2.3 Marxist & Interactionist Theories of Crime

• Marxist Theory?


  Structure of society might influence a person to become criminal.

  In a capitalist society, society is unequal with the ruling class having power and wealth and the working class being exploited.

  Police help maintain unequal social structure by keeping working class in their place through social control encouraging conformity.

  Ruling class influence the law and enforcement of this due to their position in society and use this to maintain the unequal structure of society, for example by being more likely to prosecute blue collar crime rather than white collar.
• Why does crime exist?


  Crime exists due to poverty int he disadvantaged social class and may be needed for survival or due to the capitalist promotion of wealth and goods, or as a result of the frustration due to feeling alienated and angry.
• Weakness - marxism 1?


  Ignores the influence of other factors in criminality other than social class, such as gender and age.
• Strength - Marxism?


  Highlights and accurately explains inequality in criminal prosecutions between types of crime, such as white collar crime.
• Labelling?

  Crime is a social construct, and acts are only seen as crimes once society has reacted and decided they are offended by the behaviour.

  Criminal is a label that police officers and judges have the power to attach.

  Once an activity has been labelled as deviant, this label becomes attached to the indvidual.

  This label overrides any other labels they may have and becomes their master status.

  They find a sense of identity in this deviant subculture that they are denied in mainstream society due to their label, and then engage in a self fulfilling prophecy.
• Strength - Labelling?


  It explains why individuals who are working class are more likely to commit crime.

  Individuals who are working class are more likely to be negatively labelled and engage in a self fulfilling prophecy.

  This is good as it provides an explanation for a common social phenomena.
• Strength 2 - Labelling?

  It can explain re offending rates.
• Weakness - Labelling?


  It explains the continuation of criminal activity, but not why it originated.

  It explains why someone labelled as criminal may commit further acts but not why it originated and why the committed the act in the first place.

  Incomplete theory.