Gender + crime

• Pollak: the chivalry thesis-

  • Women treated leniently by the police and courts who are made up by mainly men who have been socialised to be chivalrous to women
  • Leniency=distorted view as female crime less likely to be in statistics
• Heidensohn: (patriarchal control)

  • Women have at least 1 male figure (patriarchy) who don't want them to commit crime
  • Women's domestic role (male expectation) imposes severe restriction s reducing opportunities. Rejection = domestic violence
• Dobash Dobash: (patriarchal control) :

  • Men restrict women's finances for any leisure activities restricting time outside the home
  • Young girls have freedom restricted = bedroom culture
• Alder: (liberation thesis) :

  • Women more equal to men in society
  • So commit as much /more crime
  • Opportunities in education + work = women adopting traditionally male roles = more opportunities to commit crime
  • Greater self confidence + assertiveness
  • So the types of crime women commit has changed + the amount  
• Carlen (class + gender deals) -

  • Women have 2 deals: gender and class
  • Class deal= work hard they get financially rewarded in life
  • Gender deal= good mother + wife they'll be treated well financially + emotionally
  • If both deals break = women turn to crime
• Winlow (why men commit crime)

  • Globalisation = decrease in traditional manual jobs, where wc males could express their masculinity
  • Increase in night-time leisure economy = criminal opportunities to express masculinity
• Winlow (why men commit crime)-

  • Post modern times men use their bodily capital to display masculinity
  • Through the use of violence / activities such as body building
• Messerschmidt (why men commit crime) -

  • Masculinity = accomplishment
  • Hegemonic masculinity = dominant + prestigious form men wish to accomplish
  • Sees crime + deviance as resource that different men may use to accomplish masculinity