4. Realist Theories of crime- Left realism Flashcards
Outline left realism theories of crime
Left realists are reformists rather than revolutionary socialists: they believe in gradual change rather than violent overthrow of capitalism as the way to achieve greater equality
Believe in explanations of crime that will lead to practical strategies for reducing it now, rather than waiting for a revolution & classless society to abolish crime.]
How to left realists criticse other theorists
Left realists accuse other theories for not taking crime seriously:
Marxists concentrated on crimes of powerful, such as corporate crime but neglect WC and its effects ,Marxisrts point out that the victims working class street crime are most likely to be the working class, and it is these types of ‘ordinary crime’ that worry working class people. Criminology should thus focus on dealing with these types of ‘ordinary crime’ rather than focusing on elite crime
Neo-Marxism romanticise WC criminals as Robin hoods stealing from the r8ich as an act of political resistance to capitalism
left realists point out that WC criminals victimise other WC people not the rich
Labelling theorists see WC criminals as victims of discriminatory labelling by social control agents , left realists argue they neglect the real victims-the WC who suffer at the hands of criminals
Outline the 3 causes of crime -Left realism
Lea & young
- Relative deprivation
- Subculture
- Marginalisation
Outline relative deprivation as a cause of crime ( left realism)
Lea and Young argue that relative deprivation leads to crime because people who are deprived resent others having more material goods than them, thus resorting to illegitimate means to achieve the same level of materials.
relative deprivation helps explain the apparent paradox of increasing crime in the context of an increasing wealthy society
. Although people are better off today, they have a greater feeling of relative deprivation because of the media and advertising have raised everyone’s expectations for material possessions – we are wealthier, but we feel poorer, and thus there is more pressure to get more stuff to keep up with everyone else, which generates historically high crime rates.
Explain how subculture is a cause of crime (left realism)
Left Realists see subcultures as a group’s collective response to the situation of relative deprivation, and they draw on Cohen’s theory of status frustration to explain how they emerge.
Subcultures form as a collective solution to relative deprivation, and some may turn to crime in order to close the ‘deprivation gap’.’
Explain how marginalisation is a cause of crime ( left realism)
Young argues Marginalised groups lack clear goals and organisations to represent them, which leads to frustration and resentment. In turn, they express this frustration through criminal acts such as violence and rioting.
Explain how left realists aim to tackle crime
Left realists argue that must improve policing and control and deal with the deeper structural causes of crime
POLICING AND CONTROL
Policing must be made accountable to local communities, and need to improve their relationship with such communities by spending more time investigating crime, and involving the community in making policing policy.
TACKLING STRUCTURAL CAUSES OF CRIME
Reduce inequality of opportunity, discrimination and provide jobs for everyone.
A03
Evaluations of left realism
Henry & milovanovic(1996) argue that it accepts the authorities definition of crime as being street crime commited by the poor instead of defoining the problem as being one of how powerful groups do harm to the poor. Marxists argue that it fails to explain corporate crime which is more harmful
Interactionists argue that because left realists rely on quantitative data from victim surveys, they cannoy explain offenders motives
Relative deprivation cannot fully explain crime as not all those who experience it commit crime , thus left realists over predict crime
