Gender, Crime and Justice Flashcards
What is the gender pattern in crime?
Most crime appears to be committed by males. Official statistics show that 4 in 5 convicted offenders in England and Wales are male.
What percentage of females and males have a criminal conviction by age 40?
By the age of 40, 9% of females have a criminal conviction, compared to 32% of males.
What types of offences are more commonly committed by females?
A higher proportion of female offenders are convicted of property offences (except burglary).
What types of offences are more commonly committed by males?
A higher proportion of male offenders are convicted of violence or sexual offences.
Do women commit more crime than statistics suggest?
Some sociologists argue that statistics underestimate female offending due to underreporting of ‘female’ crimes.
What are two reasons why female crimes may be underreported?
- Typically ‘female’ crimes like shoplifting are less likely to be reported. 2. Prostitution is unlikely to be reported by either party.
What is the chivalry thesis?
The chivalry thesis argues that criminal justice agents are socialized to act in a ‘chivalrous’ way towards women, leading to more lenient treatment.
What evidence supports the chivalry thesis?
Females are more likely than males to be released on bail and to receive fines or community sentences.
What evidence contradicts the chivalry thesis?
Studies show women are not sentenced more leniently for comparable offences.
What is a significant issue with reporting male crimes against women?
In 2012, only 8% of females who had been victims of serious sexual assault reported it to the police.
What do feminists argue about the criminal justice system’s bias?
Feminists argue that the criminal justice system is biased against women, treating them more harshly for deviating from gender norms.
What is the functionalist sex theory?
It suggests that gender differences in crime arise from differences in socialization, with boys encouraged to be tough and aggressive.
What is Heidensohn’s view on women’s behavior in relation to crime?
Heidensohn argues that women’s conformist behavior is due to patriarchal control, which limits their opportunities to offend.
What are the two types of deals Carlen identifies for working-class women?
- The class deal: material rewards for working. 2. The gender deal: emotional rewards from conforming to family life.
What does the liberation thesis propose?
The liberation thesis suggests that as women become liberated from patriarchy, their crime rates will become similar to men’s.
What evidence supports the liberation thesis?
The female share of offences rose from one in 7 to one in 6 between the 1950s and 1990s.
What do large-scale national victim surveys show about gender differences in victimization?
They show that about 70% of homicide victims are male, and female victims are most likely to know their killer.
What did Laidler and Hunt find about female gang members in the USA?
Female gang members were expected to conform to conventional gender roles in the same way as non-deviant girls.
What percentage of homicide victims are male?
About 70% of homicide victims are male.
Who are female homicide victims most likely to know?
Female victims are most likely to know their killer, with 60% of these cases involving a partner or ex-partner.
What are the percentages of men and women who are victims of violence?
2% of women and 4% of men are victims of violence.
Who are women most likely to be victimised by?
Women are most likely to be victimised by an acquaintance.
How many times more women reported having been sexually assaulted than men?
Ten times more women reported having been sexually assaulted than men.
What percentage of females reported serious sexual assault to the police?
Only 8% of females who experienced serious sexual assault reported it to the police.
What did a third of females who didn’t report serious sexual assault believe?
They believed the police couldn’t do much to help.
What does research show about women’s fear of crime compared to their risk of victimisation?
Research shows women have a greater fear of crime but are at less risk of victimisation.
What did local victim surveys by Lea and Young find about women’s risk of victimisation?
They found that women are in fact at greater risk than men.
What did Walby and Allen show about women and domestic abuse?
Women were much more likely to be victims of multiple incidents of domestic abuse.
What does James Messerschmidt argue about masculinity?
Masculinity is a social construct or ‘accomplishment’ that men must constantly work at presenting.
What is hegemonic masculinity?
Hegemonic masculinity is the dominant, prestigious form of masculinity that most men wish to accomplish.
What do subordinated masculinities include?
Subordinated masculinities include those of gay men, lower-class men, and some ethnic minority men.
How do white middle-class youths express their masculinity in school and outside?
They subordinate themselves to teachers for middle-class status, leading to an accommodating masculinity in school, and express oppositional masculinity outside through drinking, pranks, and vandalism.
How do black lower working-class youths express their masculinity?
They may use gang membership and violence or turn to serious property crime to achieve material success.
What is a criticism of Messerschmidt’s theory?
It doesn’t explain why not all men use crime to accomplish masculinity.
What does Winlow argue about postmodernity and masculinity?
Globalisation has shifted society from modern industrial to late modern, leading to the loss of traditional manual jobs for expressing masculinity.
What opportunities does the decline of traditional jobs provide for young working-class men?
It provides legal employment, lucrative criminal opportunities, and a means of expressing masculinity.
What did Simon Winlow study in Sunderland?
He studied bouncers, who had both paid work and opportunities for illegal ventures, allowing them to demonstrate masculinity through violence.
