2.1- social control Flashcards
(8 cards)
What is social control
why people obey the law
how do norms and values act as internal social control
Norms are acceptable behaviour within society, whilst values may be moral beliefs learned from family or beliefs such as religion.
These norms and value are usually in-line with the law
These are internalised in early socialisation and become part of our inner personality, so we naturally follow them.
how does a superego act as internal social control
freud states that our superego is developed in early socialisation and conforms to the expectations of society we learn during this time.
If we go against these expectations, we get feelings of guilt.
this is what restrains us against our impulses of the ID, which may have caused us to commit crime such as theft
how does rational ideology act as internal social control
people believe that the law is right and maintains fairness within society.
This means people feel guilty if they break the law as they believe in it and what it stands for.
How do police act as external social control
think coerce, deference, fear of punishment
Police can coerce us to follow the law through reasonable force- e.g. arrest
PACE allows police to detain and arrest- which acts as a general deterrence as people are aware of the consequences if they break the law.
uniformed presence may act as a reminder, which could act as an individual deterrence for people nearby
financial penalties and cautions may be inconvenient for people, so people do not act out of fear of punishment
how do courts act as external social control
think coerce, deference, fear of punishment
suspended sentence acts as an individual deterrence, as breaching this will send the person to a custodial sentence.
the process of going to court creates fear of punishment, as people may fear the outcome- less likely to want to go through it again
courts can give a range of punishments in order to coerce people into obeying the law- e.g. life imprisonment
how do prisons act as external social control
think coerce, deference, fear of punishment
prisons can coerce as if we commit crime, they will serve the custodial sentence and reinforce the conditions
the harsh conditions act as individual deterrence as offenders won’t want to return upon release.
token economy rewards good behaviour and punishes bad to learn offenders to act appropriately, uses operant conditioning
the public are aware of harsh conditions and punishments within the prison so will not want to go-
general deference
how do probation act as external social control
think coerce, deference, fear of punishment
acts as individual deterrence as breach of terms or break the law and has a threat of a custodial sentence.
fear of restrictions or given acts as general deterrence, as unpaid work such as litter picking has an element of shame and humiliation
probation officers can cause fear of punishment as they monitor daily, so less likely to get away with committing an offence.
