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Left and Right Realist Theories of Crime - Coggle Diagram
Left and Right Realist Theories of Crime
Left
Realists
Lea and Young
(1984) produced a
new theory
of crime and how to reduce it
They criticised other
left-wing writers
(especially Marxists) for overlooking the
reality
of crime in Britain by focusing on the problems within
capitalism
Said
left-wing sociological debate
and
social policy
must accept that:
Theres been a
rise in crime
since WW2
Being a
victim
of crime is a very
significant event
in an individual's life
Crimes
other than white-collar crimes
are a
problem
Fear of crime
is a real factor in shaping modern urban lifestyles, especially for
women
Kinsey, Lea and Young
(1986) say British social policing policy needs to be centred on
creating
and
maintaining good communication
between the
police
and
local communities
The public
report most crimes
to police and
provide most evidence
to solve crimes
The police
need
the public
Say the public should have a
key role
in deciding
police policy
Propose
democratically elected Police Authorities
that'll develop policing policy and direct police action
This would create
consensus policing
where they act on the
local community's instructions
, rather than in
isolation
The key role of police should then be
"full and proper investigation of crime"
, which they reckon has been reduced in recent years
Police need to improve their
detection
rates, only
29%
of crimes are detected in England and Wales
Relative Deprivation
Causes
Subcultures
and
Crime
Lea and Young
(1984) argued a sense of
relative deprivation
is a major factor leading to crime
When an individual feels
deprived
in relation to
similar social groups
, they can turn to crime to 'solve' the problem and acquire the
resources
to remove the feeling
It's not an actual deprivation but the
feeling of being deprived
relative to someone else that triggers this response
Explains why crime occurs in
all social groups
- the
rich
can feel deprived next to the
super-rich
Lea and Young
say these feelings of deprivation are compounded by the
consumer culture
of modern Britain, which makes people more
individualistic
-
advertising
and the
media
present individuals with images of what
they could have
and what others have got
Therefore, a rising
standard of living
can lead to a rising
crime rate
Left realists think
criminal subcultures
are a result of, and a way to
combat
, relative deprivation
Say that any
marginalised
group could turn to
violence
to tackle
inequality
Social Inequality
Must be Fought to
Reduce Crime
In the long term,
social order
will come from a
fair
and
just
society
Stress the need for
all social agencies
to have a direct aim of removing inequality, including the general public
Use the
'square of crime'
to show the
interactions
between
4 elements
which affect crime, they argue that all elements should
work together
to understand and reduice crime
The public
The offender
The state
The victim
Left realists influenced the 1997-2010
Labour
government's social policy
Tony Blair's phrase "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime" sums up left realism
Critics
- If it's
Correct
there'd be
More Crime
Hughes
(1991) says left realists haven't explained why
some people
who experience
relative deprivation
see
crime
as a
solution
and others don't
Argues there would be a lot
more crime
if
relative deprivation
was the main cause
Critics say that
Kinsey, Lea and Young
didn't collect enough
data
to develop a
full theory
of crime
It only focuses on
property crime
Right
Realists
3 Main
Causes of Crime
A lack of
socialisation
Rational Choice
Biology
Wilson and Herrnstein
(1985) claim there's a
biological predisposition
to crime in some individuals, but the right
socialisation
can train them away from it
Argue that
lone-parent families
are more likely to have 'criminal children' because their socialisation hasn't been complete
People have
free will
and are able to think
rationally
and
reason
things out
Therefore crime is a
decision
they make - they consider the
rewards
of crime to be greater than the
risks
, and
choose
to commit the crime
Why
Murray
(1997) claims that the higher the
risk
of going to
prison
, the less likely people are to commit crime
Solutions
have Influenced
American Social Policy
Wilson
(1975) believes individuals commit crime because the
gains outweigh
the chances of being
caught and punished
To reduce crime, he says it's necessary to issue
harsh punishments
for the smallest crimes, as a
deterrent
to future offenders
This has been put into action in the social policy of
Zero Tolerance
, first in America and now in parts of the UK
Wilson and Kelling
(1982) say that damage to a neighbourhood has to be put right
straight away
, or problems of crime and delinquency can quickly get
out of hand
This is called the
'One Broken Window'
idea - their article says that tolerating just one broken window sends the message that you can
get away
with crime
Advocate
taking resources and police supervision away
from areas where law and order has
broken down
-
Wilson
says that once
social order
has gone it's almost
impossible
to regain it
He recommends
focusing police efforts
on areas which
aren't too far gone
Criticisms
The idea that criminals are
biologically different
is
rejected
by many, as it comes from discredited theories
Zero Tolerance
policies have led to a big rise in the
US prison population
- e.g. the
'three strokes and you're out'
policy which means 3 serious offences automatically result in
life imprisonment
Matthews
(1992) didn't find any evidence that tolerating
broken windows
leads to crime
Jones
(1998) questions the assertion that
resources
put into run-down areas are
wasted
Argues that investment in these areas makes a
positive difference
to the communities who live there