Sociological Theories of Crime and Deviance – A Very Brief Overview

Theory

Key Name

Key concepts

Criticism

1. Functionalism

Durkheim (1895)

• Social Integration

• Social Regulation

• Social chance

C.

Assumes the laws are created through value consensus.

2. Bonds of Attachment

Hirschi

• Bonds of attachment

• Commitment, attachment, involvement, belief

C.

Lack of attachment does not automatically lead to people becoming criminals. There are also ‘pull factors’ such as peer group pressure.

3. Strain Theory

Merton (1938)

• There is a strain between the success goals and the legitimate means to achieve those success goals

C.

Exaggerates working class crime – Ignored non-utilitarian crime.

4. Subcultural Theory –

Albert Cohen (1955)

• Lack of success leads to Status Frustration

• Leads to a a Delinquent subculture

• Deviance is collective not individual response

C.

Willis’ research criticises this – status frustration does not lead to a subculture – boys form a subculture because they think school is irrelevant to their future lives

5. Subcultural Theory “Delinquency and opportunity”

Cloward & Ohlin (1962)

• – Illegitimate opportunity structure → Criminal, conflict and retreatist subcultures ……

C. TW + Y say this theory still assumes people are committed to achieving wealth. Some, e.g. hippies, aren’t.

6. New Right / underclass theory

Charles Murray (1989)

• Long term unemployed, live off benefits

• High numbers of lone parents.

• High rates of crime

C.

Marxists would argue that Long term unemployment is a structural failing of the Capitalist system

7. Interactionism – Labelling Theory

Becker (1963)

• Agents of Social Control stereotype and marginalise minority groups

C. Blaming authorities absolves criminals of responsibility

8. Interactionist – Labelling Theory

Becker (1963)

Labelling can lead to crime –

• Master Status

• Self fulfilling prophecy

• Deviant career

• Deviant subculture

C.

• Too deterministic

• Why are some people more likely to be labelled than others?

9. Trad Marxism

Gordon

• Capitalism → Competition → Dog eat Dog society;

• Prison for W/C neutralises opposition vs system

C.

Crime was still present in communist societies.

10. Trad Marxism

Chambliss

• All classes commit crime

• Inequality in capitalist system is linked to crime

C.

Crime in the UK has been decreasing while inequality has been increasing

11. Trad Marxism

Snider

Many of the most serious deviant acts are “corporate crime” (M/C)

C.

Left Realists argue that Marxist focus too much on corp. crime; burglaries cause more distress and victims = W/C

12. Neo Marxism – The New Criminology

Taylor, Walton and Young (1973)

• Fully Social Theory of Deviance.

• Criminals are ‘political heroes’

C.

• LR’s say W/C criminals are romanticised

• LR’s say victims neglected

• Fems say that focus is only male crime.

13. Realism in general

Taylor Walton and Young (LR) and Wilson (RR)

• We should abandon the grand narratives of previous theories and focus on practical solutions to crime

c.

Marxists argue these are ignoring the root cause of crime

14. Left Realism

Lea + Young

• 3 causes of crime – relative deprivation/ subculture and marginalisation

C. Marxists argue these are ignoring the root cause of crime

15. Left Realism

Lea and Young

• Solutions to crime include Reducing inequality and more community policing

C. Community policing is really about the state controlling people’s lives.

16. Right Realism

James Q Wilson

• Cost/benefit cause of crime

• Broken windows/

C.

Jones (92) says that lack of investment is more important than Z.T. in preventing crime.

17. Right Realism

James Q Wilson

• Solutions to crime include target hardening and situational crime prevention

C.

Crime displacement

18. Postmodernism

Robert Reiner

• Increase in consumerism is a fundamental reason behind increasing crime

Can’t explain decrease in crime since the mid-1990s

19. Late Modernism

Jock Young

• The vertigo of Late Modernity- Crime today is linked to anomie/ crisis of masculinity

C. Is this any different to Strain Theory?