Realist Theorists Flashcards
Realists believe that crime is a…
Real problem to be tackled
What do realists argue about crime ?
- There’s been a real increase in crime rates, especially street crime, burglary & assault
- concerned about the widespread fear of crime and impact on its victims
- other theories have failed to offer realistic solutions to the problem of crime and practical policies to solve it
When did realism emerge ?
1970’s and 1980’s when politics shifted to the right
What are the two types of realist approaches ?
- Right realists - new right/ neoliberal outlook. They favour get tough stances on crime
- Left realists- socialists and favour different policies for reducing crime
What do Right realists say about crime ?
- Right realism sees crime as a real growing problem that destroys communities, undermines social cohesion, and threatens society’s work ethic
- Policies influenced by right realism don’t focus on the cause of crime but rather practical approaches which focuses on crime control measures such as harsher punishments
- They criticise other theories for their failure to identify any practical crime prevention measures arguing that other theories are too sympathetic to the offender
How do right realists criticise other theories ?
- They argue Marxists emphasise too much on capitalism causing crime control measures
- Labelling focuses too much on ‘others to blame’
What are the 3 causes of crime according to right realists ?
- Biological differences
- Socialisation and the underclass
- Rational choice theory
~ Routine activity theory
What is biological differences in terms of a right realist cause of crime?
Some people are more pre-disposed to commit crime than others and having personality traits such as aggression, impulsiveness etc can put an individual at greater rusk of offending
HERNSTEIN AND MURRAY - Main cause of crime is low intelligence levels which attributes to biology
*Hernstein and Murray
Biological differences - right realist causes of crime
Low IQ is the main cause of crime which attributes to biology
What is meant by socialisation and the underclass in terms of a right realist cause of crime?
Biology may pre-dispose an individual to committing crime however effective socialisation can decrease the risk of them becoming offenders. A nuclear family is needed to do this as the male role models of a father instills discipline
CHARLES MURRAY -
crime is increasing due to an increase of the underclass who are defined by their deviant children and inadequately socialising their children. The state has undergone a ‘ Generous revolution’
BENNET, DILULIO AND WALTERS-
Children that grow up around “deviant, delinquent and criminal adults” produce “vicious, predatory, unrepentant street criminals
*Charles Murray
crime is increasing due to an increase of the underclass who are defined by their deviant children and inadequately socialising their children. The state has undergone a ‘ Generous revolution’
*Bennet, Dilulio and Walters
Children that grow up around “deviant, delinquent, criminal adults” produces “vicious, predatory, unrepentant street criminals”
What is meant by the Rational Choice Theory in terms of right realist causes of crime?
CLARKE
Individuals have free will and the power of reason so the choice to commit crime was a choice based on rational calculation of the likely consequences
Why do they commit:
- the rewards of the crime outlay the perceived cost
- The benefit reaped illegitimately, outweighs the consequence the legitimate will enforce
- The risk of being caught is minimal and the law is lenient
WILSON
If the value of legitimate opportunities declines at the same time as the cost of illegitimate opportunities also declines then its very likely that crime will occur as it would seem to be the rational choice to ‘steal cars than wash them’
This links to the :
Routine activity theory
*Clarke
Rational choice theory - right realist cause of crime
Individuals have free will and the power of reason so the choice to commit crime was a choice based on rational calculation of the likely consequences
*Wilson
If the value of legitimate opportunities declines at the same time as the cost of illegitimate opportunities also declines then its very likely that crime will occur as it would seem to be the rational choice to ‘steal cars than wash them’
What is meant by the routine activity theory as part of the rational choice theory in right realist causes of crime?
For a crime to occur there must be 3 components:
- A motivated offender
- A suitable target - victim or property
- Absence of a suitable guardian - formal/ informal control agencies e.g police or neighbours
FELSON
An informal rational guardian is as likely to deter offending behaviour as the presence of police
*Felson
Routine activity theory - Rational choice theory - right realist cause of crime
The presence of an informal rational guardian is as likely to deter offending as police
What is some evaluation for the right realist causes of crime?
- it ignores structural causes of crime
- Rational choice - doesn’t adequately explain non-utilitarian crime
- Biological - Lily et al found IQ differences account for less than 3% of differences in offending
What are the 3 right realist solutions to tackle crime?
They don’t focus on the root cause of the crime but rather they focus on control, containment and punishment by reducing rewards
- Broken Windows - WILSON AND KELLING
- Zero tolerance policies
- Target hardening
*Wilson and Kelling
Right realist solution to causing crime - broken windows
It’s crucial to maintain the appearance and orderly character of a neighbourhood to prevent crime taking hold
What is meant by the right realist solution of crime ‘Broken windows’ ?
It’s crucial to maintain the appearance and orderly character of a neighbourhood to prevent crime taking hold
What is meant by the right realist solution of crime ‘Zero tolerance policies’ ?
There should be no tolerance of undesirable behaviour such as prostitution, begging etc. The police should control the streets so that the law abiding feel safe. This first introduced in New York
What is meant by the right realist solution of crime ‘Target hardening’ ?
Greater use of prisons, ensuring punishments are given quickly after the crime to maximise their deterrent effect. The cost of offending must be much greater
What is AO3 for Right realists solutions to tackling crime?
- Its preoccupied with petty street crime and ignores corporate crime
- Zero tolerance policies - Jones found that they failed to prevent crime in the USA
- Zero tolerance policies- Young says tat the success of these has been largely exaggerated and in fact a myth that politicians and police used for an already decreasing crime rate
*Jones
AO3- Zero tolerance policies - right realist solution of crime
Says that they failed to prevent crime in the USA
*Young
AO3- Zero tolerance policies- Right realist solution to crime
Found that the success of them had been largely exaggerated and that they were a myth that the politicians and police used to describe an already decreasing crime rate
When did left realism emerge ?
1980’s
What do left realists focus on?
They focus on the problem that disadvantaged groups are the main victims of crime
How do left realists criticise other sociologists for failing to take crime seriously?
Maxists - Focus too much on crimes of the powerful neglecting working class crime and its effects
Neo-marxists - romanticise wc criminals as stealing from the rich to give to the poor as an act of political resistance to capitalism. Most crime is intra-class so this isn’t the case
Labelling theorists - see the wc as victims of discriminatory labelling by social control agents neglecting the wc people who are victims of these offenders
What is meant by an aetiological crisis ?
It means that there has been a crisis in explanation for the real increase in crime since the 1950’s
What are the causes of crime according to left realists ?
- Relative deprivation
- Subculture
- Marginalisation
What is meant by relative deprivation in terms of a left realist cause of crime?
People commit crime due feeling deprived in relation to others - this concept comes from RUNCIMAN
LEA & YOUNG-
relative deprivation is a paradox in modern society as we are more prosperous however we are also more crime ridden. This is because of the ideological abilities of the media which raises everyone’s expectations to own material possessions
Crime is encouraged as we encourage the pursuit of self interest above anything else
*Runciman
Relative Deprivation - left realist cause of crime
Concept of relative deprivation which is feeling deprived in relation to others
*Lea and Young
Relative Deprivation - left realist cause of crime
relative deprivation is a paradox in modern society as we are more prosperous however we are also more crime ridden. This is because of the ideological abilities of the media which raises everyone’s expectations to own material possessions
What is meant by subcultures in terms of a left realist cause of crime?
a subculture is a groups collective response to the problem of relative deprivation
YOUNG -
identified groups in ghettos in the USA where he said there was ‘Full Immersion’ into the American dream however these groups cannot achieve them legitimately due to blocked opportunities so they resort to street crime instead
Religion :
some people seek religious comfort for the deprivation gap as it offers spiritual comfort
WEBER calls this the Theodicy of dispriviledge which is an explanation for disadvantaged and suffering
*Weber
Subcultures - left realist cause of crime
some people turn to religion to deal with the deprivation gap by seeking religious/spiritual comfort which he calls the theodicy of dispriviledge. This is an explanation for disadvantage and suffering
What is meant by marginalisation in terms of a left realist cause of crime?
A marginalised group is a group that lacks clear goals and organisations to represent their interests and this is often unemployed youths . This powerlessness as a result of marginalisation results in crime as frustration is expressed through violence and rioting
