Realsim - crime and deviance Flashcards
1
Q
What are right realist views on reducing crime? (4)
A
- reducing opportunities for offending
- increasing costs to exceed benefits
- community crime control
- responsible parenting and ‘active citizens’
2
Q
The Bell Curve: key argument
A
low intelligence means there is an inability to reason (and therefore less intelligent people are more likely to be criminal)
3
Q
Problems with The Bell Curve (4)
A
- exaggerates the importance of IQ
- ignores corporate and white collar crime which is usually highly intelligent (and also one would have to be intelligent to get to a position where they were able to commit such crimes)
- suggests the only way to eradicate crime is eugenics which poses an ethical problem
- high IQ shows one is good at tests, but suggests nothing about their relationships with others, their morals, their work ethic etc.
4
Q
What do right realists claim crime is the result of? (3)
A
- product of the breakdown of moral values
- poor socialisation
- failings in the individual
5
Q
Criticisms of right realism (6)
A
- not concerned with powerful structures
- crime displacement
- too much focus on petty crime which takes the focus away from more detrimental crimes
- ignores victims
- neglects the fact that prisons are expensive and ineffective
- marginalises the poor/working class
6
Q
Key features of left realism:
A
- crime inevitable part of society
- criminal behaviour caused by relative deprivation and antagonistic policing
7
Q
What were the four elements of crime that Young identified?
A
- Offender
- Victim
- Formal control
- Informal control
8
Q
Strengths of left realism (3)
A
- recognises that there are multiple causes of crime
- focus on victims and the offenders
- politically useful (policy formation)
9
Q
Limitations of left realism (3)
A
- not all deprived people commit crimes
- makes the assumption that crime is more likely when society’s values break down
- over concentration on small communities
