Read the following. What possible social causes of crime can you identify in the passage? A local housing estate has developed a bad reputation for crime and violence in the local area. The area is one of low rent private houses and council housing. Many people who live on benefits are in the area and incomes are generally low, even if people work. There is little work available locally; most of the jobs are for women who are employed part time as cleaners or in supermarket checkouts. Many of the families have only one parent, usually women who bring up their children on their own. The local school has a poor reputation and less than half of the pupils get five good GCSE grades.
Transcript
Read the following. What possible social causes of crime can you identify in the passage?
A local housing estate has developed a bad reputation for crime and violence in the local area.
The area is one of low rent private houses and council housing. Many people who live on benefits are in the area and incomes are generally low, even if people work.
There is little work available locally; most of the jobs are for women who are employed part time as cleaners or in supermarket checkouts.
Many of the families have only one parent, usually women who bring up their children on their own.
The local school has a poor reputation and less than half of the pupils get five good GCSE grades.
The police patrol the area regularly and they target gangs of young people who gather in the play area to drink and chat.
What are sociological theories of criminality?
Unit 1 – Assessment Criteria 1.3Describe sociological theories of criminality.
Assumptions of sociological theories of crime
• Crime is caused by the impact of society on individuals who form part of society.
• There are dynamics within certain social groups that lead individuals to choose a criminal solution to their problems.
Marxism and Crime• Crime is a reflection of social inequality.• Society is in conflict based on social class – inclusion should be forced
as social changes should be forced
Key Thinker - Willem Bonger; • Crime is caused by an unequal society. Poor people live in miserable
conditions.
• Poor people commit crime to survive.
• People with power punish the poor more harshly than the rich.
Marxism and Euthanasia• They help their loved ones commit euthanasia as they see them in
pain.
• They can not afford the best care and the best doctors to help ease their pain and so they are driven to crime. This is due to society being unequal.
• It is classed as a crime as law is dictated by the rich and they would not find themselves in this situation. It is the elites values that are dominant in society.
Functionalism and Crime
• Society is organic – it will develop naturally at its own pace – change does not need to be forced.
• Crime has a function – what might some examples of this be?• Crime confirms societies values
Key thinker: Durkheim
• Crime occurs as a result of individuals not being sufficiently integrated into society
• Criminals do not adhere to society’s norms and values
• Whilst a small amount of deviance is potentially functional in that it reaffirms society’s norms and values and has the potential to prompt social change, too much deviance could lead to a state of anomie (normlessness and confusion)
• Punishments act to reinforce values (thus maintaining the consensus)
Key thinker: Merton
• Durkheim’s idea of anomie is too vague
• For Merton, it is a lack of opportunity that leads to criminality
• Crime occurs when an individual has a goal but lacks the means to achieve it legitimately
• This places them – and wider society – under strain (which is why Merton is associated with Strain Theory)
Merton’s Strain Theory is often linked to the notion of the ‘American Dream’ – the popular consensus that exists in the USA around material success.
Functionalism and Euthanasia
• Euthanasia as a crime is constantly being challenged and questioned. This has led to the consensus of it being wrong becoming fractured. It is not broken yet but if it is to become so it will do so naturally. It does not need to be forced
• People commit Euthanasia as they see their loved ones unable to reach their goals.
You are naked in your bathroom.
deviant both
You are naked on a naturist beach in Greece.
You are naked in the middle of a shopping mall on a Saturday.
According to Interactionists, crime depends on the situation rather than the action and it is how people respond that creates crime.
What makes an action criminal?
criminal
deviant bothcriminal
deviant bothcriminal
Interactionalism and Crime
A form of labelling.• Based on the idea that an observer’s beliefs of expectations about a person or group
influence their social interactions, and therefore elicits or creates the expected behaviour. (Merton, 1948).
A form of stereotyping• The observers beliefs are based on their schemas or stereotypes relating to that group or
individual• They will tend more to notice, and even seek behaviour that conforms to their
expectations, and ignore that which doesn’t.This then acts as reinforcement of their opinion. (Selective social interaction).
• When observers expect anti-social behaviour, theyconfirm expectations and seek confirmation in behaviour.
• The observed will then behave in anti-social ways due to the encouragement provided for it, their negative self-belief (that they are not capable of better behaviour).
• The pressure to conform to expectations, and the feeling that any pro-social behaviour is ignored means any effort to change is pointless.
Howard Becker
• All people commit criminal acts, but only some people are caught.
• This results in some people gaining a label as a criminal. This label becomes part of their identity, so they commit more crime.
Interactionalism and Euthanasia
• Research Daniel James and his Euthanasia Journey applying this theory of labelling.
Do you think crime is caused by poor socialisation?
Yes No
Do you think criminals should be punished severely?
Yes No
Do you think criminals are selfish and wicked people?
Yes No
Do you think there is a decline in moral values in our society?
Yes No
Right Realism and crime
• If you found yourself agreeing with the points on the previous five slides, then you probably side with a view of crime known as Right Realism.
• This is a view of crime that is taken by the Conservative party in the UK and the Republicans in the USA.
Charles MurrayMurray says:• There is a moral breakdown in
society
• There is a growing underclass of non-workers
• There is more opportunity for criminal behaviour
• Some people choose criminal lifestyles
• Communities are breaking down
• These factors lead to more crime and criminal behaviour.
Right Realists - Euthanasia
• Zero Tolerance policy
Independent study
• Find out more about Charles Murray and the Right Realists
