Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Unit 2 Revision - Crimonology - Coggle Diagram
Unit 2 Revision - Crimonology
Right Realism:
What are the causes?
Cause 1 - Rational Choice:
-Clarke (1980) sees crime committed based upon rational calculations of consequences.
-As humans, we weight up the "pros and cons" when presented with an opportunity.
-If we decide the benefits outweigh the costs, then we will commit to that action.
-Altenatively, we may decide that the costs outweight the benefits and decide not to bother with it.
Cause 2 - Biological Differences:
-Biological traits make some people more likely to commit crime than others.
-For instance, males are more likely to be aggressive than females. Some researchers claim this is due to high levels of testosterone.
-
Herrnstein
and
Murray (1996)
argue that the main cause of crime is low intelligence.
Cause 3 - Underclass:
-
Murray (1990)
argues that an underclass exists in the UK in deprived communities. They are usually on welfare benefits - thus creating a culture of dependency.
-He says that single mothers cannot raise their children properly and that they become pregant on purpose to gain quicker access to housing and welfare benefits.
-Boys grow up without a male role model. They then "drop out" of school, drift into unemployment and turn to a life of crime.
What is Right Realism?
-A set of Conservative/right wing political idea which developed in the 1980s whch pointed out the failings of rehabilitation and the need for a "tougher" approach.
-They claim that the criminal justice system has become too soft and that people are now no longer frightened of the consequences when they break the law.
-They point to the alleged "golden age" of the 1950s when the
nuclear family
was dominant and people respected those in authority (parents, teachers, police officers etc.)
Solutions to Crime:
Right realists believe it is not a good idea to deal with causes of crime such as socialisation since they cannot be changed easily. Their focus is on control and punishment:
Broken Windows
- maintaining neighbourhood.
Zero Tolerance policing
- Where all crimes are punished regardless of how trivial they are (Londn Riots, 2011.)
Target hardening
- Reduce rewards and increase costs, e.g, CCTV, burglar alarms, etc.
Evaluation of Right Realism:
The Strengths:
-It accounts for free will, unlike social structure therories such as functionalism and Marxism.
-It has had a significant effect on government policites, e.g. widespread use of CCTV and more/longer prison sentences from the early 1990s.
The limitations:
-Their idea of rational choice contradicts the idea of biological differences. How can we choose to commit crime if it is biologically determined?
-Rational choice theory cannot explain all crimes as many are committed spontaneousy or under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
-There is not evidence to support the idea of an underclass. MacDonald and Marsh (2005) conducted research into Teesside's deprived neighbourhoods and found that most pregnancies werre unplanned rather than deliberate.
-Some target hardening methods are seen as ineffective, e.g. the use of burglar alarms.
-Zero tolerance policing has been criticised by black communities for giving policing a license to discriminate.
Left Realism:
What is Left Realism?
-Developed since the
1980s
as a response to the failings of right realism
-Similar to
Marxism
as it sees society as an unequal capitalist one which is the main cause of crime
-The main victims of crime are disadvantaged groups: the working class, ethnic minorities and women
-Societal inequality e.g. between classes, causes crime.
Crime rates are highest in working class areas with high unemployment and deprivation
Three causes of crime:
Relative deprivation
– lack of resources to sustain the lifestyle that we deem those around us to have may cause us to turn to feel jealousy and resentful and turn to crime
Subcultures
– criminal gangs still strive for mainstream goals. When legitimate means are blocked, people turn to illegitimate ways to achieve them
Marginalisation
– young people are more likely to feel excluded from society and will seek out those in a similar position. Their frustration may lead them to ‘lash out’ and commit crime as they feel powerless
Three Solutions:
Democratic policing
– the public have lost faith in the police and this relationship needs to be restored. PCSOs were brought in to address this – a visible and reassuring presence
Multi-agency working
– crime is now too big a problem for the police to deal with on their own. Therefore, other agencies must help, e.g. schools, social services, etc.
Address social inequalities
– provide better paid jobs for people, improve standards of housing, offer recreational activities for young people to keep them off the streets and committing crime, etc.