Realist theories Flashcards
what do realists say about crime
Crime is not just a soc9al construction
how do realists argue that crime is not just a social construction
have a significant use in the crime rate
Concerned about the widespread fear of crime and impact of crime on its victims
other theries fail to offer realistic solutions to crime whereas realist offer practical ways to reduce crime
what is the general outlook of right realists
such as new right
adopt a ‘get tough’’ approach
what his the general outlook of left realists
socialist
favour different approaches/policies on how to reduce crime
What causes crime according to High Realists
rational choice theory
broken windows there
the underclass
How should we prevent crime according to right realist?
Situational Crime Prevention
Environmental Crime Prevention
What is Rational Choice theory
individuals choose to commit crime
most individuals are rational actors
if the risk of committing a crime is low or the risk of getting caught is not severe they ar emore likely to commit the crime
They are rational as they weigh up the risk and rewards of committing crime
What is the method of preventing rational choice theory
Cohen and Felson - ‘Routine Activities theory’
What is Routine Activities theory
Cohen and Felson
social control mechanisms, a high risk of getting caught and a low reward minimise crime
Crime requires three things
1. Individuals who were motivated to offend
2. The availability of opportunities and targets
3. the lack of cable gaurdians such as police or security
Evaluation of Rational choice Theory
it does not exp. ain crimes of emotion/crimes of passion
status may come from the fact that you are prepared to take the risk
What is Broken windows theory
by James Q Wilson and George Kelling
the most influential writing on crime
leaving broken windows in some neighbourhoods ()undue noise, littering, begging, vandalism)
With a lack of formal (police) and informal (community) social control, the situation area deteriorates
Evaluation of Broken Windows theory
there is mild evidence of whether high levels of social disorder leads to high levels of social criminality
the concepts of both social disorder and crime are hard to define and measure, thus its hard to test the theory
What is the Underclass?
Charles Murray - decline in family structure creates underclass
attributes the growth of crime to the growth of the underclass
Underclass - defined by deviant behaviour and fail to socialise their children properly.
children grow up and fail to understand the difference between right and wrong
Evalaution of the Underclass
marxists may argue that there are deeper structural causes to the underclass, for example industry innovation causing long term unemployment
there is too great of a focus on the crimes of the underclass, and fail to notice on the crimes of the ei
lite
what is situational crime prevention
focus on the specific point at which victims and criminals come together
making offending more difficult, not making punishment harder
based off rational choice theory - Felson and Clarke
What are the types of Situational Crime Prevention
Routine activities theory Felson and Cohen
Target Hardening
Defensible Space - Oscar Newman
real-life example of situational crime prevention: Port Authority Bus Terminal New York - eliminated dark spaces etc
evaluation of situational crimee prevention
crime displacement just moves crime on to other areas
impractical for rural areas h dispersed population
ignores the underlying causes of crime
What is Environmental Crime Prevention
Involve changing the broader area in which crime occurs through increasing formal and informal social control measures to clamp down on anti-social
rely more heavily on pricing
example: Zero Tolerance Policing
What is Zero tolerance policing
involves strictly enforcing law and penalties for minor offences to prevent further crime
specific example used in New York in the 1980s and 90s’clean car programme’ and asa resultt of ZT usage crime was reduced in New York by 50% form 1993-96
Liverpool in 2005 violent crime fell by 38%
Evalaution of Environmental crime Prevention
Zero Tolerance policing may lead to further crime in the long run with criminal records and criminal careers after minor offences
more power to the police may cause greater stereotyping and a police state
What is Left Realism
Developed in 1980s and 1990s
sees society as unequal and capitalist
reform rather than revolutionary socialists
need explanations of crime that will lead to practical strategies reducing it now rather than waiting for revolution
What is Aetiological crisis
- Young (2011) suggests that the perceived increase in crime rates during the 1950s led to a crisis in explanation for theories of crime. Critical criminology and labelling theory tend to deny that the increase was real, viewing it as a social construction rather than a true reflection of crime rates.
How do Left Realists understand crime?
Matthews 1993 - crime can only be understood from the interactions between two elements: the state, the offender, informal social control and the victim
what causes crime according to left realists?
Leo and Young (1984) identify 3 related causes of crime: relative deprivation, sub-culture and marginalisation
what is relative deprivation
crime has roots in deprivation, but deprivation is not directly responsible for crime
individualism and relative deprivation leads to crime
individualism is the concern with oneself and rights
What is the subculture cause of crime?
linked to criminal subculture work by Merton
sub-culture is a group collective solution to a problem or relative deprivation
different groups create different sub-cultural solutions
primal sub-cultures often subscribe to the values of society but resort to crime as the legitimate means are blocked
what is marginalisation
these groups lack clear goals and organisation to represent their interests
being powerless to use political means to improve position means they express frustration through crime
what is the left realist explanation to falling crime rates
Aetiological crisis
crime rates have fallen, but since crime is a social construction it is still a problem
61% of people believe crime rates have risen CSEW 2014
How does left realism explain rising anti-social behaviour rate
since the 1990s governments have been trying to control the wider range of behaviour with ASBOs and IPnAs
they have several key features
blurring the boundaries of crime
subjective definition
flexibility
crime rate is going down but replaced iwht a ‘new crime wave’
How do left realists tackle cerium
Kindly, Lea ajnd Young (1986) due police clean up rates are too low to be considered effective in deterring crime, police do not spend enough time investigating crime
military policing - the police rely on the public for information,. Police losing public support especially in inner cities and with ethnic minorities
swamping and stop and search tactics - alienates communities
policing must be accountable for local communities and and deal with local issues, communities should be involved in policing policy
called “multi-agency approach’
evaluation of left realism
fails to explain the causes of street crime
neglects corporate crimes
idealistic, society could have less crime in this way but is that any more realistic Thant he approach of traditional marxists
