...Reducing Crime Despite the enormous volume of criminological writing and debate which has taken place throughout the nineteenth and twentieth century, the resulting theories which have emerged have tended to each focus too heavily on one particular aspect of crime and its control and as such, have proved to be incomplete approaches to our understanding of crime and its reduction; the focus of these being on the victim or on the offender, on the social reaction to crime or on the criminal behaviour itself [Young, 1995, p 102], but never sufficiently all inclusive. As a result, the criminal justice system, in reliance on this partial criminology, has introduced penal measures which have proved completely ineffective in reducing crime. I shall demonstrate my argument with a discussion of post World War II criminology and penology, and provide practical examples of how partial criminology has lead to a failure in crime reduction [by 'partial criminology', I refer to criminological theories which have focussed and relied too heavily on one particular aspect of crime and have as a result, failed to help its reduction]. I shall then conclude this essay by discussing some of the more recent criminological approaches which have emerged in the latter decades of the twentieth century, and discuss how these writings and debate might have paved the way for a brighter future in terms of effective crime control. From the latter part of the 1950's to the early 70's, the study of deviance...
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...continue to reflect the different needs and capacity for reform of juvenile offenders as compared to their adult counterparts. However, much more emphasis should be devoted to the prevention of juvenile crime by addressing fundamental factors believed to be responsible for it. From a cost-benefit analysis, preventing juvenile criminal involvement is much more important than focusing on reform and on other aspects of criminal justice that are only triggered after criminal activity is perpetrated. In principle, it is much more beneficial to society—as well as to potential juvenile offenders—to provide the necessary assistance and opportunities to prevent criminal inclination rather than devoting the bulk of resources to offenders. Recognizing the Principle Causes of Juvenile Crime Generally, some of the most important causes of juvenile crime are: (1) Social Control Theory issues, (2) lack of supportive family environment and structure, (3) exposure to deviant criminality in high-crime communities, and (4) lack of opportunities for positive community involvement. The proposed plan for reducing juvenile crime, therefore, will address those three causes and suggest an approach to mitigate their detrimental impact on at-risk youth and, simultaneously, on society. Social Control Theory Issues There is a consensus among contemporary...
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...Crime and Deviance exam questions Crime questions – Qu. 1 & 2 – both worth 21 marks.You should spend 30 minutes on each question and each should have a traditional essay structure (include an introduction and a conclusion, at least two sides of the argument, two or more theories, relevant studies and as much evaluation as you can cram in!). You also need to show ‘conceptual confidence’ – this just means that you should make it clear to the examiner that you know and understand the important concepts, e.g. anomie, relative deprivation.Make sure you make reference to the item – both essay questions will have their own item. You can often use the information in the item as a springboard into the essay in the introduction. However, you will be penalised for ‘overuse of the item’, so don’t just copy it out. You can use short quotes or statistics from the item though. | Question: | What to include: | Assess the view that ethnic differences in crime rates are the result of the ways in which the criminal justice system operates. | This question is essentially about the presence (or not) of institutional racism in the police, courts and penal system. You will need to compare the importance of this as opposed to explanations that argue that ethnic minorities do commit more crime - either as a result of relative deprivation (left realism) or poor upbringing, absent fathers, etc (new right). * Try to include some stats, reference to patterns of offending, stop and search...
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...(journal). For the Raekwon song, see Criminology (song). Criminology and penology Pentonvilleiso19.jpg Theory[show] Types of crime[show] Penology[show] v t e Sociology Social Network Diagram (segment).svg History Outline Portal Theory Positivism Antipositivism Functionalism Conflict theories Social constructionism Structuralism Interactionism Critical theory Structure and agency Actor-network theory Methods Quantitative Qualitative Historical Mathematical Computational Ethnography Ethnomethodology Network analysis Subfields Conflict Criminology Culture Development Deviance Demography Education Economic Environmental Family Gender Health Industrial Inequality Knowledge Law Literature Medical Military Organizational Political Race & ethnicity Religion Rural Science Social change Social movements Social psychology Stratification STS Technology Urban Browse Bibliography Index Journals Organizations People Timeline v t e Three women in the pillory, China, 1875 Criminology (from Latin crīmen, "accusation"; and Greek -λογία, -logia) is the scientific study of the nature, extent, management, causes, control, consequences, and prevention of criminal behavior, both on the individual and social levels. Criminology is an interdisciplinary field in both the behavioral and social sciences, drawing especially upon the research of sociologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, social anthropologists, as well as scholars of law. The term criminology was coined in 1885 by Italian...
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...Correctional Counseling and Treatment Correctional counseling is a type of counseling that assists criminal offenders in dealing with specific problems their current personality structure lack, so they can make better decisions in the future. Correctional Counselors deal with specific life-adjustment situations, while trying to expand on the underneath "good" personality that already exists. In our correctional system, this type of counseling exists, but is it effective? With news flashes of violence daily, and deadlines burred with murders and violent acts constantly, it is easy to say no. The re-offending rates in our country are among the highest in the world, and several underlying problems exist in offender lifestyles and upbringing that will allow them to be treated. When you read a newspaper or see the news you often encounter stories of violent acts by criminals with long wrap sheets. They have not been helped simply because the correctional system has not been able to deal with the enormous number of offenders, and therefore cannot give them the individual treatment that they would need. This lack of specific counseling allows the offender to go untreated, and commit more criminal acts. Next, some believe that if we want to rehabilitate criminals we must do more than just send them to prison. For instance, we could give them a chance to acquire job skills; which will improve the chances that inmates will become productive citizens upon release...
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...“Crime is the result of individual behaviour, rather than the product of a socialisation process” Discuss. For decades sociologists from around the world have been debating what factors lead people to commit crime. Some have deduced that individual behaviour is the primary factor while others have concluded that crime is more the product of a socialisation process. In order to understand this contentious issue it is necessary to consider the credibility of a number of theories: physiological, psychological, right realism, Marxism, subculturalism, and left realism. Through the analysis of these theories, a conclusion will then be arrived at as to whether individual behaviour, rather than the socialisation process, is the main cause of crime. Physiological theories focus on the relationship between a person’s biology and crime. Therefore, this theoretical area of study clearly links the individual to crime. Today, a number of criminologists continue to support physiological explanations, even though, historically, many of theories linked to physiology have been disproved. Anne Moir and David Jessel are two such theorists who have proposed a link between biology and crime. They have suggested that a low IQ (which can be inherited) leads to impulsive behaviour, which may in turn lead a person to be more likely to commit crime. Moir and Jessel also claim that there is a link between crime and hormonal differences which make males more aggressive than females and therefore...
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...Crime | Behaviour which breaks laws and is punished by the legal system | Deviance | Behaviour which goes against the norms, values and expectations of a social group or society | Downes and Rock | Defined deviance: ‘Deviance may be considered as banned or controlled behaviour which is likely to attract punishment or disproval’ | Foucault | Wrote about how definitions of criminal deviance, sexual deviance and madness have changed throughout history i.e. women wearing trousers was seen as deviant, now it is ‘normal’(supports: Kuhn: paradigms) | Plummer | An act can be seen as deviant or non deviant depending on the situation * Societal deviance (that are seen by most as deviant in society in most situations) such as child abuse * Situational deviance (acts that can be defined as deviant or normal) such as killing someone, its okay if it is a soldier but deviant otherwise. | Social order and social control maintain the status quo within society and creates a value consensus of how to behave. Therefore people are socialised to follow social norms. | Some norms become second nature to people such as face to face conversations. However there are norms that we are conscious of, such as stopping at a red traffic light. | Formal sanctions (carried out by official agencies) | Positive (conforming to the norm) * Certificate for passing A level exam * Medal for braveryNegative (punishment from deviating from the norm) * Fine for breaking the law * Points on a drivers...
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...The term organized crime has become well known during recent years. Primarily through movies, television shows, and news reports. When a person hears the term organized crime, they think of the mob from movies like godfather, goodfellas, and scarface. However; those movies are just a glorified representation of what organized crime actually is and the reality of organized crime and its impact of society is much more disturbing than anything Hollywood or story writers can develop. The purpose of this paper is to define and discuss what organized crime is, why it develops and why members of society are drawn to engage in it. This paper will also discuss the problems related to organized crime’s impact on society and the limitations the government faces when trying to eradicate this type of criminal activity. In addition, the laws and tools law enforcement uses to combat organized criminal activity will be explored and how those laws and tools can be expanded on to offer a viable solution in controlling organized crime. Organized Crime Described The simplest definition of organized crime can be 1. Widespread criminal activities, such as prostitution, interstate theft, or illegal gambling, that occur within a centrally controlled formal structure. 2. The people and the groups involved in such criminal activities. (thefreedictionary.com). This definition is what makes the difference between criminal activity conducted by an individual and criminal activity conducted by a group...
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...CRIME AND DEIVIANCE – Table of Sociologists GENDER | Sociologist | What they said | Heidensohn | - Women’s behaviour is conformist- Control at home – housework and childcare impose severe restrictions on women’s time- Control in public – women fear the threat of male violence against them- Control at work – kept in place by male supervisors and managers- Females are treated more harshly than males when they deviate from gender norms e.g. double standards – courts punish girls for premature or promiscuous sexuality activity- 4/5 convicted offenders in England and Wales are male- By 40 9% of females had a conviction against 32% of males- Males are more likely to be reoffenders | Pollak | Men have a protective attitude towards women and so the criminal justice system is more lenient with women | Carlen | When women are jailed, it is less for ‘the seriousness of their crimes and more according to the court’s assessment of them as wives, mothers and daughters’- Women are lead to conformity:Class Deal –women who work will be offered material rewards with a decent standard of living and leisure opportunitiesGender Deal – patriarchal ideology promises women material gain and emotional rewards from family life by conforming to a domestic gender role | Parsons | Gender roles in the traditional nuclear family cause crime boys are encouraged to be tough, aggressive and risk taking so are more likely to take advantage of criminal opportunities when they arise | Dobash and...
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...Crime and Deviance AN INTRODUCTION TO CRIME AND DEVIANCE Definitions * Crime- An act which breaks the criminal laws of society. * Deviance- refers to the behaviour which is disapproved of by most people in society and which does not conform to society's norms and values. TOPIC 1: FUNCTIONALIST, STRAIN AND SUBCULTURAL THEORIES Durkheim's functionalist theory: * Socialisation and Social control are two key mechanisms which allow social solidarity to occur in society. The inevitability of crime: * Functionalists see too much crime as destabilising society. * They also see crime as inevitable and universal- Durkheim, 'crime is normal... an integral part of all healthy societies.' * There are two reasons why C&D are found in all societies; 1.Not everyone is equally effectively socialised into the shared norms and values. 2. Different groups develop their own subculture and what the members of the subculture regard as normal, mainstream culture may see as deviant. * Durkheim also discusses that in modern societies there is a tendency towards anomie (normlessness). The diversity of modern societies means that the collective conscience is weakened, and this results in higher levels of C&D. The positive functions of crime: * For Durkheim, crime also fulfils two important functions; boundary maintenance and adaptation. * Boundary Maintenance- In Durkheim's view, the purpose of punishment is to reaffirm society's shared rules and reinforces...
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...Individual Theories Anna Braaf-Dore CJS/240 May 22, 2016 Amy Griner Individual Theories Specific deterrence focuses on the individual in question. The aim of these punishments is to discourage the criminal from future criminal acts by instilling an understanding of the consequences. General or indirect deterrence focuses on general prevention of crime by making examples of specific deviants. The individual actor is not the focus of the attempt at behavioral change, but rather receives punishment in public view in order to deter other individuals from deviance in the future. Proponents argue that the death penalty is a "general deterrence" to the acts for which the death penalty may be imposed, e.g. first degree homicide. The belief is that if we live in a society where the publicity and common knowledge of the death penalty being the consequence of certain crimes then this will deter others from committing those crimes in the future. By definition, the death penalty cannot be a specific deference. This would require the criminal to be alive in order to be deferred from committing the act again in the future. If the death penalty is imposed, this is an impossibility; he's already dead. Situational Crime Prevention Situational Crime Prevention' (SCP) is the name given by criminologists to crime prevention strategies that are aimed at reducing the criminal opportunities which arise from the routines of everyday life. Such strategies include...
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...Crime and Deviance Revision SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Sociology Department Greenhead College SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Remember: You have to revise everything, because you have no choice on the exam paper. The specification 1 Different theories of crime, deviance, social order and social control * Different definitions of crime, deviance, social order and social control * The distinction between sociological theories of crime and other theories (eg biological, psychological); crime and deviance as socially constructed * Functionalist theories of crime: Durkheim, anomie, collective conscience; Merton’s strain theory; manifest and latent functions; functionalist subcultural theories * Marxist and neo-Marxist theories of crime: classical Marxism, laws reflecting class interests; Neo-Marxism, hegemony, the CCCS studies, critical and new criminology * Interactionist theories of crime: labelling theory, the self-fulfilling prophecy * Feminist theories of crime: patriarchy, male control of women’s lives * Control theory and other contemporary approaches to crime: social bonds, communitarianism, situational prevention; postmodern theories; Foucault on individualisation and surveillance * Realist theories: New Left Realism and Right Realism * The relevance of the various theories to understanding different types of crime, and their implications for social policy. 2 The social distribution...
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...Crime and Deviance Revision SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Sociology Department Greenhead College SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Remember: You have to revise everything, because you have no choice on the exam paper. The specification 1 Different theories of crime, deviance, social order and social control * Different definitions of crime, deviance, social order and social control * The distinction between sociological theories of crime and other theories (eg biological, psychological); crime and deviance as socially constructed * Functionalist theories of crime: Durkheim, anomie, collective conscience; Merton’s strain theory; manifest and latent functions; functionalist subcultural theories * Marxist and neo-Marxist theories of crime: classical Marxism, laws reflecting class interests; Neo-Marxism, hegemony, the CCCS studies, critical and new criminology * Interactionist theories of crime: labelling theory, the self-fulfilling prophecy * Feminist theories of crime: patriarchy, male control of women’s lives * Control theory and other contemporary approaches to crime: social bonds, communitarianism, situational prevention; postmodern theories; Foucault on individualisation and surveillance * Realist theories: New Left Realism and Right Realism * The relevance of the various theories to understanding different types of crime, and their implications for social policy. 2 The social distribution...
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... CRJS105 –1103b-04 Theories of Crime Causation October 26, 2011 Abstract In this paper I will describe 4 different sociological theories in some depth while looking at how each of them in some cases overlap and strengthen one another, and at the same time many of them are in direct conflict with each other. These theories are Neutralization theory by Sykes and Matza where criminal behavior is justified ., Differential Association by Donald Sutherland where it talks about pressure that cause different types of behavior, Strain theory by Robert Agnew where the strain of outside factors are the cause of this abnormal behavior,. And finally the social control theory by Travis Hirschi along with many other who have over time helped to further this theory. Along with these theories I have also talked about a man convicted of theft by taking here in the Atlanta area and what I believe to be the best theory that would apply to him. In my conclusion I will Point the one true weakness in all the theories that I have covered in this paper. Routine Activity Theory”: I have chosen the “Routine Activity Theory” It shows a meaningful view on the causes of crime and the problems surrounding it. The basic point to this theory is that these offenders many times don’t have any effective controls and they will act out on targets that are very easy. One of the points of Routine Act ivy theory is that the offender and the target...
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...Social Structure & Social Interaction, Groups, Deviance, Poverty and Social Class Both Sides Microsociology emphasis is placed on social interaction- rules, codes, survival strategies, relationships, face to face contact. 1/54 Study: Speller Learn Test Play Games: Scatter Space Race All 54 terms PrintExportCopyCombine Order by Terms Definitions Microsociology emphasis is placed on social interaction- rules, codes, survival strategies, relationships, face to face contact. Location in Social Structure People's location in the social structure accounts for differences in their behavior & attitudes Ascribed Status involuntary status; a status you inherit o Class of parents, gender, sex, ethnicity, race Achieved Status voluntary status; a status you earn o Student, criminal, doctor, friend Society people who share culture & territory Hunting & Gathering Societies simplest form of society, few social divisions, few people, nomadic, most egalitarian [treat all as equals, no one is rich or poor], society with most leisure time. Role Conflict When what is expected of us in one role is incompatible with what is expected in another role. Role Strain When the same role presents inherent conflict- one role Thomas Theorem If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences- think of people as less than and they will be treated as such. Group members of a group think of themselves as belonging together, they interact with...
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