crime + deviance

• functionalist-durkeim


  crime is inevitable as not everyone can be fully integrated into the norms/values of society. These individuals can remind others of the importance of social solidarity. When someone commits a crime + is punished it serves as a reminder for others of the boundaries of society=boundary maintenance.
• Functionalist- Merton=Strain theory


  Crime occurs as a result of strain/tension from people trying/failing to attain the goals society has set for them, these goals are stratified depending on a person's starting point + there are socially acceptable ways of achieving these goals. When people can't achieve these goals by socially accepted means, they turn to crime instead
• Merton's Modes of adaptation


  • Conformity - people try to achieve goal through legitimate way
  • Innovation - people who fail turn to criminal activity to achieve success
  • Ritualism - abandoning the goal but still acting legitimately
  • Retreatism - rejecting goals + means of achieving it
  • Rebellion - people rebel against society/take part in protests to try + change it
• functionalist subculture - cohen


  young working class felt sense of frustration as they lacked the job opportunities to enable them to achieve societys goals = 'status frustration'. This leads to 'delinquent subcultures' - run counter to values of society. Society more materialistic + young feel pressured to buy expensive items. Deviant behaviour allowed working class to experience an alternative form of status and respect from their peers-antis social behaviour doesnt help achieve social goals but can help achieve status within peer group.
• functionalist subcultural theorists- cloward+ohlin


  range of criminal subcultures:

  criminal-crimes result in something being gained.

  conflict-young seek an alternative status through violent crime to gain respect from peers.

  retreatist-those who have had no success in either conventional/criminal culture so retreat from society turning to drugs/alcohol.

  Useful explanation as highlights complexity of working class subcultures/acknowledges crime has a social aspect.
• functionalist subcultural theorist- matza

  people belonging to subcultures use 'techniques of neutralisation' - justifying their behaviour by removing themselves from taking any responsibility for the act - some say they were provoked or had no choice. Process of 'delinquency+drift' = not in permanent state of delinquency - drift in and out of being a delinquent before settled. Lack of commitment from young means they take greater risks = set of values=' subterranean values'.
• functionalist subcultural theorist - lyng

  young commit crimes in order to take risk+ experience excitement= 'edgework' e.g. urban explorers. Crime may be committed for the thrill/risk criminal may not be experiencing frustration, marginalisation or social exclusion.
• new right - murray

  underclass are responsible for large proportion of crime and their values run counter to rest of society. Overly generous states led people to becoming reliant on welfare benefits and encourages people to turn to crime rather than work.
• marxist - snider


  ruling class crate the laws - laws dont curb interests of big business meaning either legislation is written in such a way to allow rich to avoid them/taxes or not written to stop massive amounts of profit being made. Big businesses are important in capitalist society and given concession which benefit them.
• neo-marxists = taylor, walton, young


  criminals are not passive individuals unable to control their economic situation as traditional marxists stated, instead crime was a conscious, meaningful and deliberate choice individuals made to try and change society.
• neo-marxist - hall

  'fully social theory of deviance'= crimes are blown up to distract people from economic problems cause by capitalism + turn attention away from structural causes of inequality. 'mugging' in usa led to 'moral panic'=collective fear of enemy within namely black men. He explored the idea of black mugger as a scapegoat for other issues.
• labelling - becker

  act only becomes deviant when others perceive/define it as . Mass media/police are 'moral entrepreneurs'-have power/resources to create/enforce rules/impose their definitions of deviance. Police operate with pre-existing conceptions/stereotypes of what 'trouble' is and these factors influence their response to behaviour + any action they take reflects the stereotypes they hold.
• labelling - lemert

  primary deviance= deviance that has not been publicly labelled a crime - traffic laws.

  secondary deviance= occurs once an offender is discovered and publicly exposed and the label of 'deviance' is attached.
• labelling - cicourel


  found officers assumptions led them to concentrate on certain 'types' of people - working class. Law enforcement shows class bias + criminal justice system reinforces this bias - sees youths from working class backgrounds as more likely to offend. Middle class can be arrested but less likely charged as didnt fit polices 'typical delinquent'.
• left realists - lea + young

  causes of crime:

  -relative deprivation

  -marginalisation

  -subcultures

  Important to understand causes of social inequalities in society. Most victims are the poor.

  lack legitimate means to gain status, as living standards increase and media reinforces relative deprivation = crime increases.
• right realists - wilson + hernstein

  causes of crime:

  -biology

  -lack of socialisation

  -rational choice

  Theres a biological predisposition to crime in some individuals but with right socialisation it can train them away from it. Argue that lone parents are more likely to have 'criminal children' as socialisation hasnt been complete. People have free will + able to think rationally/reason things out therefore crime is decision they make - consider the rewards of crime to be greater than the risks so choose to commit.
• postmodernists - henry + milovanovic


  concept of crime should be replaced with concept of 'social harm'. Crime reflects a narrow range of legally defined behaviours.

  harms of reduction= uses their power in a way in which results in immediate loss of possession or causes some form of harm to the person.

  harms of repression= where peoples future growth and development is threatened.
• postmodernists - lyon + bauman

  liquid surveillance = helps understand how people interact with various forms of surveillance--mobile phones, passports. People willingly buy meaning the state can watch them - makes our lives increasingly transparent to the point that surveillance becomes invisible to us. Nobody should have anything to hide therefore nothing to fear.
• ethnicitiy - bowling + phillips

  racial discrimination occurs through criminal justice system - ethnic minorities experience overrepresentation in crime stats= result of wider inequalities in society. Higher levels of robberies by black men reflect their economic position + marginalisation + offers them a sense of identity.
• ethnicity - gilroy

  against view that black males are inadequately socialised and believes ethnic minorities become criminals as result of needing to defend themselves against a society that discriminates against them.
• ethnicity - reiner


  combination of discrimination and victimisation leads to overrepresentation of ethnic minorities in crime stats.
• ethnicity - hall

  young black men are singled out and placed at centre of moral panics.
• gender - parsons

  boys socialised to be physical, aggressive whereas girls socialised to be complaint, conformist,reserved.
• gender - carlen + heidensohn

  understand patterns of crime by looking at opportunity. Women have less as caring for kids/husbands which explains lower crime levels. Where as men have more - this is because gendered patterns of social control, formal + informal which reinforce the control men have over women - women not expected to go out at night but acceptable for men.
• gender -pollark

  men and women commit a similar number of crimes but types of crime women commit like shoplifting are underrepresented in crime stats - women commit easily concealed/ under reported crimes.
• gender - carlen

  womens crimes reflect their powerlessness. Women experience abuse at hands of men in their family and beyond who use this power to assert their control over women. Women also powerless in their jobs this is little legitimate opportunity to improve their situation. Women commit crime in rational way to overcome their position.
• gender - smart

  in rape trials male judges judge men and women very differently, seeing mens need for sex as acceptable and womens behaviour as calculated, womens often feel like theyre on trial themselves, theyre 'asking for sex'.

  women treated in paternalistic way by police and courts which may result in them being treated more leniently - chivalry thesis.
• social class - merton + cohen


  young working class feel sense of status frustration - they seek out others who share this frustration to engage in criminal behaviour with.
• social class - cloward + ohlin


  when young working class boys are unable to achieve the goals of society in areas of high levels of social deprivation, its likely members of the group will turn to crime.
• social class - miller

  some working class subcultures as having 'focal concerns' which are shared values like excitement and toughness that lead on crime.
• social class - murray/new right

  underclass are likely to turn to crime. Strong relationship between crime and socio-economic position.
• social class - pearce - marxist


  laws created by ruling class to protect their private property -

  crime occurs among all classes but corporate crimes carried out by middle class are largely ignored even though they cause most damage.(Snider)- corporate crime costs more than street.
• social class - gordon - marxists


  police practise selective law enforcement in usa leading to attention being turned from ruling to working class preventing system being challeneged for being unfair and ensure the status quo is maintained.
• sutherland


  identifies crime among those with power, status and wealth = 'white collar crime' - embezzlement, money laundering.
• taylor

  globalisation allowed wealthy to use different parts of world with different tax rules to avoid paying taxes and to hide money. Changing practices in work due to globalisation have led to more and more tasks being carried out by technology - leads to higher unemployment and high levels of crime.
• castells


  crime is like a shadow economy whose main market is illegal drugs.
• held

  globalisation has changed the scope and context of international law.
• reiner - news


  journalists reporting crime have job of interpretating real life events as if theyre writing a play. Process of deciding what does and what doesnt get considered to be worth reporting = 'news values' = what journalists consider to be valuable/important enough to select to report on.
• katz - news

  limitless appetite for crime news that public have, crime is characterised b ritualistic aspect which elicits a strong emotional response which is newsworthy. crime isnt the issue its more the moral dilemmas created by crime through which people like to think about their own morals and lives. media focuses more on criminals rather than victims or police, public encouraged to take risk taking behaviour as exciting/attractive, media encourages public to how would they feel in that situation.
• jewkes - media


  the extent to which tv, computer games, films, DVDs, websites can cause anti social behaviour. believed many media images are responsible for eroding moral standards, corrupting young minds. relationship between media and audience = 'hypodermic syringe' model as media 'injects' values/info/ideas directly into the passive receiver producing direct effects which lead to negative influence on thoughts and actions.