Crim sociological theories

• Functionalism


  Society is seen as a stable social structure based on shared norms and value consensus
• Value consensus


  Binds people together and creates social solidarity where members of society belong to the same harmonious unit
• Crime


  Inevitable, some people have been inadequately socialised and are likely to deviate from the norms and laws
• Anomie


  Normlessness occurs when shared norms become weakened
• Functionalists' view on crime

  • Crime can bring positive benefits to society
  • Boundary maintenance - a reaction from society to condemn wrongdoers
  • Punishing offenders allows society to express its offence
  • Public shame reaffirms the value of being law-abiding
  • Crime can be a warning sign that society is not functioning properly
  • Too much crime is a threat to society and causes anomie
• Durkheim's theory has been influential in understanding crime and deviance
• Durkheim's theory has the advantage that crime can have positive features for society
• Durkheim's theory has the disadvantage that it doesn't give a sufficient explanation for why people commit crime in the first place
• Marxism


  Capitalism is a type of society where the primary goal is the accumulation of wealth, and most people are part of the working class who have to work to earn their wage
• Marxism believes capitalism is criminogenic and causes crime at all levels of society
• Marxism has the advantage of explaining crime which covers all social classes and showing the link between law-making, law enforcement and the idea of labelling theory
• Marxism has the disadvantage of ignoring gender and ethnicity, and over-predicting the amount of crime as not all poor people commit crime