Overview
This lecture covers key sociological theories and research on crime and deviance, including causes, classifications, measurement, and the impact of social factors such as gender, class, ethnicity, media, globalization, and state actions.
Social Construction of Crime and Deviance
- Crime and deviance are socially constructed and culturally determined (e.g., arranged marriage legality varies by country).
- Behaviors considered deviant or criminal can change over time (e.g., child labor, marital rape).
- Situational deviance depends on context (e.g., nudity at home vs. public).
- Societal deviance involves behaviors widely disapproved by society (e.g., swearing at authority).
Biological and Psychological Explanations
- Maternal deprivation, genetic abnormalities (e.g., extra Y chromosome), and brain differences linked with criminality.
- Lombroso found physical differences in criminals compared to general population.
Functionalist Theories
- Durkheim: Crime has positive functions, such as reinforcing values and enabling social change.
- Merton: Strain theory—individuals commit crime due to blocked access to societal goals (five adaptations: conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, rebellion).
- Hirschi: Control theory—strong social bonds prevent crime; their breakdown increases risk.
Subcultural and Marxist Theories
- Cohen: Status frustration leads to delinquent subcultures among working-class boys.
- Cloward & Ohlin: Three subcultures—criminal, conflict, retreatist.
- Miller: Delinquency is part of working-class male culture.
- Marxists argue capitalism causes crime (criminogenic), laws serve ruling class interests, and law enforcement is selective.
Neo-Marxist and Labeling Theories
- Taylor et al.: Developed a fully social theory of crime, emphasizing choice and societal reactions.
- Becker and Cicourel: Labels depend on power, stereotypes, and context; deviant labels can lead to further deviance (self-fulfilling prophecy).
- Consequences include master status and deviancy amplification.
Realist Approaches
- Left realists: Focus on actual crime impact, causes include relative deprivation, marginalization, and subcultures.
- Right realists: View crime as a real problem, explain it through biology, underclass, and rational choice; prefer practical prevention.
Measuring Crime and Crime Statistics
- Sources: police records, victim surveys, court/prison records, self-report studies.
- Criticisms: hidden figure of crime; statistics may be biased or incomplete.
Gender, Ethnicity, and Social Class in Crime
- Women commit less crime due to socialization, control, and fewer opportunities (chivalry thesis, sex role theory).
- Female crime increasing due to liberation and changing roles.
- Ethnic minorities are overrepresented in crime statistics due to police targeting, stereotypes, and marginalization.
- Most prisoners are from working-class backgrounds; middle-class crime often escapes labeling.
Media, Globalization, and Crime
- Media exaggerates violent crime, creates moral panics, and can desensitize society.
- Globalization has enabled new crimes (drugs, trafficking, cybercrime).
- State crime includes political, security, economic, and social/cultural crimes; states may deny or justify harm.
Crime Prevention and Punishment
- Right realist: situational (target hardening) and environmental (broken windows) crime prevention.
- Left realist: social/community approaches, restorative justice, reducing discrimination.
- Punishment serves various functions: deterrence, retribution, rehabilitation, social control.
- Surveillance is a growing form of social control.
Victimology
- Victims often come from marginalized groups (young, poor, minorities).
- Victimization can cause psychological harm and secondary victimization by the justice system.
- Positive victimology focuses on victim proneness; critical victimology emphasizes structural factors.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Deviance — Behavior that violates social norms or expectations.
- Strain Theory — Crime results when people cannot achieve valued goals through legitimate means.
- Labeling Theory — The process through which individuals are identified as deviant and the consequences of that label.
- Relative Deprivation — When people perceive themselves as deprived compared to others, potentially leading to crime.
- Criminogenic — Something that causes or encourages criminal behavior.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review and summarize the different sociological theories of crime.
- Read case studies or examples of each main theory (e.g., strain, labeling, subcultural).
- Prepare notes on the strengths and weaknesses of crime statistics for future discussion.