sociological theories Flashcards
FUNCTIONALISM
what is boundary maintenance?
crime produces a reaction that unites societies members against a criminal, reminding them of the boundary and reaffirming shared rules
FUNCTIONALISM
what is social change?
for society to progress, individuals must challenge existing norms and values, and at first, this will be seen as deviant
FUNCTIONALISM
what is a safety valve?
Davis (1937) argues that prostitution acts to release men’s sexual frustration without threatening the nuclear family
FUNCTIONALISM
what is a warning light?
deviance indicates that an institution is not functioning properly; for example, high truancy rate indicate problem with the education system
MERTON’S STRAIN
what are conformists?
they achieve society’s goal legitimately
MERTON’S STRAIN
what is innovation?
innovators accept the goals, but find illegal ways of achieving it by committing utilitarian crimes
MERTON’S STRAIN
what is ritualism?
they give up striving for success
MERTON’S STRAIN
what is retreatism?
dropouts who rejected both goals and means
MERTON’S STRAIN
what is rebellion?
rebels who reject the existing goals and means, replacing them with new ones with the aims of changing society
SUBCULTURAL
describe cohen’s status frustration
Cohen (1955) agrees with Merton that deviance results from the lower classes’ failure to achieve by legitimate means.
however, he sees subcultural deviance as a group response rather than an individual one. he focuses on non-utilitarian crimes, such as
vandalism
SUBCULTURAL
criminal subcultures
these arise in areas where there is a long-standing professional criminal network
SUBCULTURAL
conflict subcultures
these arise where the only criminal opportunities are within street gangs
SUBCULTURAL
retreatist subcultures
these are made up of dropouts, who have failed in both the legitimate and illegitimate opportunity structure
INTERACTIONISM - LABELLING
no act is…
criminal or deviant in itself, it only is when we create rules and apply them to others
INTERACTIONISM - LABELLING
to understand criminality, we must…
focus on how certain actions and people get labelled as criminals in the first place
INTERACTIONISM - LABELLING
differential enforcement of the law
interactionists argue that social control agencies (police) label certain groups as criminals
INTERACTIONISM - LABELLING
cicourel (1968) found that
police us typifications of the ‘typical delinquent’
- working class and ethnic minority youth are likely to fit the typification and be stopped, arrested, and charged
INTERACTIONISM - SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY
lemert (1972)
argues that labelling is a cause of crime and deviance as being labelled as such means society encourages them to become more so
INTERACTIONISM - SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY
primary deviance
acts that haven’t been publicly labelled
INTERACTIONISM - SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY
secondary deviance
results from labelling
INTERACTIONISM - SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY
as a result of this…
offender may be rejected by society, forced into the company of other criminals, join a deviant subculture
INTERACTIONISM - SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY
extra example
prison - offender excluded from normal society and placed with others who confirm their criminal identity, providing them with a role model and teach them criminal skills
LEFT REALISM
definition
Left wing, socialist political outlook and see inequality in capitalist society as the root cause of crime. The main victims are the disadvantaged groups (working-class, ethnic minorities and women
LEFT REALISM
Crime rates are …
Highest in areas there are higher where levels of unemployment and deprivation. This is evidence that the police take crimes against these groups less seriously
