interactionism (labelling theory) and crime

Question 1

key assumptions

Answer 1

reject official stats on crime
reject structural causal explanations of crime and deviance (eg: functionalist and realist)
think c and d is socially constructed
favour in-depth qualitative approaches

Question 2

what are moral entrepreneurs

Answer 2

powerful groups who create rules and laws and define what counts as crime and deviance
eg: doctors,police

Question 3

factors affecting labelling

Answer 3

appearance
background
class
gender

Question 4

criminals are typically:

Answer 4

male
w/c
young
black

Question 5

what are typifications

Answer 5

police officer’s stereotypes that make them concentrate on certain ‘types’ of people when profilling

Question 6

what does dark figure of crime mean

Answer 6

means a lot of crimes remain unreported by police and the public so we don’t know the true figures of crime

Question 7

crimes may not be reported if:

Answer 7

seen as too trivial
seen as private family matters
embarassing to share
victims fear consequences
victims don’t trust police

Question 8

crimes are likely to be reported if:

Answer 8

the victims sees a benefit for themselves eg: insurance claim
they have faith that the police will help

Question 9

why do police under-report crime:

Answer 9

seen as too trivial
social status of victim
classifying crime (minor assaults vs serious assaults)
discretion( they decide if they want to press charges or give a warning)

Question 10

AO3 of official stats

Answer 10

positivists: see them as useful and objective, think they’re valid and not socially constructed

interpretivists: not reliable or valid
useless as they don’t explain why crime occurs
don’t actually measure crime ( dark figure)
think they’re socially constructed

crime is not fixed or permanent so changes based on time and social situation

Question 11

AO3 of official stats: marxists

Answer 11

white-collar crime is under-represented
m/c are less likely to be prosecuted and found guilty
system is bias and favours those in power (m/c)

Question 12

AO3 of official stats: feminists

Answer 12

stats downplay the amount of female victims (eg: rape and domestic violence)
police ignore DV as they see it as a private family matter
female victims are reluctant to report crime

Question 13

AO3 of official stats: left realism

Answer 13

think official stats have some value
accept view that offenders are often: young, male ,w/c and black
use victim studies to show how the poor fear crime

Question 14

AO3 functionalist

Answer 14

same view as positivists
think crime is a young, w/c, male phenomenon

Question 15

difference between primary and secondary deviance

Answer 15

primary is acts of deviance that haven’t been labelled (eg: fare dodging)
secondary occurs when you’re publicly labelled as a criminal and stigmatised and excluded

Question 16

what is a master status

Answer 16

when your label as a criminal overrides all of your other characteristics
eg: paedophile overrides husband or father

Question 17

what are the stages of the deviance amplification spiral

Answer 17

1) deviant act
2) isolation and alienation
3) increased social reaction
4) secondary deviance
5) social reaction
6) increased deviance

Question 18

outline the Jock young hippy study

Answer 18

study on hippy marijuana users in notting hill
drugs are associated with hippies ( primary deviance)
persecution and labelling meant they’re seen as outsiders
they retreat into closed groups to develop a deviant subculture
increased drug use attracted more police attention leading to self-fulfilling prophecy

Question 19

define reintegrative and disintegrative shaming

Answer 19

disintegrative: the crime and offender are labelled as bad and excluded from society

reintegrative: labels the act and not the actor, allows offenders to be a part of society but making it clear that they did something wrong