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Functionalism and Crime - Coggle Diagram
Functionalism and Crime
Davis
Some crimes/deviance allow people to release frustration and protects other institutions
E.g. Prostitution
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Cohen
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Working class boys in the education system lack skills to succeed which leads to status frustration = frustrated by social position (developed from strain theory)
Form a subculture and Results in non-utilitarian crime to gain status.
Durkheim
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Small amount of deviance performs positive functions
and contributes to maintenance of society. Too much crime = anomie (normlessness, individualis not socialised properly into shared norms and values)
Crime is inevitable and normal. If we had a ‘society of saints’ (no crime), we would have such high standards of behaviour that the smallest deviant act would stand out too much
Crime has 2 main functions in society:
Boundary Maintenance - punishment reaffirms society’s shared norms and values and reinforces social solidarity
Adaption and change - positive social change starts with deviance
Merton
Strain Theory - We all have shared cultural goals and different ways of achieving these goals (responses). When individuals can’t achieve the American Dream by conventional goals, it results in a ‘strain to anomie’
Response: Conformity - Accept the goals of the American dream. Accept the conventional ways of achieving the American dream (ie working hard)
Response: Retreatism - Reject the goals of the American dream/cultural goals. Reject the conventional ways of achieving it as a result. Leads to retreating out of society E.g. alcoholism and drug use
Response: Rebellion - Replaces the goals of the American dream/cultural goals with new ones that meet norms and values of their particular group/culture. Reject the conventional ways of achieving mainstream cultural goals as a result. E.g. Hippies → want freedom and love
Response: Innovation - Accept the goals of the American dream. Reject the conventional ways of achieving the American dream. Turn to crime and deviance to get the American dream e.g. theft.
Response: Ritualism - Reject the goals of the American dream/cultural goals. But go along the institutionalised means anyway (e.g. attend school, get a job). Strongly socialised so conform to rules/means
Cloward and Ohlin
Working class denied opportunity to succeed. Adapts to unequal opportunities through pursuing crime and criminal careers.
3 different subcultures, depending on neighbourhood illegitimate opportunities available:
Criminal = longstanding history of crime, stable criminal culture → utilitarian crime
Conflict = socially disorganised areas with high population turnover →gangs and ‘turf’ wars, violence to release frustration
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Criticisms
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Relies on crime statistics which over-represent WC (policing WC areas, will then find more WC crime, cycle repeats)
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