Unit 2.3

• functionalism

  functionalist see society as a stable structure due to shared norms, values and beliefs about right and wrong. this produces social solidarity.

  they believe crime is inevitable due to inadequate socialisation leading to deviancy. society contains social groups with different values so shared norms become weakened (anomie)
• durkheims functions of crime

  boundary maintenance: crime produces a reaction that unites society against the wrongdoer, reminding them of right and wrong

  social change: for society to progress, individuals with new ideas must challenge existing norms and values which can be seen as deviant at first

  safety valve: provides a harmless way for someone to indulge in desires. eg prostitution releases mens sexual urges without threatening the nuclear family

  warning light: deviance indicates that an institution isn't working properly
• functionalism: mertons strain theory

  the root cause of crime is due to inequality. anyone can achieve anything if they work hard enough but people need to accept this but may lack money to do so in a legitimate way. they then experience the strain between what they want and what they can achieve. this can lead to anomie and may turn to crime.
• deviant ways of adapting the strain

  conformity: by doing their best and making the most of what society offers

  innovation: accept the goal but find illegitimate ways of achieving it by committing utilitarian crimes

  ritualism: give up striving for success and proceed with dead end jobs

  retreatism: reject the goal and means by dropping out of society

  rebellion: rebel and oppose traditional goals and values and seek to replace them with more radical alternatives
• subcultural theory

  applies to mertons idea of strain theory. their key idea is that these subcultures enable their members to gain status by illegitimate means

  cohen says deviance is a result of the failure of lower classes to achieve by legitimate means

  subcultural deviance is a group pressure response to failure

  he focuses on non-utilitarian crimes

  people could suffer from status frustration and find subcultures that offer alternative statuses from peers through delinquent actions (inverts societies values)
• marxism

  the unequal structure of a capitalist society shapes peoples behaviour

  marxists argue that society is divided into 2 classes:

  ruling capitalist class- bourgeoisie

  working class- proletariat

  all institutions work to maintain this inequality and exploitation. the law and its enforcements by courts and police are a simple way of keeping wc in their places.
• 3 main elements of marxism

  capitalism causes crime: crime is inevitable as capitalism is a criminogenic system (exploits wc into poverty, pushes goods at people through advertisements and inequality is frustrating)

  making and enforcing laws: laws serve the interest of the upper class by protecting the property of the rich and very few laws challenge unequal distribution of wealth (enforced selectively)

  ideological functions: ideas of crime and laws are an ideology- conceals inequality
• Labelling theory

  Acts only become crimes when we create rules and apply them to others. By labelling others, society encourages them to do so.
• Primary deviance

  Acts that haven't been publicly labelled. Trivial and uncaught. Those who commit these don't consider themselves criminals.
• Secondary deviance

  Results from labelling. People treat people solely on labels and then it later becomes their 'master label'. This overrides other labels.
• Result of secondary deviance

  1. Offender may be rejected from society

  2. Forced into the company of other criminals

  3. Joining a deviant subculture

  4. Confirm their criminal identity

  5. Provide them with criminal role models and teach them criminal skills
• Example of secondary deviance

  • Prisons
• right realism

  right realists have the right wing, conservative political outlook

  crime is a growing problem. mainly concerned with solutions to reduce crime. the best way to do so is through control and punishment, rather than rehabilitation or reducing poverty
• RR causes of crime: Biological differences

  Personality traits associated with criminality are innate
• RR causes of crime: Inadequate socialisation

  Effective socialisation can reduce chance of offending if taught self control

  RR see nuclear family as best agency of socialisation. however according to murray the nuclear family is being undermined by welfare benefits and he believes that this led to a rise in lone parent welfare dependant families (creating an underclass) meaning men leave home as the WS does their job (taking responsibility for supporting family.) absent fathers mean boys lack discipline and male role models therefore they become delinquents
• RR causes of crime: Offending is a rational choice

  an important part of RR is RCT that assumes we are rational beings with free will and committing a crime is a choice based on a calculation of consequences if reward outweighs risk people will be more likely to offend
• left realism

  LR have a left wing, socialist political outlook

  inequality in a capitalist society is the root cause of crime. main victims are disadvantaged groups (wc, emgs and women)

  crime rates are highest in the wc areas (high levels on unemployment and deprivation)

  left realists propose to reduce crime by making society more equal
• causes of crime (left realism)

  relative deprivation: lea and young argue 2 factors that are increasing RD: the media urges everyone to aspire to material possessions and society is unequal due to cut in benefits, unemployment and low pay. due to unfairness people turn to crime.

  subcultures: a groups way of solving RD is to turn to crime. criminal subcultures share societies materialistic goals, but because legitimate opportunities are blocked, crime becomes an alternative means of achieving goods