Right Realism

• Right realism emphasises the role of individual responsibility and moral choice in committing crimes. > Advocates for stricter enforcement and control measures to deter criminal behaviour and maintain social order.
• Charles Murray


  States that everyone is tempted to commit crime but it’s the amount of social bands that prevent us from doing so.
• What do they question in behaviour leading to criminality?


  Economic factors (e.g. poverty & unemployment)

  • Instead, it’s believed people are more likely to commit crime when social constraints on their behaviours are weakened.
• Policies created

  1. Stop and search policy - police practices: stop, question, search individuals if there’s reasonable suspicion for criminality.
  2. Increased surveillance - Expansion of CCTV usage in public areas to deter criminal activity and aid in the capture of offenders.
• Rational choice theory


  Everyone has their own choices, therefore, if they choose to commit crime, there is no excuse > zero tolerance is deserved to those who commit crime.
• Strengths of Right Realism

  1. Hugely influential in creating deterrence of crime in the UK & USA. Created a number of practical ways to deal with crime.
  2. Offers a more practical approach on tackling crime in comparison to Marxism & labelling.
  3. Flood-Page et al (2000) - supports view that the decline of family leads to problems with children from lone families by comparison to two parent households.
• Weaknesses of Right Realism

  1. Too readily accept crime statistics at face value - turns a blind eye to white-collar crime crimes of the wealthy.
  2. Fail to recognise wider structured cause of criminality such as poverty and material deprivation.
  3. Ignores the increasing gap between rich & poor in our society. (Relative deprivation)