Key Theorists - Location and Crime Flashcards
Key Theorists – Marshall and Johnson (2005): Location and Crime
WHAT DO THEY SUGGEST?
- Anxiety and worry about all crime types is less in rural areas compared to urban areas.
- People living in rural areas believe they are less likely to be victims of crime.
- In rural areas those that have a higher income are more likely to be burgled where as in urban areas those that have a lower income are more likely to be burgled.
Key Theorists – Shaw and McKay (1931): Concentric Zone Theory
WHAT DID THEY ARGUE?
- Cities like Chicago were divided into a series of concentric circles or zones radiating outwards from the centre.
- Each zone has its own characteristics/community.
- The zone of transition has the highest rates of crime and the biggest population of delinquents (young people). These high crime rates are caused by:
1) Lack of informal social control.
2) Social disorganization which causes many social problems.
3) Being a run-down area.
4) High population turnover.
5) Minimal stability.
Key Theorists – Shaw and McKay (1931): Concentric Zone Theory
WHAT CONCEPTS DID THIS THEORY USE TO EXPLAIN THE RISE OF CRIME?
1) Social disorganisation – high rates of population turnover prevented stable communities being created. Informal social control is weak or absent.
2) Cultural transition - distinct set of values develop due to social disorganization and subcultures are formed.
3) Differential association - suggests that people’s behaviour is conditioned by others around them.
Key Theorists – Shaw and McKay (1931): Concentric Zone Theory
HOW CAN THIS THEORY BE EVALUATED?
- Maybe this theory can only be applied to America and not so much to the UK as arguably, in London there is not a zone of transition as very rich people and very poor people live next to each other.
Key Theorist – Morris (1957): Dynamics of Community – Housing Policy
WHAT DID THIS THEORY FIND?
- No evidence that people in high delinquency areas held a set of deviant values.
Key Theorist – Morris (1957): Dynamics of Community – Housing Policy
WHAT DID THIS THEORY ARGUE?
- Delinquency is a consequence of social policy – ‘problem families’ are all housed near each other which means that they become stuck and can’t get out of this situation.
Key Theorist – Morris (1957): Dynamics of Community – Housing Policy
HOW CAN THIS THEORY BE EVALUATED?
GIVE AT LEAST ONE EXAMPLE.
At least one from:
- Murray would argue that society rewards the wrong type of people, suggesting that society should reward married, traditional nuclear families rather than ‘problem families (by giving them social housing).
- 1957 theory – can it be completely relevant to today’s society?
How can ecology theory (theories of location and crime) be evaluated as a whole approach?
Give at least one example.
At least one from:
- Ecological theory has been criticised on many grounds:
1) Too vague and difficult to observe
2) Based on official statistics
3) How can subcultures develop if there is constantly a changing population?
4) Why doesn’t everyone turn to crime that lives in the ‘zone of transition’?
Key Theorists – Felson and Clarke (1998): Urban Crime
WHAT DID THIS THEORY ARGUE?
- More crime happens in urban areas because there is more physical opportunity to commit crime.
Key Theorists – Felson and Clarke (1998): Urban Crime
HOW CAN THIS THEORY BE EVALUATED?
- Opportunity theory argues that criminals engage in a rational calculation to decide where and when to commit crime by making choices such as how attractive the target is or how accessible it is.
Key Theorists – Brantingham and Brantingham (1995): Urban Crime
WHAT DID THESE THEORISTS ARGUE?
- Urban areas have more crime generating and crime attracting areas e.g. shopping centres.
- We all hold cognitive maps - places that are less cognitively known are less likely to be burgled.
