CRIMINOLOGY 102

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  • Created by: Clare
  • Created on: 08-06-15 10:45

Gender and Crime

  • Men have a higher prison population.
  • Murgatroyd 2004- there are gaps of information on the statistics so we believe men commit more crime when gender is under reported.
  • Gender Bias- hormonal and physical differences due to biological characteristics, make some women 'bad' and born to be criminals. Steralization and psychoanaylysis can cure this. 
  • Lombrosso 1893- women are naturally backward so more likely to be criminals.
  • Freud 1908- women have 'penis envy'.
  • Pollak 1950- chivalry thesis- men want to protect women and hate punishing them.
  • Feminists- put focus on women on offenders AND victims, highlighted sexism within the CJS, 
  • Walklate 2003- women are revictimised during **** trials.
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Feminism and Crime

  • Lombroso 1895- women are born criminals.
  • Thomas 1923- women are now freer to engage in criminal activity.
  • Pollak 1950- womens crime is unreported, chivalry thesis, and their ability to deceive and cheat.
  • Feminist critiques- research is by men and on men- they overlook women's concerns.
  • Smart 1997- criminology has a gender blindness.
  • Gender-class theory- Messerschmidt 1986- women suffer from the male gaze at home and work so less opportunity to offend, Carlen 1990- women are subordinate to men who commit crime more.
  • Power-control theory- Hagan 1987- differences in gender delinquency rates reflect their different socialisation, working class are more likely to bring their children up according to gender norms, egalitarian families are more likely to commit crimes.
  • Liberation opportunity- Alder 1975- women become more masculine when they start work. They are more likely to commit survival crimes like shoplifting. Mullens and Wright 2003- men are more likely to commit crime to continue their partying lifestyle, women are more likely to commit crime to protect their kids.
  • 80s- women who commited crime were seen as 'doubly deviant'.
  • wome in prison were more likely to report previous sexual or physical abuse.
  • Moore 1991- women's rights need to be addressed.
  • Masculinity- Connell 1995- men act deviantly to show they're tough and macho and differentiate themselves from women. Messerschmidt 1993- crime is a resource for doing gender
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Ethnicity and Crime

  • Races are not inherenntly criminal, hence the different crime rates.
  • Hall 1980- policing the crisis- moral panic surrounding 'black muggings'.
  • Stephen Lawrence case 1993.
  • MacPherson Report 1997 showed institutional racism in the met.
  • Sir Paul Conden 1997- didnt believe there was institutional racism in the met.
  • Stop and Search- Newburn and Hayman 2001- ethnic minorities were more likely to be stopped and searched. These searches were more likely to be intrusive.
  • Ethnic minorities have less faith in the CJS due to less standard english, poor health and less educated which makes them more vulnerable.
  • 31% ethnic minorities wanted more ethnic minorities to work in the CJS.
  • Hall 1978, Gillroy 1982- media amplify problems and create moral panics to hide other societal problems. eg. Cohen's Mods and Rockers 1972.
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Class and Crime

  • Riots 2011- Clarke 2011 argued most of the rioters came from the federal underclass, 42% were entitled to free school meals.
  • Bourgeoisie make the rules to keep the rich rich and the poor poor.
  • Structural inequalities in crime affect participation, how crime is defined and enforcement of laws.
  • Bonger- capitalist socieites appear to have more crime than others as they exploit the workers.
  • Crime isnt punished if it doesnt effect the ruling class.
  • Chambliss 1975- wanted more focus on the crimes of the powerful.
  • Quinney 1975- crime is a weapon of the powerful against the prolateriat. It is a social construct so we need to look at more than just crime rates.
  • Deviant people in society question: capitalist modes of human labour, social conditions of production, patterns of distribution and consumption, process of socialisation and ideology that supports the capitalist society.
  • Young 1986- working class are offenders and victims, social policies could tackle crime.
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Cultural Criminology

  • Want to understand the meanings attached to crime.
  • Merton 1957- strain theory- strain between working classes wanting to achieve and being able to do so legitimately.
  • At the time there was a middle class system, which included values like delayed gratification which the working classes didnt have. Status frustration became a problem.
  • Merton 1995- the boys responded by creating a delinquent subculture where they could achieve illegitimately and gain status and prove their masculinity.
  • Cohen 1972- mods and rockers, folk devils, deviancy amplification and moral panics.
  • Media shapes who we see as evil, representations of crimes and criminals are shaped by the meida.
  • Katz 1998- people break the law for a personal challenge to escape from mundane daily life.
  • Lying 1990- people flirt with danger and do edge work to get a high.
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Media and Crime

  • People are fascinated by crimes and criminals, paranorma and soaps address important issues, not all stories appear in the newspaper- they need to be deemed newsworthy.
  • entertainment- tv programs are designed to entertain, newspapers and news programs are in competition with each other, they give us constant updates and repeat stories.
  • Chibnall 1977- news values include: drama, action, violence, sex, celebrities and immediacy.
  • Policing- media can help generate information eg. Crime Watch, however it doesn't always work eg. Maddie McCann case featured 3 times, she still hasn't been found, has to be interesting and can generate false information.
  • Young 1971- folk devils and moral panics.
  • Cohen 1972- mods and rockers, deviancy amplification- the media exaggerates youth violence and makes us more fearful.
  • Van Dikj 1991- media plays up racism, sexism and homophobeia 
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Biological Explanations

  • Genes, evolution, brain structures affect involvement in crime.
  • Physiogonmy- nature judge- people judge us on appearence eg. in medevil england, the uglier you were, the more likely you were to be criminal.
  • Phrenology- the part of the brain by the ear is responsible for anger and is overdeveloped in criminals.
  • Lombroso 1893- atavism- studied 383 male convicts, 28% had just one trait but 43% had 5+ traits. Female offenders had male traits as females weren't as developed as men.
  • Goring 1913- no specific type of criminal- studied 3000 convicts and no convicts and many had similar features.
  • Sheldon 1949- mesmomorphs are more likely to be criminal, however many of these hadn't committed serious crimes, only things like graffiti. 
  • Glueck and Glueck 1959- no combination of temprament, physique and character to make someone inherently criminal.
  • Genes- no criminal gene however identicial twins are more likely to BOTH be criminal.
  • Brain, chemistry and diet can affect criminality- Rowe 2002- sterioids, high sugared foods and high carb intake can increase nervousness, depressio, aggression etc. which can increase criminality.
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Sociological Explanations of Crime

  • Classicism- Beccaria 1764- people want to maximise pleasure and minimise pain, punishment should mirror the pleasure with pain. 
  • Bentham 1791 Panopticcon- disciplinary power, requires self regulation as a deterrent
  • Positivism- Durkheim 1897- crime is normal as it reflects individuality, it is functional as can promote social solidarity against wrong doer and social cohesion with public punishments, however too much crime is dysfunctional- times of depression create anomie with crime rates increasing and suicide spikes.
  • Merton 1957- strain theory- cultural goals + blocked opportunities= anomie and strain, creates conformists, retreatists, innovationists and rebellions.
  • Cohen 1995- working class boys cant achieve in a middle class system so create delinquent gangs to achieve.
  • Cloward and Ohlin 1960- means of achieving illegitimately aren't equally distributed either.- creates criminals, conflicts and retreatists.
  • Wilson and Kelling 1982- broken windows theory.
  • Becker 1963- labelling theory, Lemert 1967 breaks this down into primary deviance- one off acts that dont give you a label and secondary deviance where the label becomes you in a self-fulfilling prophecy.
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Psychological Explanations of Crime

  • Focuses on the individual eg. genetics and intelligence.
  • Freud 1923- ID, EGO, SUPEREGO, underdeveloped superego results in impulsivity and crime, reflects child's socialisation process.
  • Haywood 2005- crime is the expression of mental conflicts from traumas during childhood.
  • Bandura 1961- Bobo Dolls, Skinner's immitation theory.
  • Eyesneck 1967- offenders constantly score high on psychoticism and neuroticism.
  • Rotter 1966- there is a locus of control.
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Politics of Law and Order

  • Penal populism is when major political parties compete with each other to be tough on crime.
  • Pratt 1993- politicians use this to further their own ambitions.
  • 60s- wanted to individualise punishments, rehabilitate offender so they didnt offend again and rise of the victim.
  • 70s- wanted to keep prison population below a critical threshold, front end policies- using noncustodial sentences, back end policies- more prisoners on parole. Blamed labour on being soft on crime to created more punitive measures.
  • Whitehall 1982- create enough room in prisons for anyone who judges and magistrates deem should go there. 
  • Hurd approach 1987- increased community input eg. neighbourhood watch.
  • 1990 White Paper- increase work and education opportinities for offenders so don't commit crime again.
  • 1993- murder of James Bulger increased punitive policies- Blair's 1993 Tough on Crime, Tough on Causes of Crime which gave offenders one reprimand before going to court.
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Investigating Crime

  • Carson 2005- most crimes are never investigated.
  • Ratcliffe 1998- only 4/1000 people are sent to prison.
  • Clues, cost and the investigator theselves influence which crimes are investigated.
  • 1984 Police and Criminal Evidence Act- reserve the rights of the suspects.
  • 2000 Regulatory Investigatory Powers Act- gives the police surveillance guidelines.
  • Investigation steps: Investigative hypothesis, offender profiling eg. Circle Hypothesis (Canter 2002).
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Anti-Social Behaviour

  • Includes underage drinking, littering, noise, vandalism, begging.
  • 9 year old boy got one for bouncing on a trampoline as neighbours complained he could see into their garden.
  • 27 year old woman got one for gardening in a bikini; they kept a log of everytime she answered the door in one. 
  • 2.3 million incidents reported in 2012/13- Home Office.
  • Antisocial behaviour doesn't show in crime statistics.
  • Crime and Disorder Act 1998 created ASBOs.
  • more than 21,000 orders issued since 1999 (Home Office 2012).
  • 57.3% breached at least once, 42.9% breached more than once, 38.7% of these resulted in a custodial sentence which questions the effectiveness of these.
  • NAO (2006)- 65% of people stopped behaving anti-socially after one intervention. 
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Serial Killing

  • When an offender has killed 3+ people, who were previously unknown to the with a cooling off period between each murder.
  • The average killer is male (91%), white (51%) and has a low IQ.
  • Serial killers are the result of 2/3 of the unresolved homicides per year.
  • Media- tv enhances interest, films like Texas Chainsaw Massacre show hidden dangers of the psychopath.
  • Many serial killers had childhood traumas.
  • Prentkey 1989- 86% of serial killers had violent sex fantasies, these act as an external drive for violence
  • Harold Shipman, Jeffret Dahmer and John Wayne Gacy Jr are all examples of serial killers.
  • Types of serial killer- visionary (voices in head), hedonistic (gain from killing), missionary (want to rid society of a type of person), power and control (want to show and exercise extreme power). 
  • Explanations include- sociological, psychological, mental health and desires.
  • Socoiological explanations- media encourages them to get celeb status, provides frameworks, opportunities and motivations.
  • Leyton 1986- killing is a protest against those who go against norms, desires and ambitions.
  • Katz 1998- good vs evil- wants to rid evil. 
  • Thomas Quick confessed to murders he didnt commit to gain celebrity status.
  • Victims are usually socially isolated.
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Domestic Violence

  • Intimate is an experience of physical, mental and financial abuse from partners or family members and assaults or stalking from anyone.
  • Sexual Assault is **** or assault by penetration, including attempts, indecent exposure, sexual threats or unwanted touching by any person.
  • Cook et al 2004- lack of definitions, we need definitions to police it.
  • It is a hidden cime- 1/4 of women experience it, 2 women are killed by her current or ex partner per week, 1/3 of all female murder victims are by her current or ex partner.
  • CPS 2010- prosecutions rose from 28,000 in 2005 to 55,000 in 2010.
  • CPS 2010- only 22% result in charges and only 11% result in conviction.
  • Domestic violence isnt reported straight away, average occurs 37 times before reported- may be because victim gets an appology or lack of faith in police.
  • CSEW 2013- 31% women and 18% men experience domestic abuse, this is 5 million women and 2.8 million men.
  • Call to end violence against women and girls: equality impact assessment created referral centres, advisors and people to carry out risk assessments.
  • HMIC 2014- domestic violence is a priority on paper but isnt in reality.
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Transnational Organised Crime

  • Lack of definition but usually run by a family.
  • Cressey 1969- info on 24 mafia families, influential that Raegan created a commission on it.
  • Hard to research due to access.
  • organised is a problematic term, many aren't actually organised.
  • includes trafficking, smuggling, ****. fraud, kidnap, piracy. 
  • it used to be local but is now global due to globalisation.
  • ICTs make it easier for organised gangs to make networks. 
  • Crime can shift around and take advantage of opportunities.
  • People from 127 countries are exploited in 137 counties- it affects everyone.
  • can be seen at a local level as this is where supply and demand comes in.
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****

  • Sex Offences Act 2002- **** occurs when a person intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person, when this person does not consent to penetration. It includes the penetration with toys.
  • Sweden- highest reports of ****, may count it and record it differently.
  • CSEW 2012- 69,000 female ****s and 9,000 male ****s.
  • **** Crisis 2011- 15% sexual offences reported, only 6% resulted in conviction.
  • Between 86 and 89% of ****s occur when the victim knows the ******. Complaints are likely to be withdrawn if it was a friend, family member, boyfriend etc.
  • Thornhill and Palmer 2000- **** is based on observing this behaviour in animals to create offspring. 
  • Patriarchal Model- need to show dominance.
  • CSEW respondents 2012 say the victim deserved it when 7.7% on drugs, 7.1% after heavily flirting, 5.8% when heavily drunk.
  • 16% children faced abuse in childhood- 11% was contact abuse, 5% was non contact abuse. 
  • 72% sexually abused children didnt tell anyone, 27% told someone later and 1/3 still hadn't told anyone (Cawson 2000).
  • Sexual Offences Act 2003- must register on the Violent and Sex Offender Register- must inform if change address, go on holiday etc. 
  • Sarah's Law 2011- make information on violent and sex offender register publically accessible. 
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Desistance

  • The moment a criminal career ends.
  • Maruna 2001- it is a 'maintenance process'- choosing to desist and desisting are different.
  • Farrington 1989- most offenders stop crime and lead successful lives by 32.
  • Cambridge Study of Delinquent Development 1981- most offenders stopped aged 28.
  • Healy 2010- only 5% of offenders commit crimes during adulthood.
  • Farrington 1997- noone can tell if an individual has actually desisted until they die.
  • Hard to research- official reconviction data and self report data can be problematic.
  • McIvor 1998- females stop offending at a younger age.
  • Sheldon and Glueck 1940- offending stops due to families, jobs and social bonds.
  • Farrall 2002- offenders need motivation to stop offending.
  • McNeil 2003- knowing personal histories and current social circumstances can help end desistance, funding cuts to prisons etc wont help this!
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Knowledge on Crime

  • Official stats- numerical surveys on statistical information from police per year.
  • Kershaw 2000- 40% of crimes known to the police aren't recorded.
  • Amount of police in an area affects amount of crime recorded, as does target setting- Flannagan 2008
  • Dark figgure of crime- some areas may find some crimes like assault normal whereas others dont, victims may not have faith in police, they may not know they are victims.
  • Victim Survey- Crime Survey of England and Wales- 7.3 million incidents in 2013/14. this was a 14% decrease from previous year yet police statistics showed no changes.
  • vicitm surveys dont show kids or homeless.
  • self report surveys also present information.
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Key Dichtomies in Criminal Research

  • Research context- criminal justice system changes so hard for researchers to keep up, ethical problems can create problems eg. harm, informed consentn etc. 
  • different research methods tell us different things eg. people involved, quantitative methods more reliable but can be bean counting.
  • using research- Wilson and Kelling 1982 Broken Windows, Bratton 2001 eployed this theory and crime dropped by 27%
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Defining Crime

  • Criminalisation- the process where someone becomes criminal.
  • 3000 new offences since New Labour came into power eg. forced marriage, this means its harder to keep track of.
  • crime is an act punishable by law.
  • Tappen 1947- an intentional act in violation of the criminal law committed without defence and punishable by the state.
  • crime is a social construct- we often all flout laws eg. dog license, it needs to be labelled as a crime.
  • Schwendinger 1977-sociological explanation- crime encompasses any harmful acts including violations of functional prerequisites for well being eg. food, shelter, clothes, and sanctory and security from preditors or imperialistic elites.
  • psychological definition- anything that stops an individual from achieving their fullest potential.
  • criminal laws change in time and place and reflect norms and values.
  • Becker 1963- no act itself is deviant, it has to be labelled as such.
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