Week 11 pt.2 : Future directions

Question 1

4 basic ideological approaches to crime control…

Answer 1

1. conservative approach
2. liberal approach
3. critical approach
4. integrated & interdisciplinary approach

Question 2

1 - conservative approach

Answer 2

• emphasizes preserving status quo, legal order & family values
• emphasizes conventional crime
• incarceration & want more police
• maintain social control even if that means compromising individual freedoms
• more political than humanistic

Question 3

2 - Liberal approach

Answer 3

• more humanistic than political
• emphasizes addressing social & economic problems that are underlying causes of crime & achieving social reform
• treating & rehabilitating offenders
• only been kinda successful

Question 4

3 - critical approach

Answer 4

• adopt anti-establishment view of social order
• view capitalist competition for wealth as an underlying motivator of crime
• examining non-conventional crime committed by privileged groups
• shifting focus from offender to social system
• offers few actual specific solutions to the crime problem

Question 5

4 - integrated & interdisciplinary approach

Answer 5

• sees ‘handling’ crime as principal objective as opposed to controlling it/solving problems behind it
• views criminal behaviour as human behaviour
• stresses interaction between individual & environment
• draws on objective & subjective analysis
• Arguably represents our best chance of overcoming divisions
• To do so, we have to develop a social control/public order model that respects ppls freedoms and dignity, then persuade those who legislate criminal policy and administer justice to embrace it

Question 6

Areas that may pose increasing challenges for criminology and crime control include the following…

Answer 6

1. any crimes in which current tech can be exploited
2. transnational and international crimes
3. crimes related to the mass movement (legal/irregular) by ppl
4. environmental & space crimes

Question 7

*deterrence

Answer 7

• threat of prison does not deter those who commit white-collar crimes
• there is very high recidivism rates in white-collar criminals
• punishment is legit just not effective here

Question 8

*costs of crime

Answer 8

• result of 2014 report by Fraser institute reported that the cost of crime in Canada rose from 42 billion to over 85 billion from 2002-2012
• this includes victim losses & cost of fighting and punishing crime
• greatest increases over the 10 years have been in policing and corrections… so a shift from prevention to punishment & should be other way around
• so we should be focused on reducing the opportunities for crime

Question 9

comparative criminology…

Answer 9

• Advances in tech & methodology have helped make international & comparative criminological research a major area of study since the late 20th century
• value of a comparative approach is evident when you survey the growing list of international criminology journals
• As Canada becomes more multicultural, it is important to understand how cultural differences influence crime trends

Question 10

3 main reasons for criminologists to engage in cross-national and cross-cultural studies…

Answer 10

1. to benefit from the experience of others
2. they broaden our understanding of diverse cultures & approaches to problems
3. to help us deal with international crime problems like terrorism, drug smuggling & human trafficking

Question 11

The United Nations 3 major goals…

Answer 11

1. freedom from fear
2. freedom from want
3. sustainable development

Question 12

Study identified 3 developmental pathways that can lead to serious, violent and chronic offending…

Answer 12

1. authority conflict pathway = stubborn behaviour progresses to authority avoidance
2. covert pathway = develops when young ppl become secretive & progress to overt behaviour like property damage, then escalating to more serious acts
3. overt pathway = begins with minor aggression & progresses to more serious violence
   Approx. 75% of high-risk offenders follow one or more of these pathways

Question 13

*Opportunity reduction strategies…

Answer 13

• designed to prevent crime by minimizing the opportunities for criminal behaviour to occur
• takes three forms… primary, secondary & tertirary

Question 14

*1 - primary prevention

Answer 14

• addresses the environmental conditions that promote crime
• example = cleaning up disorganized communities, maintaining streets & fixing broken windows
• initiative include neighbourhood watch program… risks tho with increased fear of crime and citizen vigilantism

Question 15

*2 - secondary prevention

Answer 15

• focuses on identifying potential offenders and targets (people, places, situations, times, etc.) and intervening before a crime is committed
• like = patrolling crime ‘hot spots’, conducting surveillance and applying target-hardening strategies
• e.g. cuz of the known relationship between drug use and crime, secondary prevention programs have been developed to educate youth about the hazards of drugs

Question 16

*3 - tertiary prevention

Answer 16

• focuses on preventing individuals who have already violated the law from re-offending (Focus today)
• Chief strategy includes restorative justice initiatives
• It does not prevent crime from occurring, but is does reduce the risk of victimization by repeat offenders

Question 17

social development prevention

Answer 17

primary prevention strategy that uses community-based programs to make ppl more aware of their risk of being victimized

Question 18

politics & criminal law

Answer 18

• current laws are fully ineffective and ppl in the system are also fully aware of that
• media protrayals of crime & criminal justice tend to be more myth than fact & give public misconceptions like thinking we need more cops even though its been proven that it doesnt do dick all
• these misconceptions prevent adopting of innovative ideas
• governments usually make laws w fully political agendas

Question 19

restorative justice is…

Answer 19

• *a direct and indirect mediation model that emphasizes restitution and community participation, aimed at rehabilitating offenders & reintegrating them back into their communities

Question 20

*Principles underlying the restorative justice approach…. (4)

Answer 20

1. emphasizes social rather than moral responsibility (communitarian philosophy)
2. public shaming… forces offenders to face accuser & their supporters in a powerfully emotional setting… reduces reoffending rates
3. restorative model… sees harm as actual injury to community & this must be repaired… calls for emotion, physical, social & spiritual retribution
4. process of restitution should respect all parties involved… victim, offender, community & agents of justice

Question 21

restorative justice today…

Answer 21

• Indigenous ppl in Canada were doing restorative justice before the arrival of Europeans
• current restorative justice principles in sentencing offenders can be traced to a 1999 Supreme Court ruling in R. v. Gladue
• The restorative justice approach today is reflected in a practice known as circle sentencing… an offender, having accepted responsibility for their act, meets with the victim(s), community elders and representatives of the justice system to present his or her views of the offence and its consequences, and to discuss what will be required to make amends

Question 22

resrotative justice examples include…

Answer 22

• Victim-offender reconciliation (VOR)
• Victim-offender mediation (VOM)
• Community justice circles (CJCs)
• Reparative probation (RP)
• Reintegrative shaming
• Transformative justice