10.1: Problems in defining crime

Question 1

‘The legal system of this country and others can be confusing. Why are some acts seen as a crime and others not?’
Using your knowledge of problems with defining crime, explain why some crimes vary so much within this country and abroad (4 marks)

Answer 1

Definitions of crime vary cross-culturally.
Therefore, what is considered a crime in one country might be seen as perfectly legal in a different culture. For example, it is legal to marry more than one woman in some cultures, while in Britain it would be considered bigamy, a criminal offence

Question 2

‘The legal system of this country and others can be confusing. Why are some acts seen as a crime and others not?’
Using your knowledge of problems with defining crime, explain why some crimes vary so much within this country and abroad (4 marks).
Definitions of crime vary cross-culturally.
Therefore, what is considered a crime in one country might be seen as perfectly legal in a different culture. For example, it is legal to marry more than one woman in some cultures, while in Britain it would be considered bigamy, a criminal offence.

Answer 2

One of the reasons for this cross-cultural variation is that cultural definitions of crime often reflect cultural norms within a society