegemonic masculinity e.g. fraud, while the lower classes are more likely to be using crimes such as street crimes to achieve subordinated masculinity.

Question 29

state criticisms of Messerscmidt work in masculinity and crime

Answer 29

• The main criticism made about Messerscmidt’s work is that he fails to explain why all men do not use crime to accomplish masculinity.
• Also, critics argue that he overworks the concept of masculinity to explain almost all male dominated crimes. Not all crimes are an expression of masculinity.
• Is masculinity an explanation of male crime or just a description of male offenders (tough, controlling etc)? He is in danger of a circular argument, that masculinity explains male crimes e.g. violence, because they are crimes committed by males (who have violent characteristics).
• Jefferson (1997) a brave attempt but an over-deterministic view of men – assumes men form particular groups and assert their masculinity in the same way - stereotypical and negative.

Question 30

How do postmodernists explain the link between masculinity and crime

Answer 30

Postmodernists reflect on changes in society, particularly in the labour market and discuss the implications of these for definitions of masculinity. A loss of traditional manual jobs in which men were able to express their masculinity by engaging in hard, physical labour is seen as a consequence of the shift from a modern industrial to a late modern or postmodern de-industrialised society. In addition to this postmodernists point out that there has been an expansion of service sector occupations which have provided young working class males with rewarding criminal opportunities and a way of expressing their masculinity e.g. bars, clubs, gyms etc.

Reflecting this, Winlow (2001) conducted a study of bouncers in Sunderland, an area of de-industrialisation and high unemployment. He found that working as bouncers in pubs and clubs gave young men both paid work and the opportunity for illegal business ventures in drugs, duty-free tobacco and alcohol trading and protection rackets – as well as providing the opportunity to display their masculinity through the use of violent behaviours. He identifies a distinction between conflict and criminal subcultures arguing that Sunderland has traditionally had violent, conflict subcultures, where ‘hard men’ earned status through the ability to use violence.

However, he found that under new postmodern conditions new illegal business opportunities were found in the ‘night-time economy’ which led to more organised professional criminal subcultures. In this subculture, the ability to use violence becomes not just a way of displaying masculinity, but a commodity with which to earn a living. Winlow found that body capital became essential to men to establish and maintain their reputation and employability and this is reflected in for example, bodybuilding – where men can develop their physical assets. Men believed that ‘looking the part’ would discourage other men from challenging them. Not only did men feel they needed to be violent and win fights but they also felt a need to preserve the sign value of their bodies. This demonstrates how signs of masculinity take on a reality of their own, independent of the thing they supposedly represent in postmodern society.

This study is seen as important as it demonstrates that with the move from modern industrial to a postmodern de-industrialised society, expressions of masculinity change. It illustrates how the use of violence to express masculinity has opened up new criminal opportunities for men through the process of the growth of an organised criminal subculture.

Question 31

Evaluation of Heidensohn and Carlen’s approaches to female crime

Answer 31

Both control theory and feminism can be accused of seeing women’s behaviour as determined by external forces such as a patriarchal controls or class and gender deals. Critics argue this underplays the importance of free will and choice in offending.

Carlen’s sample can also be criticised for being small and unrepresentative as a it consisted of largely working class and serious offenders.

Question 32

Evaluation of liberation thesis

Answer 32

Critics reject Adler’s liberation thesis

• female crime rate has been rising in the 1950s
• most female criminals are working class which is group least likely to be influenced by women’s liberation as middle class women have benefited more. Chesney-Lind (1997) argued that in the USA, poor and marginalised women are more likely than liberated women to be criminals
• there is little evidence that illegitimate opportunity structure of professional crime has opened up to women. Laider and Hunt found that female gang members in the USA were expected to conform to conventional gender roles in the same way as non-deviant girls.