W2: Understanding Crime Flashcards
Why do we need to team certain behaviours as criminal
To protect the peace and to differentiate between right and wrong
What does John Stuart Mill argue
Human behaviour needs to be regulated and that there is unavoidable conflict between our desire for autonomy and our preference to live with others in society or a community
What does Case et al argue about crime
A crime is any act or omission that a state at this time says is criminal, and to which the state attached criminal consequences
What does Christie 2004 believe about crime
That it doesn’t exist
Instead we should focus on social harm
What does is mean that criminal law is malleable
It shifts over time
Law can be made to suit people in power
What are degrees of unacceptability
Different societies and groups have different opinions
What is the hard principle in criminology
When the negative attitude in society changes first and then the state reacts
- apply labels
Why is deviance different to criminal
It changes over time
What does Downes et al say about deviance
Unlike crime it is in the eye of the beholder- what one person classes as deviant another will not and as with crime, deviance is socially constructed
