realist approaches to crime

Question 1

popular puntiveness

Answer 1

public vote for harsher punishment

Question 2

clarke - rational choice theory

Answer 2

argues that the decision to commit crime is a choice based on rational calculation of the likely consequences

Question 3

criticisms of the rational choice theory

Answer 3

• may create an innovator
• doesn’t explain the poverty factor of crime
• costly
• overcrowded prisons
• starts a deviant career

Question 4

what argument undermines these criticisms?

Answer 4

every government in the last 40 years has gone for a right realist approach, even new labour in 1997 and labour in 2024

Question 5

wilson & herrnstein - biological differences

Answer 5

• crime is caused by a combination of biological and social factors
• some people are more strongly predisposed to commit crime than others
• main cause of crime is low intelligence

Question 6

how does Lilly et al criticise wilson and herrnstein?

Answer 6

IQ differences account for less than 3% of offending

Question 7

Murray - socialisation & the underclass

Answer 7

• argues that crime rate is increasing because of a growing underclass who are defined by there deviant bahviour and fail to socialise their children properly

Question 8

who does murray argue are ineffective socialisation agents?

Answer 8

Lone mothers, speficially for boys

Question 9

what is the effect of inadequate socialisation?

Answer 9

this lack of paternal discip;ine and approriate male role model results in them turning to delinquent role models and gain status through crime

Question 10

zero tolerance policy

Answer 10

police should patrol the streets and take a ‘short, sharp, shock’ approach and carry out stop and searches on suspicious characters

Question 11

target hardening

Answer 11

increase use of CCTV, locks, secruity

Question 12

what is the criticism of zero tolerance?

Answer 12

crime will just move elsewhere - displacement

Question 13

what are the 3 areas that cause crime according to lea and young?

Answer 13

relative deprivation, political marginalisation and subcultural support

Question 14

how does relative deprivation lead to crime?

Answer 14

when people resent others unfairly for having more they resort to crime to obtain what they feel obligied to

Question 15

how has the media affected relative deprivation?

Answer 15

People are more aware of relative deprivation due to the media and avertising, which raises everyones expectations for material possession

Question 16

how does subcultures cause crime?

Answer 16

criminal subcultures subscribe to the values and goals of mainstream society but opportunities to achieve these goals legimately are blocked, so resort to street crime instead.

Question 17

how does marginalisation lead to crime?

Answer 17

unemployed youth are marginalised, they express their frustration through criminal means

Question 18

perry pre school project 1962

Answer 18

A study where they invested lots of money into a pre school and compared the pre-school group to a control group over 50 years

Question 19

what were the outcomes of the perry pre school project?

Answer 19

The children all went to university, achieved high paying jobs, by this point the control group already has a crime rate of 50%

Question 20

What does the perry pre school project show?

Answer 20

It shows that if the government invested enough funding into schools from a young age, we’d have more equal life opportunties and more successful future set up

Question 21

why would no government implent the perry pre school project?

Answer 21

• Because a government is only in for 4/5 years so they won’t see the benefits of it
• the public don’t like it as it’s seen as a soft approach

Question 22

military policing

Answer 22

swamping an area and conducting random stop and searches

Question 23

what do left realists think needs to be changed in policing to prevent crime?

Answer 23

police need to improve their relationship with local communities by spending more time investigating crime, changing their priorities and involving the public in policing policy

Question 24

what do left realists believe needs to be changed structurally to stop crime?

Answer 24

deal with inequality of opportunity, unfairness of rewards, tackle discrimination, provide decent jobs and imrpove housing

Question 25

how has left realism influenced government policy?

Answer 25

• New labour’s firmer approach to policing, hate crimes, domestic violece and ASBO
• New Labour’s New eal for unemployed youyh and anti-traunting policies attempted to reverse exclusion of young people at risk of offending

Question 26

How does Young criticise the governments left realist approach?

Answer 26

Argues that they largely just addressed the symptoms, they have been tougher on crime than its underlying cause.

Question 27

What are the criticisms of left realism?

Answer 27

• Not popular with the public
• Marxist argue it ignores white collar crime
• interactionalists argue they focus too much on official statistics and don’t explain the motives > lacks validity