Crime Names Flashcards
Durkheim
Functionalism
Occurs during period of normlessness/anomie
Inevitable, normal and universal in healthy societies as it allows for:
- Boundary Maintenance - Reinforces value consensus and social order
- Adaptation and Change - Creates positive social change as it challenges social order
But how much crime is the right amount?
Davis
Functionalism
Safety valve - that protects societies institutions
Eg: Relieving stress which maintains social order
A.K Cohen
Functionalism
A warning sign - Indicate an institution is not working effectively
Eg Too much vandalism shows a problem is emerging in society
Merton
Functionalism
Strain Theory - People engage with crime when they cannot achieve socially approved goals by legitimate means
Not all social groups can achieve these goals so there is a ‘strain’ between cultural goals and the means of which these groups achieve them (criminal activity) - 5 main adaptations to common goals:
- Conformists - Accept goals and means of achieving them
- Ritualists - Lose belief in goals but stick to means
- Retreatists - Withdraw from society as given up with goals and means
- Innovators - Accept goals but reject means
- Rebels - Reject goals and means and replace them with alternatives
Albert Cohen
Functionalism
Says Merton ignores non-utilitarian (non-material crime) eg: vandalism
Crime occurs due to Status Frustration - working class boys face anomie, are culturally deprived and lack skills to achieve (bottom of status hierarchy
Reject mainstream values and involve in ‘delinquent activities’
Cloward and Ohlin
Functionalism + Subcultures
3 criminal subcultures:
- Criminal - Neighbourhoods with long-standing criminal culture and hierarchy
- Conflict - Arise in high population areas that prevent stable professional criminal network developing - crime a release of frustration
- Retreatist - Failing at legitimate and illegitimate opportunities revert to ‘drop out’ cultures - illegal drugs
Miller
Subcultures
Delinquency culture based on class - clear hierarchy of values
WC socialised into deviance due to focal concerns:
- Fate - WC males fatalistic about life - ‘whatever happens happens’
- Excitement - WC leisure was only way to have fun and express self - deviance
- Autonomy - Inter personal respect
- Smartness - Ability to look good
- Trouble - Identify quickly
- Toughness - Ability to handle trouble
Matza
Subcultures
Younger people and deviance
Subterranean values:
- Enjoying Yourself
- Acting on spur of the moment
- Self Expression
- Being Aggressive
- Seeking Excitement
Use neutralisation to justify actions:
- Denial of Responsibility
- Denial of Victim
- Denial of Injury
- Condemnation of Condemners (feel they are being picked on)
- Appeal to High Loyalties - other issues more important
Wilson and Herrnstein
Right Realism
Biological Differences - Personality traits such as aggressiveness + low IQ
Murray and Dennis
Right Realism
Inadequate Socialisation in ‘Underclass’:
Welfare dependency and lone mothers leading to children not being socialised properly (Murray)
Traditional socialisation decrease and crime increase (Dennis)
Clarke
Right Realism
Rational Choice Theory
Humans rational beings with free will who will most likely offend when rewards outweighs costs
Wilson and Kelling
Right Realism
Broken Window Thesis
Deterioration of neighbourhood leads to offending
Marx
Marxism
Capitalism is criminogenic - it causes crime - exploitation of WC gives way to them rebelling
Laws used by ruling class to keep working class at bay
Release of frustration and aggression
Seeking of products
Caused by Alienation - demeaning uncreative work
Gordon
Marxism
Rational response to capitalism
Becomes a working class problem - justify ruling class control
Chambliss
Marxism
Organised crime - controlled by small elite groups in businesses, political communities and even police
But police time is spent on dealing with minor public offenses
Pearce
Marxism
Laws perform Ideological Functions - values of ruling class
Even laws that benefit WC also benefit ruling class too (eg: workplace health laws keep workers fit for work)
Box
Marxism
Selective Law Enforcement
Convicted end up being disproportionally young, male, working class and black
Mystification - crimes of small powerless group convicted whilst wealthy and powerful crimes neglected - social control
Criminalisation - WC activities become stereotypically criminalised, such as their cultural values and identities etc
Taylor, Walton and Young
Neo Marxism
Should study:
- Wider origins of deviant acts
- Immediate origins of deviant acts
- Act itself meaning
- Immediate origins of social reaction
- Wider origins of social reaction of capitalist society
- Effects of labelling on deviants future actions
Gilroy
Neo Marxism
Young black criminals motivated by discovery of history of slavery and colonialism AND experience of racism and police harassment
Hall
Neo Marxism
Moral Panics (negative reaction to a crime occurring)
Product of mass media (who are owned by ruling class state) exaggeration
Eg: Mugging in the 1970s presented as crime of black criminals on white victims
Young, Lea and Matthews
Left Realism
Young - Moved from Marxist approach as saw them as painting criminals as victims
The 3 identified 3 elements and causes of crime:
- Relative Deprivation - Feeling of deprivation compared to others - Not directly state of poverty or unemployment that causes crime but the feeling of being inferior to others and feeling of resentment of what they could have
- Marginalisation - Certain groups being more likely to suffer from deprivation than others - 3 Elements: (Younger people living in) Inner Cities; Social Housing Estates; AND political marginalisation - lack of ability to influence decision makers (powerlessness)
- Subcultures
Left Realism
Square of Crime
- Victims
- Offenders
- Reactions of State
- Reactions of Public
How do they Interact?
Left Realism
Solutions to Crime/Crime Prevention
Improve police relationship to local communities
- Community policing
- Community service
- CCTV
- Ethnic Minority police officers
- Community centres
AND
Multi Agency Approach
- Involve:
- Social Services
- Housing Departments
- Schools
- Leisure Services
BUT:
Major Structural Changes Needed
- Deal with inequality of opportunity
- Unfairness of rewards
- Tackle Discrimination
- Provide decent jobs
- Improve housing
Becker
Labelling
Moral Entrepreneurs - those who make laws that lead a ‘moral crusade’ to benefit those to who it applies
This:
Creates outsiders - outlaws or deviants who break the new rule
Expansion of Social control agencies - Enforce rule and impose labels on offenders
