the realist theories of crime

Question 1

right and left realism: similarities and differences

Answer 1

• both theories see high crime rates as a serious problem
• both been influential in recent policy making
• RIGHT: badly behaved individuals cause crime
• LEFT: poor living conditions - social exclusion
• RIGHT realism supports a zero tolerance approach
• LEFT realism supports a more reformist approach - tough on the causes of crime

Question 2

right realism (conservative) causes of crime:

Answer 2

• poor socialization
• lack of positive male role models
• under class
• generous welfare benefits
• poor parenting skills

Question 3

left realism (labour - similar to marxism) causes of crime:

Answer 3

• poor quality housing
• relative deprivation
• inequality of educational opportunities
• social exclusion
• inequalities found in capitalism

Question 4

WILSON & HERRINSTEIN (right) - questioning unemployment to explain crime

Answer 4

• question that crime is a result of poverty and unemployment
• since 1960s the USA has been very prosperous
• high levels of employment
• lots of social programmes aimed at young people
• education attainment levels higher than ever
• yet crime rates are still very high
• blame biological and social factors

Question 5

right realism: characteristics of a criminal

Answer 5

• biological factors: some individuals are predisposed to committing crime
• personality traits: more aggressive
• risk taking behaviour
• low intelligence

Question 6

CHARLES MURRAY (right) - deplorable behaviour

Answer 6

• ‘under class’
• not so much about poverty - more about the deplorable behaviour
• teenage mums - live off benefits
• children inadequately socialised
• large numbers of healthy young males who refuse to work

Question 7

single parents (right perspective)

Answer 7

• inadequate socialisation
• dependent on welfare benefits
• only two parent heterosexual families can socialise children correctly
• little boys need role models
• crime is a characteristic of the underclass
• men who don’t support their families turn to crime for masculinity

Question 8

CLARKE (right) - rational choice theory

Answer 8

• individuals make a choice about committing crimes based on rational calculation
• if the rewards of a crime outweigh the consequences of being caught, then people will offend

Question 9

FELSON (right) - routine activity theory

Answer 9

• for a crime to take place there needs to be a motivated offender
• suitable target - victim
• absence of capable guardian (police officer or neighbor)
• criminals act rationally, the presence of a guardian will deter them

Question 10

right realist solutions to crime

Answer 10

• no point dealing with cause of crime
• biological/socialisation factors are too difficult to tackle
• need to make crime more attractive
• need zero tolerance policing

Question 11

evaluation of right realism (criticisms)

Answer 11

• claim that living standards have gone up, however, gap between rich and poor is greater than ever - relative deprivation
• focus too much on young men and street crime, what about corporate and domestic crime?
• it assumes that official statistics give a true representation of crime
• putting more people in prison is very expensive - no evidence that this works
• threat to civil liberties - culture of control and use of surveillance techniques

Question 12

left realism - critiques of other theories

Answer 12

• marxists focus too much on the crimes of the powerful and neglect WC crime and its effects
• critical/radical criminology romanticise working class criminals and ignore victims
• labelling theories see criminals as the victims of labelling, again ignoring victims

Question 13

what is left realism / their beliefs

Answer 13

• developed in 1980s/90s
• led by JOCK YOUNG
• taking crime seriously involves looking at who is most affected by crime
• people in WC areas are more likely to be a victim of burglary, assault etc

Question 14

LEA AND YOUNG - the causes of crime

Answer 14

• relative deprivation
• feelings of resentment caused by the media and advertising
• increase in individualism - lack of community spirit, decline in family life

Question 15

street crime subcultures

Answer 15

• social groups who have their opportunities blocked - young WC males
• subscribe to mainstream values such as materialism and consumerism
• want designer labels - only way to achieve this is street crime

Question 16

how does marginalisation cause crime?

Answer 16

• groups lack clear goals and organisation
• young, unemployed people lack both of these
• feel frustrated and turn to crime

Question 17

YOUNG - late modern society and rising crime

Answer 17

• late modernity (instability, insecurity and exclusion) has made crime worse
• changes in the economy
• decline in manufacturing jobs (male work)
• lack of work has broken down many WC families and communitites
• very little government intervention to help create jobs
• reduction in welfare benefits creates more social exclusion

Question 18

factors of late modern society

Answer 18

• media saturated: poor have access to materialistic messages
• immediate gratification
• meritocracy: poor are excluded from societies wealth
• relative deprivation
• hate crimes
• less consensus about acceptable behaviour
• informal social controls now less effective as families/communities disintegrate
• public are less tolerant and demand harsher formal controls by the state
• high crime society with a low tolerance for crime

Question 19

how to the left want to tackle crime?

Answer 19

• improve policing - community policing
• deal with the deeper structural causes of crime

Question 20

KINGSEY, LEA AND YOUNG - policing problems

Answer 20

• police ‘clear up rates’ are too low to act as deterrent
• police depend on the public for information, but they are loosing public support
• police rely on military policing such as swamping an area

Question 21

what needs to be done to fix the public’s relationship with the police (left)

Answer 21

• positive relationships with the public - work with other social organisations such as social services and schools, multi agency approach
• end to military style policing - ‘stop and search’ creates distrust
• more time investigating crime to build up trust with the community
• changes need to be made with priorities - less time spend policing minor drugs

Question 22

how to tackle the structural causes (left)

Answer 22

• deal with the inequality of opportunity
• unfairness of rewards
• tackle discrimination
• decent jobs for all
• improve housing conditions
• improve community facilities
• end stereotyping certain social groups as criminals

Question 23

left realism and government policy

Answer 23

• LR have had lots of influence over governmental policy
• similar approach to new labour (1997-2010) : tough on crime as well as the causes
• ASBOs to protect vunerable groups from anti-social behaviour
• new deal for unemployed people
• however, these policies failed - dealt with the symptoms and not the causes

Question 24

evaluation of left realism (criticisms)

Answer 24

• drawn attention to street crime and its effects
• makes street crime seem worse than it is, labels it the crime of the poor
• ignores corporate crime and the harm it causes
• description of relative deprivation can fit us all - not all marginalised groups commit crime

Question 25

comparing right and left realism

Answer 25

• both see crime as a serious problem
• come from different ends of the political spectrum
• RR are neo-conservatives, who blame individuals and lack of control
• RR want a tough stance taken on offenders
• LR are reformist socialists who blame structural inequalities
• LR prioritise justice, achieved through democratic policing and social reforms to create equality