Law And Society Flashcards
(36 cards)
What role does law play in shaping social norms and behavior in relation to the Acts that have come into place?
Law influences social norms and behavior, as seen in the legalisation of homosexuality and abortion through the Sexual Offences Act 1967 and the Abortion Act 1967 respectively.
These acts have contributed to changing societal views on these issues.
What acts have influenced society’s view on discrimination?
The Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and the Race Relations Act 1976 have been influential in making discrimination morally unacceptable.
These acts reflect the law’s role in shaping societal norms.
How can society influence the law?
Society can influence the law through protest and lobbying efforts.
This demonstrates the reciprocal relationship between law and society.
What is Durkheim’s view on law’s influence in a pluralist society?
Durkheim suggests that in a pluralist society, the law struggles to influence and change society’s morals due to the lack of a shared moral view.
How does the media influence law and society?
The media can lead to changes in the law, as seen with the Snowdrop Campaign after the Dunblane massacre, which resulted in a handgun ban.
This illustrates how media campaigns can directly impact legislation.
What is an example of a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction in law due to media influence?
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 is an example of a poorly drafted law passed in response to moral panic fueled by media coverage.
This highlights the potential negative consequences of media-driven legislation.
How can the government use media to influence societal views?
The government can utilize media to shape public perception, as seen with right-wing newspapers highlighting anti-immigration stories.
The Rwanda Bill exemplifies this strategy.
What is Stanley Cohen’s theory regarding media coverage and police response?
Cohen theorized that increased media coverage of issues like youth violence leads to more forceful police responses, creating a ‘Deviance Amplification Spiral’ and ‘Moral Panic’.
This results in society perceiving these issues as larger than they are.
What is the role of law as a social control mechanism (Rosco Pound)?
The law can influence society through its role as a social control mechanism, as identified by Rosco Pound in his book ‘Social control through law’. Social control is essential or there would be chaos and disruption.
How does law influence informal social controls?
The law influences informal social controls such as the family and religious groups, resulting in the creation of social norms shared by society.
This can be seen through citizen patrol groups and neighbourhood watch schemes.
What has caused the law to become more influential in formal social controls?
Due to the decline of the influence of the family and religious groups, the law is now far more influential with regard to formal social controls such as the police, prisons, the judiciary and Parliament.
What evidence shows the law’s influence on formal social controls?
This is evidenced by increasingly overcrowded prisons.
What is an example of social control through law regarding assisted dying?
Assisted dying (euthanasia) is illegal because it is open to abuse, supported in cases such as Paul Lamb and Noel Conway.
How does the law differentiate between types of consent?
The law on consent allows certain types of harm to be consented to (sport - Barnes) but prohibits others (sado masochistic sex - Brown, Emmett).
What phrases should be used in paragraphs linking law to societal influence?
Use phrases like ‘This could lead to’ and ‘As a result’ to link points back to the question.
What is the consensus theory of Durkheim?
The consensus theory posits that social order is produced by socialisation into shared norms and values through education and family.
How does law create consensus in society?
Law creates consensus through laws made by Parliament and enforced by institutions like courts and police, rewarding good behaviour and punishing bad behaviour.
What is a criticism of the consensus theory?
The consensus theory ignores inequality in the legal system and the pluralism of UK society, where many beliefs and cultures exist, leading to a lack of consensus.
What is the conflict theory of Karl Marx?
The conflict theory suggests that society is in constant conflict, with social order maintained by the power of institutions over the powerless, rather than through consensus.
What evidence supports the conflict theory?
Evidence includes statistics showing that criminal offenders are disproportionately from working class and ethnic minority backgrounds, such as the March 2023 data indicating that black individuals were 5 times more likely to be stopped and searched than white individuals.
What is the labelling theory?
The labelling theory suggests that certain groups are labelled as criminal by the law, leading to the formation of criminal subcultures that conform to this label as a self-fulfilling prophecy.
What is the realist approach to law making?
The realist approach argues that judges are more important than Parliament, and law should be understood as it is practised in reality in the courts, subject to change.
What supports the realist approach?
The existence of dissenting judgments in appeal courts supports the realist approach, as judges develop the law through judicial precedent.
What is the theory of parliamentary supremacy?
The theory of parliamentary supremacy asserts that Parliament is the main law-making body, with judges merely applying the law given to them.
