Marxism

Question 1

What are Marx’s key ideas?

Answer 1

1- Crime as a form of resistance
2- Manipulation of values
3- Law creation
4- Law enforcement
5- Motivation for crime

Question 2

1- Crime as a form of resistance

Answer 2

Those involved in crime are victims of capitalist laws
- through crime are resisting the dominance and inequalities of the system
Crime is a fight back against oppression

Question 3

2- Manipulation of values

Answer 3

Believe that street crime is a big threat, WC EM are perpetrators
- what is seen as criminal is defined and controlled by RC
Capitalists control our perceptions through the media

Question 4

3- Law creation

Answer 4

The law is a reflection of he will of the powerful
The state receives large investments from corporations, create laws that protect them- minimum wage, workers health

Question 5

What does Manheim say about law creation?

Answer 5

The law protects private property, protects the wealth and profit of the rich RC

Question 6

What does Box say about law creation?

Answer 6

RC have an influence on law creation due to their influence on the government

Question 7

How can tax avoidance and benefit fraud be used as examples of law creation?

Answer 7

Tax avoidance can be legal if people use accountants to move money to pay less tax this costs more money to the UK than benefit fraud
- harmful, not investing in society
Benefit fraud is illegal and the gov strongly clamp down on this, costs much less to the UK than tax avoidance
- only benefits the powerful

Question 8

4- Law enforcement

Answer 8

Laws are enforced selectively, bias in favour of those at the top
- street crimes are more likely to be pursued by the police than white collar/corporate crime
e.g. BF is more likely to be pursued than TF by businesses
- inner cities have more police on patrol, more confrontational approach to thee groups

Question 9

5- Motivation for crime

Answer 9

In capitalist society the focus is on competition and the acquisition of wealth
- desire for wealth infiltrates

Question 10

What does Gordon say about the motivations for crime?

Answer 10

Sees capitalism as crimogenic
- inherently likely to produce crime because it creates a competitive ‘dog eat dog’ society

Question 11

5- Motivation for crime
REIMAN

Answer 11

Believes that capitalism does not just encourage utilitarian crime
- frustration

Question 12

5- Motivation for crime
non-utilitarian crime

Answer 12

Murder, rape, violence can also be explained as capitalism creates social injustice in society
- economic failure is a source of shame in society and can cause and individual to feel frustrated and turn to various forms of crime

Question 13

Challenges to the marxist theory

Answer 13

X WC commit crimes against WC
X not all WC commit crime
X non-utilitarian crime, not wealth orientated
X most laws are made in the interests of everyone
X getting rid of capitalism would not remove crime
X too simplistic-other factors

Question 14

Grenfell tower disaster

Answer 14

High-rise fire
- fire safety equipment not tested or replaced
- evidence of pursuit of profit
- unsafe cladding, government allowed it , testing approved
- exposed gas pipes, highly flammable building materials
- 72 deaths
- failed to keep people safe

Question 15

What does neo-marxism AGREE with traditional marxism on?

Answer 15

Taylor, Watson and Young
- class conflict and extreme inequality is the cause of crime
- the state makes and enforces law in the interests of the powerful
- replacing capitalism with a classless society would reduce crime

Question 16

What are neo-marxists critical of traditional marxists?

Answer 16

X Marxism is deterministic
- the idea that economic inequality forces people to commit crime
X functionalist and subcultural theories

Question 17

What do neo-marxists believe?

Answer 17

They take a voluntaristic theory of crime
- people have free will
- crime is a choice to try and change society

Question 18

Neo-marxism The new criminology
combine structural and social action

Answer 18

S- The wider origins of the act
- the immediate origins of the act
- the act itself
SA- the wider origins of the social reaction
- immediate origins of social reaction
- the effects of labelling

Question 19

What are some criticisms of neo-marxism The New Criminology?

Answer 19

X romanticising WC criminals
X doesn’t provide solutions to crime
X ignores the victims of crime

Question 20

What are some examples of crimes of the powerful?

Answer 20

• fraud
• tax avoidance
  -break health and safety laws
• state crime
• organised crime
• environmental crime

Question 21

How does Sutherland define white collar/corporate crime?

Answer 21

A crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation

Question 22

What are the 2 different types of white collar crime?

Answer 22

1- Occupational
2- Corporate

Question 23

What is occupational crime?

Answer 23

Committed by employees for their own personal gain
e.g. expenses fraud, claim what you haven’t spent

Question 24

What is corporate crime?

Answer 24

Committed by employees for their organisation in pursuit of its goals
e.g. making money, don’t pay minimum wage, health and safety regulations

Question 25

What is a societal example of occupational crime?

Answer 25

In 2009, MPs claimed excess amounts, 2nd houses rent - had t pay the money back - only a few prison sentences

Question 26

What are the 5 reasons for the invisibility of white collar crime?

Answer 26

1- Media 2- Politics 3- Police 4- Law 5- Under reporting

Question 27

How does the media help in making white collar crime invisible?

Answer 27

Focuses on WC crime - RC control it won't implicate themselves

Question 28

How do politics help in making white collar crime invisible?

Answer 28

Are the criminals - lots to gain by focusing on street crime - easier to deal with

Question 29

How do the police help in making white collar crime invisible?

Answer 29

More in WC areas - lack of resources on white collar crime

Question 30

How does the law help in making white collar crime invisible?

Answer 30

Protects the, - not illegal

Question 31

Hoe does under reporting help in making white collar crime invisible?

Answer 31

Hard to detect - anonymous - puts their jobs at risk - unaware

Question 32

Are these types of crime becoming more visible?

Answer 32

Media reports pressure groups/social movements - draws our attention to it

Question 33

What are the 3 types of harm caused by corporations according to Tombs?

Answer 33

1- Physical - death, injury, illness, discrimination 2- Environmental - pollution, species 3- Economic - losing money, USA, white collar crime cost 10X

Question 34

What can we conclude about the victims of corporate crime?

Answer 34

People without power - women - young people Other businesses, anyone

Question 35

What are the 5 different explanations for cirme?

Answer 35

1- Strain theory 2- Differential association theory 3- De labelling 4- Techniques of neutralisation 5- Marxism

Question 36

How does Strain theory explain corporate crime?

Answer 36

Box - cannot achieve goal of maximising profit legally, more tempted to break the law Clinard and Yeager - law violations by large companies increased as financial performance deteriorated

Question 37

How does differential association theory explain corporate crime?

Answer 37

Sutherland - crime is behaviour learned from others, more we associate with people with criminal attitudes, more likely we are to commit deviant acts Gies - individuals join companies where illegal price-fixing was practised, more involvement

Question 38

How does de labelling theory explain corporate crime?

Answer 38

Nelken - power to avoid labelling - lawyers, accountants, tax avoiding schemes - reduce seriousness of charge - reluctance of law enforcement to investigate

Question 39

How do techniques of neutralisation explain corporate crime?

Answer 39

Sykes and Matza - deviate easily by producing justifications WCC - blame victim 'carrying out orders' - normalise 'everyone's doing it' - learnt techniques socialised

Question 40

How does Marxist theory explain corporate crime?

Answer 40

Box - mystification, corporate crime is more widespread than WC crime Pearce - sustains illusion exceptions rather than norm, avoids causing crisis of legitimacy

Question 41

Who studied organised crime?

Answer 41

Chambliss

Question 42

What are some of the organised crime Chambliss identified?

Answer 42

Gambling, prostitution, sale/distribution of drugs

Question 43

What does Chambliss mean when he says that those involved in organised crime in America 'belong to the political and economic elite'?

Answer 43

People of a higher class status - politicians, police

Question 44

How does Chambliss' study support the marxist theory of crime?

Answer 44

Middle class crime is hidden and less likely to be punished

Question 45

Who else studies organised crime?

Answer 45

Hobbs and Dunningham

Question 46

What do Hobbs and Dunningham mean by 'glocal' crime?

Answer 46

Global connections involved but it remains locally based

Question 47

How do Hobbs and Dunningham believe organised crime has changed compared to the past?

Answer 47

Large criminal organisations- small-scale loose-knit

Question 48

What link can be made between capitalism and organised crime?

Answer 48

Those from higher classes exploit the WC in the pursuit of wealth - combine legal and illegal activities - treat criminal enterprise as a business

Question 49

Evaluations of Marxist theory of crime

Answer 49

X If WC is a rebellion why do they commit it against other WC people C- Reiman- frustration X what about non-utilitarian crime X corporate state crime is often punished harshly when uncovered X other things can influence law such as pressure groups X some capitalist countries have relatively low crime (Japan and Switzerland)