...to explain why gender differences occur in crime, but to what extent, is the question that will be answered within this essay. This will be done by also assessing the value of other theories and arguments in order to see how useful the chivalry thesis is in understanding gender differences. The chivalry thesis suggests that more sexism on the part of the criminal justice system, such as the male-dominated police and courts, means that women are treated more leniently than men. There is much evidence for the chivalry thesis, for example according to the Home Office, women are consistently treated less severely by the law, with first offenders about half as likely to be given a sentence of immediate imprisonment than males are. In addition, female offenders are generally regarded by the police as a less serious threat than men, and are therefore more likely to benefit from more informal approaches to their offences, particularly for minor offences, such as cautions or warnings rather than being charged. In addition, women do receive more cautions than men, but this is partly because they commit relatively more minor offences like shoplifting, and they are more likely than men to admit their offences, which is necessary before the police can issue a caution. As a result, the criminal justice system will appreciate their honesty and let them off with lighter punishments. Hence, showing how the chivalry thesis can be useful in explaining gender differences in crime. Furthermore...
Words: 1470 - Pages: 6
...pattern in crime statistics; men are more likely to commit crime than women. Statistics say that four out of five convicted offenders in England and Wales are male. However this may not be the case as there are multiple sociological explanations of gender differences that can support each gender committing more crime. The Liberation Thesis (Freda Alder 1975) looks at the link between changing women’s position and patterns in crime. The thesis argues that as society has become less patriarchal and women becoming more equal to men, that women have been given a greater opportunity to commit crime. Therefore it is concluded that as women become more liberated from patriarchy their crimes will become more serious and ‘male-like’. The reason for this is because women have started to adopt ‘male roles’ in society; for example higher positions in the workplace, therefore they are given a greater opportunity to commit crimes such as white collar crimes rather than female linked crimes such as shoplifting. Official statistics support the liberation thesis as the pattern in female crime has shifted highlighting the rise in female participation in crimes previously regarded as male crimes; armed robbery. However when official statistics have been analysed it has become apparent that female crime rates began rising in 1950 way before the women’s liberation movement. The Chivalry Thesis is mentioned in item B as a sociological explanation for the gender differences in crime, and takes an...
Words: 823 - Pages: 4
...GENDER, CRIME AND JUSTICE Gender patterns in crime * Most crime appears to be committed by males * Heidensohn: gender differences are perhaps the most significant feature of recorded crime * Higher propotion of female than males offenders are convicted of propert offences. Most males are convicted of violence/sexual offences * Males are more likely to repeat offenders and commit more serious crimes Do women commit more crime? They underestimate the amount of females as against females offending * Females crimes such as shoplifting are less likely to be reported * Even when women’s crimes are detected or reported, they are less likely to be prosecuted The chivalry thesis It argues that most criminal justice agents are men, and men are socialised to act in a chivalrous way towards women * Otto Pollack: men have a protective attitude towards women * Criminal justice system is more lenient with women and so their crimes are less likely to end up in oficial statistics, so gives and invalid picture exaggerating gender differences. Eg. males were 2.33 times more likely to admit committing crime, whereas oficial statistics shows males as four times more likely * Evidence * David Farrington and Alison Morris- study of sentencing 408 offences of theft in magistrates court * Women aapear to be treated more leniently, may be because offences are less serious * Box: women who commit serious offences are not treated more favourably...
Words: 1157 - Pages: 5
...individual’s upbringing, especially if it is a child or a teen committing a crime. Others want to blame social media and gaming or our society. While all of these can play a role in criminal behavior, so does genetics. Let’s repeat that, genetics play a role in criminal behavior, not make a person become a criminal. Genes do not cause behavior, but they affect tendencies to behave in certain ways (Nurnberger, Aug 10, 2006, para. 3). Anything can influence an individual to act and behave like a criminal, but those things do not make individuals commit crimes. That is entirely a choice. Genes contribute to an individual’s patterns because genes affect learning. Saying that something is influenced genetically is not saying environmental factors are not relevant. Saying a behavior is influenced genetically is not saying that it is unalterable or inevitable. “A predisposition is not predestination (Jones, pg87). Several components that contribute to criminal behavior are looked at; however, genetic factors are often overlooked as an important attribute. Some genetic influences are children who have behavior or disruptive disorders, such as ADHD. Other genetics can come from parents. Tests and studies have been done on adoptees and twins to shows how criminologist scientists have come up with this conclusion. Since genetics can play a role in criminal behavior, this means that gender and race may also be included. It is crime, not race that leads to more stops in minority neighborhoods. Children...
Words: 2188 - Pages: 9
...In 2014 over 6,000 hate crimes were reported. 5, 642 were single bias incidents and 6,418 were reported hate crime offenses. According to the FBI’s report on their database, 47% of hate crimes were racially motivated. 18.6% were a result of the victim’s sexual orientation and another 18.6% were a result of the victim’s religious beliefs. 11.9% were because of the person’s ethnicity. 1.8% was a result of gender identity, and 1.5% was because of disabilities. 0.6% was because of the victim’s gender. (Gender research) Media plays a large role in creating social norms due to the fact that various forms of media, including film, television, and advertisements, are present almost everywhere in current culture. As a result, gender roles exist solely...
Words: 362 - Pages: 2
...Assess explanations for apparent gender differences in involvement in crime (21 marks) There are clear gender differences in the level of crime in society. In 2015 official statistics showed that male prison population was at 95%, with women prison population only 5%. The division in these figures may be due to several factors such as how crimes are actually recorded and the idea that males do commit more crimes that females and the male stream society that we are in. It may be believed that women commit less crime due to the socialization they received throughout their life and the social control they receive as adults. During the socialisation process it can be seen that girls are socialised differently to boys. This idea was supported by Walurm who recorder conversations in a maternity ward. Baby girls were comforted when they cried and described as sweet, whereas boys were expected to be noisy and tough. Similarly, Statham found that parents find it virtually impossible to be non sexist in child rearing. Toy shops aimed weapons for boys and domestic toys such as babies and cooking equipment at girls. This could therefore explain why men are more likely to be involved in crimes involving physical violence or possession of an offensive weapon. Additionally, Parsons believed that because child-rearing is primarily carried out by mothers, with fathers potentially being absent or having little influence in the child's life, girls have an advantage in their socialisation...
Words: 1283 - Pages: 6
...In the traditional study of crime, women have generally been perceived as disregarded and discriminated in the criminal justice system. Various stereotypes and assumptions about females in the criminal justice system, saw feminist perspectives challenge the theories, concepts and assumptions of those involved in the study of crime (Bryant, 2014). This essay begins by firstly providing a brief description and its origins, how feminist theories causes crime, how its theory defines crime, the multiple feminist perspectives within feminism and how feminist criminology attempts to combat crime. It will then discuss the relevance and how feminist theory influences the criminal justice system, such as women’s role as professionals, as well as women as offenders and victims (Schram & Tibbetts 2013, p. 285). Finally, this essay will examine the applicability to Australian society by exploring if the suggested causes of crime apply to Australian society. It will lastly draw on the criticisms of feminist criminology and how the different types of feminist perspectives lessons the relevance of this theory in Australian society. Outlining the theory Feminist criminology first developed in the 1960’s and 1970’s which was closely associated with the emergence of the Second Wave of Feminism (White, Haines & Asquith 2012, p. 143). The Second Wave of Feminism saw the advent of many issues such as social, political and material inequalities (White, Haines & Asquith 2012, p. 143). Because men...
Words: 2292 - Pages: 10
...with men. Gender and association are two common and major sources that...
Words: 979 - Pages: 4
...TITLE: outline and assess sociological explanations for gender difference in patterns of crime. What is the relationship between crime and masculinity? Crime can be described as an act that harmful to an individual as well as the society; such acts are against and punishable by the law. While deviance can be described as acting against social norms, for example a boy wearing a skirt would be out of place in the society The sex role theory states that, when young males and females are younger they socialise in different ways, resulting in young males being more reckless and neglectful. There are several sociologist and different versions of the sex theory. Edwin Sutherland stated that the gender difference when it comes to socialisation is very obvious. Girls are treated with more supervision and control, while boys are treated not as strict as the girls and are emboldened to take more risk to be tough, which makes boys more inclined and a higher tendency of committing crimes. Talcott parsons believes that there are clear gender roles in a nuclear family, where the father performs the instrumental role which portrays him as a leader and provider, while the mother performs the expressive role of providing emotional support and talking of the children. For girls, because their female role model who is their mother is always available unlike for boys who don’t not have as much access to the male figure in their lives (the father) because traditionally the father would be at work...
Words: 1405 - Pages: 6
...Death Penalty: How Newspaper Coverage Has Perpetuated Negative Stereotypes about Female Violence & Gender Roles Tonya Rice Capella University MPA 5416– Quantitative and Qualitative Research [ January 25, 2013 ] Dr. Gangl Introduction of the Problem Chimene Keitner argues that, “the uncritical resort to sex-role stereotypes pervades the trials, sentencing’s, and media reactions to women who receive the death penalty” (Keitner, 2002). Often, women who face the death penalty are portrayed in a negative light, for example, they are portrayed as deviant and/or unwomanly by the media. The media tends to focus on gender stereotypes, such as the notion that women are and should be having more virtuously than men and aspects that are not related to the crime and/or charge. In doing this, the media reinforces negative images of women and female violence. Since society and the media have difficulty understanding women who commit violent acts, they tend to emphasize certain characteristics of these women in order to dehumanize them. Under this mind set, society and the media/press is essentially arguing that normal women, who fit into traditional female gender roles, do not commit violent acts; and therefore, those who do are unwomanly or somehow deviant. As a result, the females that do commit violent acts are viewed negatively and the only way to understand their behavior is to cast them to the periphery of society and expose everything about them that goes against the status...
Words: 675 - Pages: 3
...Explaining female crime Heidensohn: patriarchal control Heidensohn argues that the most striking thing about women’s behaviour is how conformist it is – they commit fewer crimes than men. In her view, this is because patriarchal society imposes greater control over women and this reduces their opportunities to offend. This patriarchal control operates at home, in public spaces and at work. * Control at home * Women’s domestic role, with its constant round of housework and childcare, imposes severe restrictions on their time and movement and confines them to the house for long periods of time, reducing their opportunities to offend. Women who try to reject their domestic role may find that their partners seek to impose it by force, through domestic violence. * As Dobash and Dobash show, many violent attacks result from men’s dissatisfaction with their wives’ performance of domestic duties. Men also exercise control through their financial power, for example by denying women sufficient funds for leisure activities, thereby restricting their time outside the home. * Daughters too are subject to patriarchal control. Girls are less likely to be allowed to come and go as they please or to stay out late. As a result, they develop a bedroom culture, socialising at home with friends rather than out in public spaces. Girls are also required to do more housework than boys. As a result, they have less opportunity to engage in deviant behaviour on the streets. ...
Words: 1706 - Pages: 7
...The portrayal of gender and sexuality in crime television has evolved over the past six decades. Some aspects stayed the same while others have changed for various reasons, ranging from changing stereotypes to the media. Indeed we are living a new era, one in which women are gradually moving away from their gender role, strongly depicted in the 50’s and 60’s. However, the media's power lies in its popularity and the palatability of what it presents to the audience – ratings and financial gain matter more than change. In the past women in crime television series had never been portrayed as the heroes who save the day, but as either the woman who stood behind the male police officer, a paralegal or secretary who helps out with the investigations, or, most commonly as the victim. In the same way, homosexuals and transgenders were hardly ever depicted in these crime television dramas and if they were, they were dramatically stereotyped for comic effect or portrayed as promiscuous and having addictive tendencies. Times change and so do the content of the shows we continue to watch. I plan exploring the portrayal of women in the crime television dramas, CSI: Miami (2002) and Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (SVU) (1999). Although women have come a long way since the late nineteenth century in changing the way they are perceived at home and in the workplace, sometimes some people cannot help but automatically link a woman to subservience. Once upon a time, a woman involved in solving...
Words: 2243 - Pages: 9
...B According to crime statistics, men are more likely than women to commit crime. However, this statistical difference may be due to the way in which the criminal justice system deals with men and women. In some cases, the nature of female crimes means that they are less likely to be recorded. Men and women seem to commit different types of crime. Those committed by women are seen as more serious if they go against expected gender norms. For men, crime can be seen as an expression of masculinity and a way of gaining social status. Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess sociological explanations of gender differences in the patterns of crime. There are an array of sociological explanations and theories as to why there is a significant difference not only in the crime rates of different genders but also in the crimes committed by each. Firstly,item B states that men are more likely to commit crime than women, official statistics support this statement as they show that of the 1.2 million criminals convicted and sentenced in 2011, only 24% of those were women and 72% were men; this shows that men are 3x more likely to be convicted and sentenced than women. There are a variety of explanations for this significant difference in criminal convictions; Parsons, and other functionalists, argue that this difference is due the Sex Role theory which states that men and women have different roles within the family, the women has the expressive role which causes her to...
Words: 1912 - Pages: 8
...such difference between crime rates concerning men and women. It will also analyse theories from different sociologists including Carlen, Heidensohn and Lombroso. The statistics show how recorded crime comes predominately from males. This type of research reveals that males are responsible for approximately four know offences for every one committed by women, they are more likely to be repeated offenders as well as committing, in general, more serious offences. It also found that men are many times more likely to be found guilty of cautioned for offending. For example, men are 50 times more likely to be convicted for sex offences, approximately 8 times more likely to be found guilty for robbery and drug offences, and 5 times more likely to be convicted for violence against a person. Otto Pollack (1950) argues that official statistics regarding gender and crime are misleading, arguing that they do not account for the true extent of female criminality. He suggests that there are a number of crimes that females are more likely to commit than males. He states that nearly all shoplifting offences and criminal abortions are committed by women, suggesting that these types of crimes are not accounted for in official statistics due to them being less likely to be reported to the authorities. Pollack also argued that a large proportion of unreported crimes were carried out by female domestic ‘slaves’, and said that these domestic roles allowed them to hide crimes. Pollack offers two...
Words: 1857 - Pages: 8
...CHAPTER 7 – DEVIANCE, CRIME, AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. Devance- Viewing deviance as a violation of social norms, sociologists have characterized it as "any thought, feeling, or action that members of a social group judge to be a violation of their values or rules "or group" 2. Stimga- stigma refers to the concept of people being 'marked' as different, specifically in a negative manner, based on some characteristic that separates them from the rest of the society. Some are based on inherent characteristic such as mental illness where people cannot change. 3. What is the difference between formal and informal deviance Formal deviance is behqavior that violates laws. Major crimes etc, informal is behavior that disregards accepted social norms like picking ones nose 4. What are the major sources of crime statistics? FBI’s uniform Crime report(UCR) and victimization surveys 5. Crime differs from deviance because- with a crime comes punishment 6. What are the shortcoming of the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR)? The data doesn’t offer accurate measures on the extent of “crime” 7. What are examples of victimless crimes include Acts that violate laws but involve individuals who don’t consider themselves victems, offenses that are the least likely to be reported 8. Sanctions are rewards or punishments for obeying or violating a norm 9. ____functionalist/ strain theory___ believe that crime occurs when people experience blocked...
Words: 817 - Pages: 4
