AC 2.3 Flashcards
(62 cards)
what does reliability mean?
if the data method can be easily repeated
what does validity mean?
whether the research findings give a true picture of what is being studied and it should reflect the reality and give a true picture of crime
what does representativeness mean?
whether the sample represents the cross-section of society the researcher is interested in, in order to develop their theories
what 2 main sources of statistics do criminologists use on crime?
Home Office statistics
The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW)
what are the problems with the Home Office statistics (4)?
the counting rule as of 1998 which says statistics should reflect the number of victims rather than the number of offences
changes in the law, relating to past actions that were illegal but aren’t now, this can skew statistics because do old crimes get written out and new ones added in?
which offences to include, and if they don’t meet the threshold they are not included
some crime is not recorded by other agencies, they won’t be publisheD
what are the limitations of the Home Office statistics?
low in validity due to the dark figure of crime
only numerical data, so no details of offences
no consistent recording practice across all police forces
it is not known what offences have been committed
what are the limitations of (CSEW)?
it fails to capture victimless, white-collar and personal crimes
it relies on victims being accurate and some may lie or exaggerate
the sample may not be representative because it is not sent to all members of the population
what do Marxists se crime as?
something being inevitable in a capitalist society and is used by the ruling class as a means of social control
what is another name for the ruling class?
bourgeoisie
according to marxists what institutions encourage you to conform?
police, prisons, justice system, schools, family and religion
what do marxists argue about white collar crime?
they tend to be committed by the more powerful and are ignored while crimes committed by the less powerful (street crimes) are focused on and seen as more serious
what is another name for the working class?
proteriat
what is marxism?
the theory of Karl Marx which states that capitalism is unequal and undemocratic being based on the exploitation of the working class by the bourgeoisie
what is capitalism?
the social system in which the means for producing and distributing goods are controlled by a small minority of people for profit, the majority of people must sell their ability to work in return for a wage or a salary
what do marxists hold the view about in regards to government statistics?
that they are fabricated to suit the purposes of the government and get public support for any action taken that might be construed as trespassing on freedoms; they believe this number is 42% of statistics
why do marxists say there can be no overall theory of crime?
because it needs to be considered in terms of the social context in which it takes place
who had marxist theories?
Karl Marx
Gordon
Reiman
what did Gordon say and when?
in 1991 he said there are inequalities in the application and enforcement of laws
what did Gordon say was selective enforcement (Marxism) giving an example?
tax evasion is rarely prosecuted whereas benefit fraud almost always results in a prosecution
what was Reiman’s 2001 book called and what did it show?
‘The rich get richer and the poor get prison’ which showed that the more likely a crime is to be committed by the higher class, the less likely it is to be treated as a criminal offence
according to Howard Becker who are agents of social control?
the police and judges
what is a folk devil according to Cohen in 1973?
a person of bad influence on society
who came up with functionalist theories?
Durkheim
Merton
what did Durkheim suggest that crime was?
inevitable as not every member of society can be equally committed to the collective sentiments or values and beliefs, socialisation and social control to help achieve solidarity
