law and society AO1

• society - a group of people in the same geographical location and governed by the same laws
• pluralism - a society that does not share the same beliefs
• social norms - common expectations about behaviour
• deviance - behaviour that doesn't follow established social norms
• civil disobediance - societal action aimed at challenging social norms
• young and cohen - influence of the media
• moral panic - public anxiety in response to a problem
• folk devils - a person or thing held to be a bad influence on society
• law as a social control mechanism - ensures societies members behave according to social norms
• formal control - institutions that control deviant behaviour
• durkheim - the law is used to regulate society
• informal social control - methods outside of legal sanctions that regulate behaviour
• consensus theory - agreement accross society about norms and values - durkheim - collective conscience
• conflict theory - social change is due to constant conflict and compeition for resources - marx - this conflict is based on competition for resources - sutherland - white collar crime is treated more lieniently as it is victimless
• labelling theory - becker - there are no deviant actions - only becomes deviant when labelled as such
• right realists - blame the rise in crime on the need for immediate gratification - low impulse control and self expression
• murray - underclass of criminals that have developed due to the welfare state
• left realists - effect of crime on the victim - social inequalities turn people to crime
• legal realism - holmes - the law is not what is written in books but what is practised every day in courts
• pound - conflicting interests that the law must deal with - public, social, individual