gender, crime and justice - topic 5 Flashcards
gender patterns in crime
4/5 offenders are male
by 40 only 9% wom have convictions compared to 32% men
+re wom commit property offences than men
men +re like to offend
fem cr less like 2 be report
wom less like 2 be prosecuted/given long sentences
the chivalry thesis
most CJS agents r men and men socialised into being chivalrous towards women
so wom +re like to be let off and their cr less like become OS
therefore gives invalid pic of cr that exagg gender cr gap
fem +re like to be released on bail, receive community service instead of prison time, 1/9 wom sentenced for shoplifting compared to 1/5 men, wom have shorter prison sentences
hood; looked 3000 cases and fou 1/3rd less likely to be jailed
page et al; self rep studies fou only 1/11 wom prosecuted/cautioned
evidence against chivalry thesis
1 farmington/morris study; 408 offenders of theft in magistrates court fou wom not sentenced +re leniently
2 buckle/farringdon; observation study fou 2x as many men than wom shoplifting even tho OS stats +re/less equal, small scale study sugg wom +re like prosecuted for shoplifting than men
3 self report studies show that men commit +re cr ex. +re likely you men involved in drugs
4 theres underreporting of male cr against wom ex. only 8% fem vict of sexual assault reported to police
5 cr of powerful not reported
bias against women
heidenson; fou CJS harsher towards wom who deviate fr gender roles
wom who don’t conform to accept. standards of punishment +re harshly punished ie. lesbians
functionalist sex role theory - explaining female crime
parsons; bs have less socialising role than wom
bs seek to distance themselves fr feminine models engaging in ‘compensatory compulsory masculinity’ thru aggr/anti social beh
cohen; lack of adult male role model means +re like 2 turn to all male st gangs as source of masculine identity
new right; absence of male role model in lone par leads to bs turn to crim st gangs for status
walklate; criticises sex theory 4 biological assump as parsons assumes wom best suited to expressive role bec they can bear childr, ultimately his theory is based on socialisation and the biological aspects of it
heindenson patriarchal control - explaining female crime
arg wom commit fewer cr bec patriarchal soc imposes greater control over wom wh reduces their opportunities to offend
public places; by threat/fear of male viol against them, media sensationalises rape wh increases fear
work; by male supervisors/managers, fear of sexual harassment keeps wom in place and glass ceiling stops them rising to senior positions
home; constant housework/childcare do not time for opport 2 offend
carlen; class and gender deals - explaining female crime
unstructured interviews, study of 39 15-46yrs olds w/c wom convicted range of cr
arg most convicted serious fem criminals r w/c
hirschis theory, people will turn to cr if reward r not forthcoming or rewards greater than risks
w/c wom promised 2 ty of reward fr class and gender deals, class = material rewards and gender = material/emotional rewards fr family life
how in study wom failed to find this, in class deal they did not find legitimate way of earning decent living , felt oppressed, 32 in pov and many experienced humiliation asking 4 benefits
w gender deal many did not find rewards as they were abused physically or spent time in care so family bonds broken
carlen fou these woms main causes of criminality
criminalisation made class deal less available
evaluation of Carlen - explaining female crime
1 heidenson shows many patriarchal control help wom fr deviating
2 carlen show patriarchal soc failed deliver promised deals
3 both theories sees wom beh determined by external forces and underplays free will
4 carlen used small sample so unrep
the liberation thesis - explaining female crime
adler; as patriarchy decreases in soc wom cr rate will beco simi to men’s
patriarchal contr decrease and education opport increase, wom begun adopt trad male roles in work/cr
wom now have opport to commit white collar cr
glass ceiling no longer for some and rising lev fem ppts in previously male regarded cr ie. embezzlement
criticisms of liberation thesis - explaining female crime
1 most fem crim r w/c wh is grp less likely 2 be influe by wom liberation
2 theory benefits m/c wom +re
in usa poor/marginalised wom +re like than liberated wom to commit cr
3 trend in OS supports LT, increase in fem arrests/convictions stats 4 viol cr
ex. hand/dodd; 2000-2008 fem arrests arose by 17% each yr wh shows fem increasingly commit more male cr
the criminalisation of females - explaining female crime
schwartz; fou rise in police stats not matched by victim surveys, vict not report increase in attacks by fem
net widening; rise due to arresting and prosecuting fem for less serious forms of viol
lind; policy of madarory arrests for domestic viol has led to steep rise in fem viol stats in usa
sharpe; arg growing trends towards prosecution fem 4 low lev phys altercations
moral panic about girls - explaining female crime
fem viol cr socially construct fr moral panic
burman; media depicts you wom as drunk/disorderly
sharpe; fou judges influe by media steroty of ladettes and believed gs beh getting worse
overall leads to self fulfilling prophecy and amplification spiral wh leads to increase reporting and convictions of fem cr
gender and victimisations - explaining female crime
nat vict surv show gend differences in lev/ty victimisation and relationship b/w vict/offend
homicide vict; 70% male, fem vict +re like know their killer - 60% it’s their partner
vict viol; men vict viol and +re fem vict of intimate viol - 31% vs 18%, wom 10x +re report SA
research shows wom greater fear of cr b CSEW shows they’re less like victimised
b lea/you; arg opp cuz wom +re like rej interviewsn
masculinity and crime - why do men commit crime
messerschmidt; masculinity social construct that men have to constantly prove to oths
hegemonic masculinity most dominant; ‘work in paid labour market’/subordination of wom
subordinated masculinity; gay men, l/c, ethnic men who lack resources
cr/deviance men use to accomplish masculinity
1 white m/c youths; accommodate masculinity in sch by listening to teachers so outside sch masc in form of drinking/vandalism
2 white w/c youths; less educational chance so masculinity in form of sexist attit/opposing autho
3 black l/c youth; use gang membership/viol to express masc to achieve material success
m/c men may also use white collar/corporate cr
criticisms of messerschmidt - why do men commit cr
1 does not explain why not all men use cr to accomplish masc
2 overworks concept of masculinity to explain virtually all male cr
