Gender and Patterns of crime

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Which feminist gives an explanation for the low female crime rate among women and what was it?
Leonard - Women more likely to conform to rules & social controls than men
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What can this explanation be undermined by?
Commitment to the rules may be undermined by social class and age
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What is differential socialisation and who studied it?
Smart & Oakley - Males socialised into aggressive that lead to risktaking and commit crime, whereas females socialised into cooperation so less criminal norms and values
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What is differential controls and who said it?
Heidensohn - Females more conformist because patriarchal society imposes control over behaviour, shown in 3 ways
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Explain the differential control: Control of women at home?
Time spent on childcare and housework leave little time for crime, controlled by family roles, daughters less freedom to leave, McRobbie & Garber Bedroom culture
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Explain the differential control: Control of women at in public?
Women often choose not to go out in public places esp at night due to fear of being a victim of crime or harassment. They also limit their behaviour to avoid being labeled a "****, ***** or ****"
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Explain the differential control: Control of women at work?
Women are usually controlled by male superiors and may be intimidated by forms of harassment
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Who did a study about how females are controlled in education?
Lees - Boys in schools often use verbalised sexual labels such as **** to control girls, girls avoid deviant behaviour to avoid labels
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Evaluation of differential socialisation and differential controls?
Women are growing confidence so those issues are less relevant, social changes mean women get more important roles in society where they have more control over men, official figures may underestimate the female crime rate (chivalry factor/skill)
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Who did a study that shows official figures may underestimate the female crime rate?
Campbell - ratio of male to female crime is 1.5 : 1 rather than 7:1, however this study may be limited due to over/under-reporting, ethical issues and non-representative sample
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What is the rational choices explaination and who studied it?
Carlen - W/c women commit crime as lack controls to prevent it (family/work) so criminal women often have no qualifications to get legal work, often in poverty, on benefits, family abuse/homeless, only way to live decently, criminal recrord reinforce
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What is happening to poverty and who supports it?
Poverty is becoming feminised in last 20 years as women more likely to experience low pay and benefits, female crimes like shop lifting/fraud increased as reaction to poverty, Walklate - shoplifting/prostitution often due to economic need e.g kids
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What is an evaluation of rational choices?
Carlen fails to explain why many women in poverty dont commit crime
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What is Liberation theory as an explaination of the rising crime rate among young women?
Adler - As society becomes less patriarchal, women's crime rates rise as there is greater opportunity and confidence to commit crime, taking on male social roles ilegal and legal, doing male crimes too
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What is the evidence for Liberation theory?
Between 1981-1997 number of girls under 18 convicted for violent offences in Eng/Wales doubled, A Demos survey of 2,000 UK women between 18-24 1 in 8 respondants said acceptable to use physical violence to get what they wanted
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Which theorist's study supports Liberation theory?
Denscombe - Changing female roles in recent decades mean women do as much risk taking behaviour as men, research into self images of 15-16 year olds (East Midlands), in depth interviews & focus groups found girls act male e.g look hard, in control
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How does Denscombe's study support Liberation theory?
It provides theoretical support for the fact that female crime levels and imprisonment rates are rising quicker than males by number and seriouness of crime
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Who has another statistic which supports Liberation theory?
Hedderman - Number of females being arrested for violence in Eng and Wales has more than doubled since 1999/2000suggesting women have become more violent
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What sociologist suggests 3 inter-related factors that motivate females to commit crime and what are they?
Croall - To fund a drug habit (Shop lifting/prostitution) , Desire for excitment (Like Katz and Lyng say males do) and conspicuous consumption of good e.g designer label clothing (Often targeted by shop lifters)
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Some sociologists argue that the differences in crime rates between men and women may be socially constructed through what?
Stereotyping and labelling by the police and courts
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What two sociologists review the debate on female crime and what do they say about Adler's controversial theory?
Box and Hale - If female crime has increased it is more likely to be due to unemployment and inadequate welfare benefits. Most female criminals have lower class backgrounds and are the least likely to have been touched by women's liberation.
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What are some evaluative points of the theories on gender and crime?
Some theories are overestimating the growing equality between men and women and convergence of gender roles e.g differential socialsation/controls/feminist arguements and Postmodernists overestimate the excitment of crime for young women
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Until fairly recently how was the idea that masculinity had a major influence on crime treated by sociology?
It was generally neglected until Feminism drew criminological attention to the role of gender-role socialisation in the social construction of crime
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What did Oakley say about gender-roles and crime?
She suggested that gender role socialisation in the UK, especially in working class families, might result in boys and men subscibing to values that potentially overlap with criminality
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What sociologist developed Oakley's ideas on gender roles and crime and what did they add?
Messerschmidt - Argued boys in the UK are socialised into hegemonic masculine value system that stresses differences from women and paticular masculine goals that need to be achieved to become a real man
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What are the goals of hegemonic masculinity?
Respect from other men & rep, Power/control over others, Objectify women & be promiscuous, Toughness e.g aggression/force, Territorial loyalty/honour/part of big group, Hard/dont show feelings, Anti-authority, Take risks, seek thrills as bored
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What does Messerschmidt say about working class male youth and education?
They under-achieve&form anti-social subcultures around achieving hegemonic masculine values to compensate. Gangs operate inside&outside school. This need to live out masculine values is not just w/c as m/c men commit white collar/corporate crime
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What does Messerschmidt say about the study of criminology?
Most crime is commited by men so it must include a detailed study of masculine values. Argues past criminology fails to deal with this link.
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How does Messerschmidt suggest criminology study why men commit crime?
Take account of different masculinities - different ways people have perceived being masculine. Different concepts of masculinity lead to different social actions including types of crime
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What does Messerschmidt say about accomplishing masculinity?
Gender is something you do, accomplish, our actions aim to accomplish gender, not one kind of masculinity, alternative ways to trad, some kinds encourage depending on class, race, sexuality
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What does Messerschmidt say about Hegemonic & subordinate masculinities?
Following Connell, main types, Hegemonic is most prized, subodinate carry less status & power (gay/Afrcian American), hegemonic varies by time but generally is based on subordination of women, benefit from it, others try but harder
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What does Messerschmidt say about masculinities and crime in youth groups - middle class?
White m/c boys have eduational success, some sport so hegemonic, have accomadating masculinity as in schools lose independance so do deviacne outside of it
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What does Messerschmidt say about masculinities and crime in youth groups - workingclass?
White w/c boys cant acces educational success masculinity like m/c, construct masculinity around physical aggression, look hard, oppose authority of teachers, Oppostional masculinity in and out of school, eg Paul Willis study of anti-school peers
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What does Messerschmidt say about masculinities and crime in youth groups - third class?
Lower w/c, ethnic minorities boys cant get reasonably paid/secure jobs, cant be breadwinner masculinity, poor families so no consumer goods with status, no success in schools/work, use violence/crime, property crime for money of hegemonic, gangs
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What are examples of links between types of masculinity and crime?
Pimping -show control over prostitutes, get money from them (consumer goods), easy to express masculinity from ths than low paid job, White collar crime - encouraged as only way to secure profits, Family - wifebeating as dominance over women
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What is an evalaution of Messerschmidt?
Links different types of crime to different masculinities, explains why more criminal than women, Jefferson - Fails to explain why only some commit crime (not all African-American ****)
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What are further negetive evaluations of Messerschmidt?
Negetive & stereotypical view of men, esp w/c or ethnic minority, ignore politically motivated crimes, men that reject controlling women, exagerrates role of masculinity in crime, Majority dont commit crime to get hegemonic goals
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Which Postmodernist explains the high crime rate among men as thrill seeking?
Katz - Criminology ignores pleasure in crime, calls it transgression, different crimes for different thrills, evil is quest of moral self-transcedence
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Which theorist influenced Katz and how?
Matza - Constructing male identity in contemporary society is difficult, most youths in 'state of dirft' unsure of identity/place in society, most young males is boredom/crisis, Any event that gives identity is good eg offender/employee, gang member
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Which theorist suggests edgework and what is it?
Lyng - Much crime is edgework as on edge between thrill of getting away with it & potential danger/uncertainty of being caught/punished, crime is gamble of pleasure/thrills, allows young men with little economic security to have control over lives
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Who supports edgework and how?
Katz - Violence in terms of the thrill & power excercised over others is rational in context of achieving the goals of hegemonic masculinity
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Which theorist suggest thrills can also explain female crime and how?
Croall - Suggests female teenage crime might be product of need for thrils too
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What is the most common age to be convicted for males and females?
19 for males, 16 for females
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What percentagte of those found guilty or cautioned for sexual offences were male?
97% male
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What is the most commonly commited offence by both men and women?
Theft - 50% of female offenders, 30% of male offenders
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Overall which gender commited more thefts and how many percentafe was it by?
Males - 71%
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Card 2

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What can this explanation be undermined by?

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Commitment to the rules may be undermined by social class and age

Card 3

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What is differential socialisation and who studied it?

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Card 4

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What is differential controls and who said it?

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Card 5

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Explain the differential control: Control of women at home?

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