The Nature and Measurement of Crime
- Created by: Jess
- Created on: 04-12-12 20:48
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- The Nature and Measurement of Crim
- Defining Crime
- Croal (1998)
- Something which is against the criminal law.
- Williams (1991)
- A wrong to society involving the breach of a legal rule.
- Kirby et al (2000)
- Behaviour that breaks the formal written laws of a society
- Croal (1998)
- Hollin's three main approaches to defining crime
- Conflict View
- Sociological view based on Marx. The law benefits some individuals far more than others. It seeks to protect and benefit the powerful from the rest of the population.
- Consensus View
- laws are based on an agreement to what behaviour is acceptable or unacceptable. The legal system ensures equal benefits for all
- Interactionist View
- There are no right and wrong because these depend of the meanings individuals give them
- This falls inbetween the consensus and conflict views.
- E.g. euthanasia is illegal in the UK. Some would like to see it decriminalised. It's concerned with how legal rules adapt to changing moral values
- Conflict View
- Problems with defining crime
- Politics/Laws
- Culture
- Differences in what constitutes as a crime
- abortion, homosexuality, polygamy, alcohol, adultery
- Differences in what constitutes as a crime
- Intent
- Historical Period
- Homosexuality was illegal from 1885 to 1967.
- Defining Crime
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