right realism

Question 1

right realism

Answer 1

sees crime, especially street crime as a real and growing problem that destroys communities, undermines social cohesion and threatens society’s work ethic, rather than a social construction

criticise other theories for failing to offer any practical solutions to the problem of rising crime

propose what they regard as practical policies to reduce it

Question 2

the causes of crime:

biological differences

Answer 2

wilson and herrnstein - put forward a biosocial theory of criminal beahviour

biological differences between individuals make some people innately more strongly predisposed to commit crime than others

personality traits such as aggressiveness, extroversion, risk taking and low impulse control put some people at greater risk

herrnstein and murray - cause of crime is low intelligence, which is also biologically determined

Question 3

the causes of crime:

socialisation and the underclass

Answer 3

effective socialisation reduces the risk of offending since it involves learning self control and internalising moral values of right and wrong

the best agency for socialisation is the nuclear family

murray - crime rate is increasing because of a growing underclass who fail to socialise their children properly - generous welfare state

allows people to become dependent on the state and the growth of lone parent families who are ineffective socialisation agents especially for boys - lack discipline

Question 4

causes of crime:

rational choice theory

Answer 4

assumes individuals have free will and the power of reason

clarke - the decision to commit crime is a choice based on a rational calculation of the likely consequence. if the rewards outweigh the costs, then people will be likely to offend

right realists argue that the costs of crime are low which is why it’s increasing

felson’s routine activity theory - for a crime to occur, there must be a motivated offender, a suitable target and the absence of a capable guardian. offenders are likely to act rationally, so that the presence of a guardian is likely to deter them

Question 5

criticisms of right realism

Answer 5

ignores wider structural causes such as poverty

overstates offender’s rationality and how far they make cost benefit calculations before committing a crime. doesn’t explain impulsive or violent crime

over emphasises biological factors - lilly et al found that iq differences account for less than 3% of differences in offending

Question 6

tackling crime

Answer 6

main focus is on control, containment and punishment rather than eliminating underlying causes

crime prevention policies should reduce rewards and increase costs to the offender. for example, by target hardening, greater use of prisons and ensuring punishments follow soon after the offence to maximise their deterrent effect

wilson and kelling - broken window theory argues that it is essential to maintain the orderly character of neighbourhoods to prevent crime taking hold. any sign of deterioration such as graffiti should be dealt with immediately

Question 7

zero tolerance

Answer 7

young - its success was a myth peddled by politicians and police keen to take credit for falling crime since crime have been falling since 1985 and was also falling in places which didn’t have zero tolerance policies

Question 8

criticisms of zero tolerance

Answer 8

preoccupied with petty street crime and ignores corporate crime which is more costly and harmful

gives the police more free rein to discriminate against minorities, youth, the homeless and others

over emphasises control of disorder rather than tackling the causes of neighbourhood decline such as lack of investment

zero tolerance and target hardening just lead to displacement of crime to other areas