Lecture 11 Flashcards
Crime and Social Control
what is the contact hypothesis?
that contact people two groups can lessen prejudice
what is a feedback loop?
when outputs are fed back into the system as inputs
what is informal social control?
non-official way of exercising normal expectations
what is formal social control?
official way of keeping people aligned with norm expectations
what is the job of law enforcement officials?
protect people, reinforce laws and prevent crime
what is the job of criminal courts?
ensures laws are executed fairly
what are the jobs of prisons?
ensures punishments are enforced and the public is safe
what are the four crime facts?
FCMT
- everywhere in the world has formal rules
- most countries have the same components in their criminal justice system
- adult males are more the suspect of crimes
- theft is the most common type of crime and violent crime is rare
what is Merton’s Strain Theory?
society puts pressure on people to obtain socially desirable goals even if they do no have the means to do so
What are the culturally defined goals in our society?
to be healthy, happy, safe and wealthy
what is conformity according to Merton’s Strain Theory?
Individuals accept the culturally defined goals AND the legitimate means to obtain them
what is innovation according to Merton’s Strain Theory?
Accept culturally defined goals but not the legitimate means of achieving them
what is ritualism according to Merton’s Strain Theory?
Accept the legitimate means of achieving goals but do not accept the traditional goals.
what is retreatism according to Merton’s Strain Theory?
Rejects both the culturally accepted goals and the means of achieving them
what is rebellion according to Merton’s Strain Theory? what is the difference between rebellion and retreatism?
Rejects both the culturally accepted goals and the means of achieving them, The difference from retreatism is that it replaces the old goals with new goals and new means.
