Marxism + Neo-Marxism

Question 1

4 foci of capitalism that make it criminogenic according to Gordon

Answer 1

greed, materialism, profit and competition

Question 2

3 ideological state apparatus (Althusser)

Answer 2

education, religion and media

Question 3

corporate crime

Answer 3

crimes committed by corporations for the benefit of the business e.g. fraud and health and safety laws

Question 4

why do marxists believe that crime is inevitable?

Answer 4

view it as a product of the capitalist system

Question 5

white collar crime

Answer 5

non-violent crimes committed by businesses e.g. fraud

Question 6

selective law enforcement

Answer 6

the cjs applies the law to different social groups in different ways

Question 7

which sociologist is associated with the idea that health and safety laws are a way of hiding selective law making?

Answer 7

pearce

Question 8

which 2 societies are used to criticise the idea of capitalism being criminogenic?

Answer 8

capitalist societies

Question 9

2 formal agents of social control

Answer 9

police and judiciary

Question 10

2 informal agents of social control

Answer 10

family and peer groups

Question 11

who are the 3 main sociologists associated with neo-marxist theory of crime?

Answer 11

taylor, walton and young

Question 12

fully social theory

Answer 12

crime is influenced by various social factors e.g. socialisation

Question 13

in what 3 ways does neo-marxism agree with marxist theory of crime?

Answer 13

• Capitalism based on exploitation
• State creates and enforces laws for the benfit of the ruling class
• Capitalism should be replaced with a classless society

Question 14

study on black muggers in 1970s

Answer 14

hall - policing the crisis

Question 15

what do neo-marxists mean when they criticise marxism as being deterministic?

Answer 15

w/c criminals are still responsible for their own actions

Question 16

6 aspects of the fully social theory of deviance

Answer 16

wider origins of the deviant act, immediate origins of the deviant act, act itself and the meaning behind it, immediate origins of the social reaction, wider origins of social reaction and effect of labelling

Question 17

criticism of neo-marxism

Answer 17

gives an overly romantic view of criminals

Question 18

moral panic

Answer 18

widespread fear or concern about a group in society

Question 19

what way do left realists criticise neo-marxist theories of crime

Answer 19

majority of crime is against w/c

Question 20

Why is Capitalism criminogenic?
Gordon

Answer 20

it leads to crime as it causes exploitation of the w/c, capitalism leads to an ever increasing gap between the rich and poor

Question 21

Selective Law Enforcement
(Reiman)

Answer 21

ruling class are more likely to commit crime but less likely to have the offence treated as a criminal one

Example = fraud committed by the poor and almost always leads to prosecution but tax evasion doesn’t

Question 22

What is Selective Law Making?
Chambliss

Answer 22

laws themselves are socially constructed to benefit the rich and powerful

Question 23

Box

Answer 23

argues that the rich often engage in activities which result in injury, theft and fraud but the activities are protected under the law = Health and Safety Laws

Question 24

Evaluation of Marxist Theories

Answer 24

• Ignores other causes of crime = focuses on class inequalities and ignores others e.g. gender and ethnicity
• Ignores victims of crime = most victims are poor and w/c
• Passive w/c = suggests that the w/c cannot help but commit crimes due to their economic circumstance

Question 25

In what 4 ways can crime be considered voluntarist?

Answer 25

• criminals make a conscious choice to commit crime
• political motives behind crime
• criminals are not passive puppets of capitalism
• free will

Question 26

Neo-Marxist Evaluation

Answer 26

• Rock = overly romantic view of criminals
• Left realism = majority of crime is against w/c

-Theory is idealistic and difficult to apply to real life

• Not all crimes are politically motivated e.g. domestic violence isn’t