Marxism and Crime Flashcards
What do Marxists believe about capitalist society?
Marxists see capitalist society as divided into two classes: the ruling capitalist class (bourgeoisie) who own the means of production, and the working class (proletariat) whose labor is exploited to produce profit.
How does Marxism view the relationship between the economic base and superstructure?
Marxism is a structural theory that sees the economic base (capitalist economy) as determining the shape of the superstructure, which includes social institutions like the state, law, and criminal justice system.
What is criminogenic capitalism?
For Marxists, crime is inevitable in capitalism because capitalism is criminogenic; it causes crime by exploiting the working class for profit.
What factors may lead the working class to commit crimes?
Poverty may force the working class to commit crimes for survival, to obtain consumer goods, or due to frustration and aggression from alienation.
Is crime confined to the working class according to Marxists?
No, crime is not confined to the working class; capitalism encourages competition and greed, leading capitalists to commit white collar and corporate crimes.
What is the Marxist perspective on lawmaking?
Marxists view lawmaking and enforcement as serving the interests of the capitalist class, rather than reflecting the value consensus of society as a whole.
How do Marxists explain selective enforcement of the law?
Marxists agree with labeling theorists that there is selective enforcement of the law, where the crimes of the powerful are often ignored while powerless groups are criminalized.
What ideological function do laws serve in capitalism?
Laws can create a false consciousness among workers by appearing to protect their interests while actually benefiting the ruling class.
What is a criticism of Marxism regarding crime?
Marxism largely ignores non-class inequalities such as ethnicity and gender, and it is too deterministic, over-predicting crime in the working class.
What is Neo-Marxism?
Neo-Marxism combines ideas from labeling theory and Marxism to understand crime and deviance through a critical criminology approach.
What do Taylor et al argue about crime?
Taylor et al argue that capitalism is based on exploitation and that understanding this is key to understanding crime, advocating for a classless society to reduce crime.
What is the ‘fully social theory of deviance’ proposed by Taylor et al?
It aims to unite six aspects: wider origins of deviance, immediate origins, the act itself, social reactions, wider origins of reactions, and the effects of labeling.
What is white collar crime according to Edwin Sutherland?
White collar crime is defined as a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of their occupation.
What are the types of corporate crime?
Corporate crime includes occupational crime for personal gain and corporate crime committed for the organization’s goals.
What is the scale of harm caused by corporate crime?
Corporate crime causes far more harm than ordinary crime, with estimates of costs in the USA being over ten times that of ordinary crimes.
What is state-corporate crime?
State-corporate crime refers to harms committed when government institutions and businesses cooperate to pursue their goals.
How do high-status professionals abuse trust?
High-status professionals can abuse trust through criminal activities such as fraud, tax evasion, and neglecting duties, undermining societal trust.
Why are corporate crimes often invisible?
Corporate crimes are often invisible due to limited media coverage, reinforcing the stereotype that crime is a working-class phenomenon.
What is the impact of white collar crime according to Sutherland?
White collar crime violates the trust society places on professionals and is considered a greater threat than street crime because it promotes cynicism and distrust in social institutions.
Why is corporate crime often invisible?
Corporate crime is often invisible because of limited media coverage, lack of political will, complexity of crimes, de-labelling, and under-reporting.
How does the media portray corporate crime?
The media often describes corporate crime in sanitised language, referring to it as technical infringements rather than real crime, such as calling embezzlement ‘accounting irregularities’.
What is the political response to corporate crime?
Politicians focus on street crime in their rhetoric, neglecting the investigation and reporting of corporate crime.
What challenges do law enforcers face in investigating corporate crime?
Law enforcers are often understaffed, under-resourced, and lack the technical expertise needed to effectively investigate corporate crime.
What is de-labelling in the context of corporate crime?
De-labelling refers to the process where corporate crimes are filtered out from criminalisation, often defined as civil rather than criminal, leading to lighter penalties.
What is an example of de-labelling?
In 2010, UK tax authorities received a list of 3,600 citizens with secret bank accounts but secured only one prosecution against an individual, with no action against HSBC.
What is Merton’s strain theory?
Strain theory posits that deviance arises when individuals cannot achieve societal goals through legitimate means, leading them to use illegal methods.
How can strain theory explain corporate crime?
If a company cannot achieve profit legally, it may resort to illegal methods, especially during difficult business conditions.
What does differential association theory suggest?
Differential association theory suggests that crime is learned behavior influenced by social context, where associating with criminal attitudes increases deviance.
What are deviant subcultures in corporate settings?
Deviant subcultures are groups within companies that adopt norms and values that justify criminal behavior to achieve corporate goals.
What are techniques of neutralisation?
Techniques of neutralisation are justifications used by individuals to mitigate moral objections to their deviant behavior, such as claiming ‘everyone’s doing it’.
What does Nelken argue about labelling in corporate crime?
Nelken argues that businesses can avoid labelling due to their resources, such as hiring experts to navigate legal challenges.
What is the Marxist perspective on corporate crime?
Marxists view corporate crime as a natural outcome of capitalism, which prioritizes profit maximization often at the expense of safety and ethics.
What is the ‘mystification’ of corporate crime according to Box?
Mystification refers to the ideology that corporate crime is less harmful than working-class crime, obscuring its true extent and impact.
What is a critique of strain theory and Marxism in explaining corporate crime?
Both theories may over-predict business crime, as not all businesses offend due to the risk of punishment and maintaining goodwill.
How can law-abiding behavior be more profitable than law-breaking?
Law-abiding companies can access lucrative markets by complying with regulations, as seen with US pharmaceutical companies gaining market access through FDA compliance.
