4.2 Left Realism

• What are the main causes of crime for right vs left realists?

  Right, causes of crime are biological & social

  Left, causes of crime are relative deprivation, subcultures & marginalisation
• What are the main solutions for crime for right vs left realists?

  Right, deterring offenders

  Left, accountable policing & reducing inequality
• What are 2 criticisms of left realism?

  Very long term ideas

  Ignores crimes of the powerful
• Accountable policing

  -Police need to improve their relationship with local communities by spending more time investigating crime

  -Change their priorities from minor drug crime to racist

  attacks & domestic violence
• What solutions do left realists provide?

  Rehabilitation

  Summer clubs

  Community programmes

  Benefits
• How has the increasing amount of anti-social behaviour caused the crime rates to increase?

  -Introductions of ASBOs (anti-social behaviour orders) in 1998

  -Small things become crimes & breaching an ASBO is a crime, manufacturing more crime
• What 3 factors does Young give for why crime is worse now?


  We live in the stage of late modern society where instability, insecurity & exclusion make crime worse
• African Caribbean community in Bristol- Pryce


  Religious subcultures may encourage conformity

  Subcultures included:

  Hustlers

  'Saints' (pentecostal churchgoers)

  Working Class Respectables
• (Runciman) Relative deprivation

  -How deprived someone feels in relation to others or compared to their own expectations

  -Leads to crime and they resent others having more & want it for themselves
• Why do Lea & Young think deprivation isn't directly responsible for crime?

  Poverty in the 30s was very high but crime rates were low
• What do Lea & Young think are the 3 causes of crime?


  Relative deprivation

  Subculture

  Marginalisation
• Aetiological crisis- Young


  Increase in crime from the 1950s onwards

  Led to a crisis in explanation for theories of crime

  Increase in crime was real and not just due to statistics
• How do they criticise labelling theory?

  Focus on WC criminals as victims, neglects real victims, WC people who suffer at the hands of criminals
• How do they criticise marxists?

  Traditional marxists, Focus on crimes of the powerful, which is important, but neglects the working class

  Neo-marxists, Romanticise WC criminals as 'robin hoods', when they usually victimise other WC, not the rich
• What is the central idea behind left realism?

  Crime is a real problem & one that particularly affects disadvantaged groups who are it's main victims