sociological theories of criminality (policies)

• Penal populism


  The government will attempt to gain popularity with the public by introducing laws to punish offenders. This is usually in light of a serious crime highlighted by the media.
• Zero tolerance


  Policy that all crimes are responded to, no matter how trivial
• Zero tolerance


  • Based on 'broken windows' theory whereby small issues remain unresolved
  • Can achieve positive results with significant drops in crime
  • Use of the policy can lead to accusations against the police of oppression
• Restorative justice


  A meeting between offender and victim to discuss what happened and how the situation could be remedied
• Restorative justice


  • Voluntary and can take a long time to prepare both sides to talk
  • Led by a qualified facilitator
  • High satisfaction rate, and it has been noted to reduce reoffending somewhat
• Social structure - Marxism


  Sees crime as a tool used by the ruling class to maintain social control over the working class
• Social structure - Marxism


  • Core institutions (e.g. police, courts, schools) are geared to enforcing this control
  • Claims that white-collar crime is ignored whilst blue-collar crime is targeted by police and heavily punished
• Interactionism - labelling theory

  • Certain behaviours will be labelled as deviant or criminal by the police and courts
  • In time, those who assume those behaviours will class themselves as deviant, starting to act in a way that fits the label, becoming criminal (self-fulfilling prophecy)
• Realism - right realism


  • Views crime from the standpoint of conservatism, i.e. being tough on crime and the causes of crime
  • Attribute rising crime rates to poverty and the break-up of the traditional family unit
  • Murray attributes crime to failing social bonds, where boys in a single-parent household do not have the role models to learn good behaviour from