Left realism

Question 1

When did left realism develop?

Answer 1

1980s and 1990s

Question 2

How are left realists similar to Marxists?

Answer 2

They see society as an unequal capitalist one.

Question 3

How are left realists different to Marxists?

Answer 3

They believe in gradual change rather than the violent overthrow of capitalism. They believe we need explanations of crime that will lead to practical strategies for reducing it now, rather than waiting for a revolution and a classless society to abolish crime.

Question 4

What is the central idea behind left realism?

Answer 4

Crime is a real problem that particularly affects the disadvantaged groups who are its main victims.

Question 5

How do left realists criticise Marxists?

Answer 5

For concentrating on crimes of the powerful - this neglects working class crime and its effects.

Question 6

How do left realists criticise Neo-Marxists?

Answer 6

They romanticise WC criminals as latter day Robin Hoods, stealing from the rich as an act of political resistance to capitalism - LR points out that WC criminals mostly victimise other WC people, not the rich.

Question 7

How do left realists criticise Labelling theorists?

Answer 7

They see WC criminals as the victims of discriminatory labelling by social control agents LR say this neglects the real victims - WC people who suffer at the hands of capitalists.

Question 8

Who talks about Aetiological crisis?

Answer 8

Young

Question 9

What is aetiological crisis?

Answer 9

A crisis in explanation for the theories of crime. Crime increased from the 1950s onwards.

Question 10

What do local victim surveys show about the scale of crime?

Answer 10

• the scale of the problem is even greater than that shown by official statistics
• disadvantaged groups have a greater risk of becoming victims of burglary, street crime + violence.

Question 11

What is the impact of a greater fear of crime?

Answer 11

Fear of attack may prevent women from going out at night.

Question 12

Why might victims be reluctant to report crime?

Answer 12

The police are reluctant to deal with crimes such as rape, domestic violence and racist attacks.

Question 13

What are Lea and Young’s 3 related causes of crime?

Answer 13

Relative deprivation
Subculture
Marginality

Question 14

Explain how relative deprivation is a cause of crime

Answer 14

This refers to how deprived someone feels in relation to others, or compared with their own expectations. This can lead to crime when people resent others for having more and resort to crime to obtain what they feel entitled to.

Question 15

What does Young say about relative deprivation?

Answer 15

The combination of relative deprivation with individualism leads to crime. Individualism is a concern with the self and one’s own individual rights, rather than those of the group. It causes crime by encouraging the pursuit of self interest at the expense of others.

Question 16

Explain how subculture is a cause of crime

Answer 16

Subculture is a group’s collective solution to the problem of relative deprivation. There are blocked opportunities and subcultures are a group’s reaction to the failure to achieve mainstream goals.
However different groups may produce different subcultural solutions to this problem. Some may turn to crime to close the ‘deprivation gap’ while others may find that religion offers them spiritual comfort and a ‘theodicy of disprivilege’ - an explanation for their disadvantage.

Question 17

Explain how marginality is a cause of crime

Answer 17

Marginalised groups lack both clear goals and organisations to represent their interests.
- workers have clear goals e.g. better pay and have organisations such as trade unions to put pressure on employers = thus they don’t need to resort to violence to achieve their goals
- however unemployed youth are marginalised. They have no organisation to represent them and no clear goals. Being powerless to use political means to improve their position, they express their frustration through criminal means such as violence and rioting.

Question 18

According to Young, what are the features of late modern society?

Answer 18

Instability, insecurity and exclusion make the problem of crime worse.

Question 19

Why does Young see the 1950s and 1960s as a ‘Golden Age’?

Answer 19

This was a period of stability, security and social inclusion, with full employment, low divorce rates and strong communities. There was general consensus about right and wrong, and lower crime rates.

Question 20

Briefly outline the changes to society since the 1970s

Answer 20

Insecurity and exclusion have increased. De-industrialisation and the loss of unskilled jobs have increased unemployment particularly for young people and ethnic minorities. These changes have destabilised family and increased exclusion of those at the bottom.

Question 21

Why has there been an increase in the sense of relative deprivation in society?

Answer 21

Greater inequality between rich and poor and the spread of free market values encouraging individualism have increased the sense of relative deprivation.

Question 22

Briefly outline the contrast between cultural inclusion and economic exclusion identified by Young

Answer 22

• media saturated late modern society promotes cultural inclusion : even the poor have access to the media’s materialistic, consumerist messages.
• there is a greater emphasis on leisure, personal consumption and immediate gratification, leading to higher expectations for the ‘good life’
• the poor are denied opportunities the gain the ‘glittering prizes of a wealthy society’.

Question 23

In what way is Young’s view of cultural inclusion and economic exclusion similar to Merton’s notion of anomie?

Answer 23

Society creates crime by setting cultural goals (material wealth), while denying people the opportunity to achieve them by legitimate means (decent jobs).

Question 24

How are the amount and types of crime changing in late modern society?

Answer 24

• crime is found increasingly throughout the social structure not just the bottom
• crime is nastier / an increase in hate crimes (the result of relative deprivation downwards)
• less public consensus on right and wrong so line between acceptable and non acceptable behaviour becomes blurred
• informal controls become less effective which makes public more intolerant and demands for harsher penalties.

Question 25

Why is a fall in the crime rate a problem for realist theories?

Answer 25

Suggests crime is no longer the major threat they had originally claimed.

Question 26

In what sense has the government created a new ‘crime’ wave?

Answer 26

While crime rate is going down, governments have created a new ‘crime’ wave or antisocial behaviour to replace it. They introduced ASBOs (Anti-social behaviour orders) and IPNAs (Injunctions to prevent nuisance and annoyance).

Question 27

What are the key characteristics of ASBOs and IPNAs?

Answer 27

• blurring the boundaries of crime so antisocial behaviour becomes crimes
• subjective definition: anti-social behaviour has no objective definition so is defined by the beholder
• flexibility: the subjective definition means the net can be constantly widened to generate an endless number of violations,

Question 28

How do left realists argue crime should be tackled?

Answer 28

• Policing and control
• Tackling the structural causes

Question 29

What do Lea and Young argue about policing?

Answer 29

Police clear-up rates are too low to act as a deterrent and the police spend too little time actually investigating crime. They argue that the public must become more involved in determining the police’s priorities and style of policing.

Question 30

Why do left realists criticise the military style of policing?

Answer 30

Police depend on public to report crimes but are losing public support meaning the flow of information dries up and the police have to resort to military policing. This alienates communities and results in a vicious cycle.

Question 31

What do left realists propose as an alternative form of policing?

Answer 31

Policing must be made accountable to local communities and deal with local concerns.

Question 32

Briefly explain what is meant by a multi agency approach to crime?

Answer 32

Crime can’t be left to the police alone, but should involve local councils, social services, schools, the public etc.

Question 33

According to left realists, what are the causes of crime and what solutions do they offer?

Answer 33

The unequal structure of society. Major structural changes are needed e.g.
- tackle discrimination
- improve housing
- cease stereotyping
- decent jobs for everyone

Question 34

Briefly outline two examples of policies that were influenced by left realism?

Answer 34

• 1997-2010 New Labour’s stance of being ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’
• New Labour’s firmer approach to policing hate crimes, sexual assaults + antisocial behaviour

Question 35

Briefly outline criticisms of left realism

Answer 35

• From a traditional Marxist perspective, NLR focus too much on working class crime and not on business crime
• From a new criminological focus, not enough selective law enforcement and how it impacts on ethnic minorities
• Not everyone who experiences marginalisation or relative deprivation commit crime
• Right Realists would say their solutions to crime are not realistic and need to be more about punishment and zero tolerance policing
• NLR is just a rehash of Merton and the Subcultural theorists