CRIM PAST PAPERS (YEAR 1 ACTUAL) Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is Marxism as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Marxism assumes being part of a disadvantaged social class is significant factor in criminal behaviour.
- Capitalism is root cause of crime
- Crime is inevitable
- Capitalism is criminogenic system
- E.g. exploitation of working class drives many into poverty meaning crime is only way to survive
- Selective law enforcement means crime appears as working class problem.
- E.g. crimes of Bourgeoisie like white collar crime= overlooked
Strengths of MARXISM as a SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Shows how poverty and inequality can cause working class crime, and how capitalism promotes greed and encourages upperclass
- Shows how both law making and law enforcement are biased against working class and in favour of the powerful. E.g. coporate crime is rarely prosecuted.
Weaknesses of MARXISM as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Focuses on class and largely ignores other inequalities that may be causing crime e.g. ethnicity, gender
- It over-predicts the amount of working class crime, not all poor turn to crime
- Not all capitalist societies have high crime rates e.g. Japan’s homicide rate is only about a fifth of USA’s
What is RIGHT REALISM as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Right realism base their views on rational choice theory.
- Criminality is due to making rational calculations on the consequences.
- Criminals= rational actors weighing up risks+rewards before deciding to offend
- Inadequate socialisation influences crime
- MURRAY- absent fathers prompt crime
- See nuclear family as best agency of socialisation helping reduce offending by teaching self control and values
MURRAY: RIGHT REALISM SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Welfare dependency is creating underclass who fail to socialise children properly.
Absent fathers= boys lack discipline + appropriate male role model because they do not see a man that works hard to support family.
results in boys turning to delinquent role models in street gangs so they gain status through crime rather than supporting family.
Strengths of RIGHT REALISM as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Study support: RETTIG gave students scenario of opportunity to commit crime finding that degree of punishment determined whether they chose to commit the crime.
- FELDMAN: people made rational decisions: if rewards were high and risk lows, they said the crime was worth committing
- RIGHT REALISM may explain some opportunistic petty crimes like theft.
Weaknesses of RIGHT REALISM as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Rettings and Feldman’s studies were experiments and so may not apply to real offenders
- Not all crimes are rational. Violent crime are often by impulse. Offenders under the influence of drugs and alcohol may also be unlikely to calculate risks and rewards before offending
What is LEFT REALISM as a SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Left realists see crime as real problem
- Main victims are from disadvantaged groups
- Lea+ Young suggest several causes of crime: subcultures, marginalisation and relative deprivation
- Inequality as root cause of crime
Strengths of LEFT REALISM as SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Draws attention to reality of street crime and its effects especially on victims of deprived groups and vulnerable groups in society.
- It recognises multiple causes of crime
Weaknesses of LEFT REALISM as SOCIOLOGICAL EXPLANATION?
- Left realism has elements of determinism.
E.g. overemphasis factors like relative deprivation, marginalisation and subcultures suggesting individuals in these conditions will turn to crime - Ignores personal choice and free will- individual experiencing rel dep wont always turn to crime
- Fails to explain crimes like white collar + corporate crime committed by upper-class
What are social values?
Social values are rules shared by most people in a culture, or ideas that they hold in value. They are foundation between right and wrong
E.g. Respect for elderly
What are mores?
Mores are morals/ good ways of behaving formed out of a persons core values. Ideas that a culture would think is too serious to break
E.g. incest, murder
Identify social changes that have affected policy development
- LGBTQ rights
- Women’s rights
- Cigarette smoking
- Law on murder
- Disability rights
- Employment law
What is SLT as a SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY?
- Behaviour learnt through observational and vicarious reinforcement
- Ppl engage in crime because of association with other criminals
- Bobo doll experiment
- Behaviour is shaped by role models and observation
- E.g. witnessing father figure get reward for crime= likely to imitate= vicarious reinforcement
What are the results of Bobo doll exp?
- Results showed that violent behaviour rewarded was imitated by children who witnessed.
- When behaviour punished, children were less likely to imitate behaviour
Identify 3 ways in which law can differ?
- Culture
- TIme
- Circumstances
What is Eysenck’s personality theory as an INDIVIDUALISTIC THEORY?
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