realism and crime Flashcards
left realism - background
left realist view of crime developed in 1980s/90s and they followed the marxist view that society is unequal and this is what causes crime and deviance however unlike marx they believe that gradual change is necessary rather than the violent overthrow of capitalism
relative deprivation - lea and young
how deprived people feel compared to others. media has made people aware of their deprivation and peoples expectations of what counts as a good standard of life have risen, people are better off but feel worse
- young; increased individualism + relative deprivation causes disintegration of family and informal controls
marginalisation - left realists
economic, social or political marginalisation
- people who lack the resources to participate in society e.g culturally included but economically excluded
- lack clear goals and organisations to represent their interests e.g no trade unions, political representation
- feel cut off from from society and experience resentment and frustration
subculture
- draws on subcultural theories and meton - strain
- collective response to relative deprivation and marginalisation
- can be deviant and non-deviant subcultures
e.g gangs try to achieve goals of society such as wealth, religiou subcultures- may encourage conformity e.g pryce study of pentecostal church goers in bristol. encouraged self reliance and gave people mutual support and hope of improving their situation
tacking crime - reform not revolution (left realism)
- reduce structural inequalities
- improve policing; gain the trust of communities so that they are willing to work with the police- this can be done by reducing military policing (policing tactics that are based on surveillance and stop and search, these alienate people.) + police should deal with local concerns
- use a multi-agency approach
evaluations of left realism
- marxists e.g Sim have attacked left realism for not actually being realistic. they argue that left realism actually ignores the ‘real’ causes of crime, which lie in the wider capitalist system
- ignores the crimes of more powerful groups in society and simply concentrate on street crime. Matthew and Young rethink left realism and do argue that analysis of these crimes can be included in left realist analysis
- both right and left realism have had considerable influence on new labour policy since 1997, with many of their ideas being brought into law e.g police community support officers introduced
- left realist solutions and crime prevention measures are costly however they would save tax-payers £££ if successful
- both left and right realists focus on the victims of crime
- assumes value consensus
evaluations of left realism
- marxists e.g Sim have attacked left realism for not actually being realistic. they argue that left realism actually ignores the ‘real’ causes of crime, which lie in the wider capitalist system
- ignores the crimes of more powerful groups in society and simply concentrate on street crime. Matthew and Young rethink left realism and do argue that analysis of these crimes can be included in left realist analysis
- both right and left realism have had considerable influence on new labour policy since 1997, with many of their ideas being brought into law e.g police community support officers introduced
- left realist solutions and crime prevention measures are costly however they would save tax-payers £££ if successful
- both left and right realists focus on the victims of crime
- assumes value consensus
biosocial differences - wilson and hernstein
Biological differences between individuals make some people innately more strongly predisposed to commit crime than others. For example, personality traits such as aggressiveness, extroversion, risk taking and low impulse control put some people at greater risk of offending.
Similarly, Herrnstein and Murray (1994) argue that the main cause of crime is low intelligence,which they also see as biologically determined.
socialisation and underclass - murray
- crime rate increasing because of a growing underclass who are defined by their deviant behaviour and who fail to socialise their children properly. this is growing due to welfare dependency
- lone mothers = ineffective socialisation agents. absent fathers mean that boys lack paternal discipline and appropriate male role models. as a result, young males turn to other, often delinquent, role models on the street and gain status through crime rather than supporting their families through a steady job
rational choice theory - clarke
Rational choice theorists such as Ron Clarke (1980) argue that the decision to commit crime is a choice based on a rational calculation of the likely consequences. If the perceived rewards of crime outweigh the perceived costs, or if the
rewards of crime appear to be greater than those of noncriminal behaviour, then people will be likely to offend
— Right realists argue that the perceived costs of crime are low and this is why the crime rate has increased. In their view, there is often little risk of being caught and punishments are
in any case lenient.
late modernity, bulimic society and individualism (left realism)
more people feel economically excluded and at the same time our media saturated society stresses the importance of consumption, immediate gratification and the self - buy now, pay later, ‘be someone’ social media and identity (everyone is a celeb)
- individualism; rely on ourselves not others or communities
- young coined the term bulimic society
wilson and kelling - broken window thesis
- visible signs of crime, anti-social behaviour, and civil disorder create an urban environment that encourages further crime and disorder, including serious crimes
- theory suggests that policing methods that target minor crimes such as vandalism, public drinking and fare evasion help to create an atmosphere of order and lawfulness, thereby preventing more serious crimes
- further popularised in the 1990s in NY
evaluations of right realism
- one of the biggest criticisms of the right realist situational crime prevention is that it doesn’t necessary reduce crime, it just displaces it. if criminals are rational thinkers then they will respond to target hardening by moving to an area where that targeting is softer
- right realists don’t address the social causes of crime
- they ignore the structural causes of crime such as poverty
- they don’t allow for the fact that some people may just be targeted by labelling
- they assume that all crimes are rational, but what about irrational crimes with no benefit or crimes of passion
- they are overly concerned with street crime and ignore corporate or white collar crimes which may be more costly and harmful to society
