Globalisation and crime

Question 1

Ian Taylor (1997)
Non - Developed wages etc.

Answer 1

growth of international trading partnerships across world has added a degree of competition among businesses for maximising profit.
- as companies in developed societies such as UK recognise wages are lower in less developed parts of the world - re-location of businesses allows companies to exploit and oppress staff in developing countries - at home absence of a previously large employer opens up new criminal opportunities for often poorly-paid.
- globalisation also enabled opportunities to increase within businesses.
EVAL - Taylor is accused of lacking precise evidence to support his views.
EVAL - it isnt clear why some people turn to crime and some dont?

Question 2

Misha Glenny (2008)
McMafia

Answer 2

process of globalisation has opened up ‘new criminal opportunities which are difficult to police.
- communism fell in Russia late 1980s > state sold many of its assets for low prices >former communist officials easily purchased/gain control of precious resources > creating instant powerful capitalist class (oligarchs)
>to protect new wealth, oligarchs employed ‘bodyguards’ for their wealth - so money was transported safely
> Glenny calls this ‘mcmafia’
EVAL - this problem is not new and its simply exposed, money-laundering corruption exists before this, it just wasn’t exposed.

Question 3

Jackie Sanches-Taylor (2010)
Sex Tourism

Answer 3

Globalisation is opening up new opportunities to commit sex offences.
> the rise of cheap travel means travel abroad is a lot easier.
> where Westerners visit countries like Thailand, poorly enforced laws mean men can take advantage of poorly educated materially deprived women for sexual services.

Question 4

Beck (1992)
Global-risk consciousness

Answer 4

There has been an increase in fear, resentment and an awareness of ‘risk’
>often presented through negative media reporting -including excessive coverage of immigration and people-trafficking issues.
> ‘moral panics’ have grown in recent years - in worst cases people have taken law into their hands in order to ‘fight back’.
EXAMPLE - ‘hate crime’ has been officially recognised in English law since 2012. It refers to when people target a person based on religion, race and gender. For example, Islamaphobia. Police recorded 42000 ‘hate crimes’ in 2012-13.

Question 5

Is the impact of globalisation on crime really that significant?
Hobbs and Dunningham (1998)
Evaluating Beck

Answer 5

exaggerates the extent to which crime across the world is changing.
> crime at ‘local level’ still remains significant.
> the term ‘glocal crime’ is used to fuse global element of crime with local impact.
> the day-to-day calls police recieve are local by local people, therefore criminologists are warned to not exaggerate.