Class Differences in Crime

• Functionalism:

  1. Law as a reflection of society's shared values
  2. crime as a product on inadequate socialisation
• Strain Theory:

  1. deviance occurs when opportunities to succeed legitimately are blocked
  2. wc more likely to be blocked thus more likely to innovate
  3. wc higher rate of utilitarian crime
• Subcultural Theories:

  1. deviance as a result of legitimate success blocked
  2. deviants join illegitimate subculture
  3. wc find status through different opportunity structures
• Labelling Theory:

  1. no act is inherently deviant just labelled as so
  2. wc higher prevalence in crime due to their higher chance of being labelled as so