T2) Socialogical Theories✅

Question 1

What do sociological theories consist of?

Answer 1

1. Functionalism 🤝
2. Interactionism 🏷
3. Marxism 💸

Question 2

🤝functionalism:

1. What do functionalists believe about society and crime?
2. What do they say crime creates in society?

Answer 2

1. They say crime is good and functional for society to keep ppl in order and detters ppl
2. They say it creates social cohesion were everyone comes together for example; BLM

Question 3

🤝functionalism- Durkheim:
1.What does he say about crime?

2. When does he say crime becomes disfunctional?
3. What does he say crime reinforces?

Answer 3

1. Says crime is inevitable and is functional for society
2. If crime rates are way to high or way too low
3. Value consensus (everyone follows norms and values)

Question 4

🤝functionalism- Durkheim:
1. What did he say would happen if we had a “society of saints”?

2.What is meant by “anomie” according to Durkheim?

Answer 4

1. The minor deviant acts would get amplified and get punished more severely such as burping
2. Anomie= when rules break down, state of chaos as a result of too much crime

Question 5

🤝functionalism- Durkheim:

1. What is ‘boundary maintenance’?
2. What is “social solidarity”?

Answer 5

1. ‘Boundary maintenance’ = keeps ppl on order to follow the same rules
2. ‘Social solidarity’= everyone works together , collective conscience and response to a problem in society

Question 6

🤝functionalism - Davis:

What is the “safety valve”?

Answer 6

Deviance acts as safety valve to allow ppl to let off steam

Easy way to relive emotions in a legal way instead of turning to illegal ways

Question 7

🤝functionalism - Durkheim evaluation:
✅say two positives (keeping ppl in order…)
and keeps ppl…..

Answer 7

✅good idea , ppl need sanctions and punishments to make them behave in society , if no one commits crime ppl won’t learn
✅keep ppl in jobs such as police officers

Question 8

🤝functionalism- Durkheim evaluation:

❌state 4 limitations? (value consensus…)

Answer 8

❌doesn’t acctually explain why individuals commit crime

❌doesn’t consider other things such as; who decides the law and how the Rich who have the power to dodge law?

❌if we all have the same value consensus then why do ppl stlll commit crime?

❌disregards effects on victim

Question 9

🤝functionalism - Merton:
1. What was Merton’s theory?

2.explain it

Answer 9

1. Mertons strain theory
2. Ppl have the goals / aspirations in life however don’t have the means such as education or money to reach them, leads to ppl getting these goals through illegitimate means such as robbery

Good example - American culture “American dream”

Question 10

🤝functionalism - Merton:

What does Merton blame for crime?

Answer 10

He blames capitalistic , materialistic society’s , they set false expectations that ppl feel like there a let down if they can’t reach these

Question 11

🤝functionalism - Merton:

1. What is the “strain towards anomie”?
2. What are the 5 modes of adaption? Which are the two important ones?

Answer 11

1. The gap between wanting something and having it
2. 1) rebellion= ppl rebel against society’s norms& replace it w their own
   2) innovation= thinking outside of the box / being creative to get these goals
   3) retreatism
   4) conformity
   5) ritualism

Question 12

🤝functionalism - Merton evaluation:

❌state 3 weaknesses

Answer 12

❌challenged for his assumptions that the goal of financial success is universal, everyone is different
❌some one may fall into more than one mode of adaption
❌other goals such as family & love are also reasons to display deviant behaviour

Question 13

🤝functionalism - Merton evaluation:

✅state a strength

Answer 13

✅backed by proof such as the American dream- ppl want what they can’t access so have to turn to illegal ways to achieve them

Question 14

🏷interactionism:
1. What does this theory believe?

2. What do they believe about official / crime statistics?

Answer 14

1. Believes ppl only become criminal when they are labelled as such
   Known as the “labelling theory”
2. Believe they are socially constructed, you can’t trust who decides if soemthing is criminal or not

Question 15

🏷interactionism:

What does labelling lead to?

Answer 15

Leads to self fulfilling prophecy. Some one gets labelled a certain way so many times they start to believe it therefore fulfill that role

Question 16

🏷interactionism- Becker:
1. What does Becker say?

2. What does the media do to ppl?
3. What’s deviancy amplification?

Answer 16

1. A act only becomes a crime when it’s labelled as criminal
2. Media demonises ppl as “folk devils” creating a moral panic in society and ppl stay away from certain ppl
3. Deviancy application= media amplified the situation to make it out worse than it is , leads to stereotyping and makes it harder to change public opinion on something. makes the gov. feel pressured to crack down

Question 17

🏷interactionism- Lemert:

What were the two types of deviance he identified?

Answer 17

1) primary deviance= deviant act, but it’s not labelled as deviant
2) secondary deviance= an act is then labelled as deviant

Question 18

🏷interactionism- Becker:

1. What is a “deviant career”?
2. What is a “master status”?
3. What can these do to some one ?

Answer 18

1. Can be formed by some one joining a subculture / group, deviant behaviour becomes internalised
2. Their bad status can control them
3. repeated over and over can effect some ones self concept making them feel isolated , excluded and unable to conform to society

Question 19

🏷interactionism - evaluation:

✅what are 2 strengths?

Answer 19

✅recognises everyone can be deviant at times

✅disregards the “typical criminal”

Question 20

🏷imteractionism - evaluation:

❌3 criticism of this theory

Answer 20

❌disregards factors such as gender , race …
❌most ppl commit deviant acts and get away with it- n to labelled
❌some ppl are labelled and want to prove ppl wrong fight back
❌doesn’t explain the original deviant act

Question 21

💸Marxism:
1) What do Marxist believe causes crime?

2) What’s the fancy words for rich& poor?
3) what does he say about the classes?

Answer 21

1) Capitalism, the rich run society and mistreat the poor in society

2) rich = bourgeoisie
Poor= proletariat

3) says there policed differently

Question 22

💸Marxism:

1) what do they say about official statistics?
2) what do they say crime is an inevitable consequence of?

Answer 22

1) say 42% of crime figures are false

2) consequence of a capitalist society where the bourgeoisie exploit proletariat

Question 23

💸Marxism:

What does ‘alienation’ mean?

Answer 23

‘Alienation’= being excluded / isolated from society

Question 24

💸- Marxism:
1) what do they say about white- collar crime?

2) what type of response is crime?
3) what do they say capitalism creates?

Answer 24

1) says it gets dismissed and ignored they get away w it
2) say crime is a rational and understandable response to a situation some one is in eg some one w no food and money is gonna steal food to survive
3) creates competition and inequality- can lead to violence , racism & materialism

Question 25

💸Marxism - chambliss:

What does chambliss say capitalism creates a desire for?

Why does he think crime is a little bit good? …jobs

Answer 25

Creates a desire to want the latest things but at the same time an inability to earn the money to reach these things which leads to crime

It’s kind of good bc it keeps ppl in jobs and bad ppl off the streets when there locked up

Question 26

💸Marxism- evaluation:

✅state some strengths

Answer 26

✅explanation for crime across all social classes

✅how white collar crime is under policed - selective law enforcement

✅explains the link between inequality and crime - rational response

Question 27

💸Marxism - evaluation:

❌3 negitives:

Answer 27

❌ignored other factors contributing to crime such as social and environmental
❌not all capitalist societies have high crime eg Japan is the biggest capitalist society yet has low crime rates
❌most proletariat obey law - value consensus

Question 28

💸Marxism - Bonger:
1) what was the link he made between two things that made crime occur?

2) what does he say crime is caused by?

Answer 28

1) link between crime and economic conditions (wages)

2) poverty , poor living conditions & a scarcity of resources

Question 29

💸marxism- box:
1) what term did box come up with

2) what was this about

Answer 29

1) avoidable killings
2) that the bourgeoisie would cut certain thin gs in work such as in a factory there may not check the health and safety on the machinery and a working class worker gets killed. this could have been avoided but they didnt care because they just wanna save money and benefit themselves