Transcript Crime and Deviance

Gender, crime and justice
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Understand the main gender differences in
recorded patterns of offending,
Understand and evaluate the debates about
the treatment of men and women in the
criminal justice system,
Evaluate explanations of the relationship
between women and crime and between
men and crime.
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Striking gender differences in the patterns of
recorded crime,
Male dominated criminology which neglects
female criminality,
Causes of male criminality or the relationship
between masculinity and crime.
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Key topics
Chivalry thesis,
Evidence against chivalry thesis,
Bias against women
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What is recorded crime ?
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Out of every 10 crimes recorded to police
how many involve male offenders?
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Gender differences are the most significant
feature of recorded crime
4 out of 5 convicted offenders in England and
Wales are males,
By the age of 40, 9% of females had a
criminal conviction against 32% of males,
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Do women actually commit more crime or
are the figures an invalid picture of gender
patterns of crime?
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How can we explain why those women who
do offend commit crime?
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Why do males commit more crime than
females?
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLd3cfLlvU
One of the most common crimes
committed by women is shoplifting
suggest three reasons for this ?
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Prostitution
is less
likely
to
Shoplifting
is
less
likely
to
be
Women are
less“seller”
likely toorbe
be reported
by
the
reported by the police
prosecuted
the “buyer”
the combination of qualities expected of an ideal
knight; courage, honour, justice, and a readiness to help
the weak (especially women)
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Read through each of the cards in pairs
arrange them in order.
Is it an explanation of the chivalry thesis?
Is it evidence against the thesis?
What order do the paragraphs go in?
 This should help you think about the way you
structure essays
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Farrington and Morris (1983) – study of
sentencing
Buckle and Farrington (1984) – observational
study of shoplifting
Box (1981) – self report studies
Which of these
methods is the best
one in order to get
reliable data ?
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Read through the bias against women
paragraph
Read through the bias against women section
in your handbook and write down and mini
paragraph which summarises it.
You have 10 minutes to complete this task
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Key topics
1.
Is the criminal justice system more lenient
towards women ?
2.
Is crime in women due to biological
differences or the cause of social
differences?
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Lombroso & Ferrero (1893)
 Criminality is innate
 Less female crime a very few females are ‘born
criminal’
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Recent biological explanations
 Higher levels of testosterone
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Functionalist sex role theory
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Heidensohn: Patriarchal control
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Carlen: class and gender
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The liberation thesis
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In pairs use the information in your text book
to complete a mind map summary of the
theory you are allocated.
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Use colours and pictures where possible &
keep words to a minimum
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Using the mind maps write a short summary
of each theory
What is it about ‘being male’ that
leads men to offend?
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Masculinity is a social construct,
accomplishment
Men have to work to constantly work to
achieve and assert their masculinity
Some men have more resources to draw on
to do this than others
Hegemonic Vs Subordinate masculinities
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The dominant prestigious form of masculinity
Paid work
Subordination of women
Heterosexism – desire women
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Gay
Lower class
Ethnic minority
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Subordinate themselves to teachers in order
to achieve middle class status
Accommodating masculinity in school
Oppositional form outside – drinking,
vandalism
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Less chance of educational success
Their masculinity is opposed in school and
out of school
Oppose teachers & hold sexes attitudes to
construct their masculinity
Willis ‘lads’ study
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Few expectations of a reasonable job
Use gang membership and violence to
explain their masculinity
Turn to property crime to achieve material
success
...to assert their hegemonic masculinity
Middle class – white collar / corporate crime
Working class – street robbery = subordinate
masculinity
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He does not explain why all me use crime to
accomplish masculinity
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He over-works (over-uses it) attempting to
make it explain many widely different types
of male crime
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His argument is unclear; is masculinity a
cause of crime or just a description of male
offenders?
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Methods in context essay – experiments due
last Monday
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Revise for timed MiC essay in Monday’s
lesson- Questionnaires
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Optional Gender & Crime Question
Differences in the socialisation of males and
females can explain gender differences in crime,
 Parsons (1955) gender roles in the nuclear
family,
 Cohen (1955)Lack of role models in males can
lead to boys joining all male street gangs
(subcultural theories),
 New right sociologist believe that lack of role
model leads to males seeking status and identity
in gangs
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Walklate (2003):
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2 key feminist theories: Control theory and Liberation
Thesis
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Conformist (patriarchal society reduces women’s
opportunity to offend):
Control at home (restrictions due to domestic
duties) – Dobash and Dobash (1979),
2. Control in public (fear of male violence – sexual
violence) – Lees (1993),
3. Control at work (women’s behaviour is
controlled by males supervisors/managers –
sexual harrassment)
1.
Read through Carlen sub section and
summarise the concept of class and gender
deals including evaluation
Changes in the structure of society has led to changes
in offending behaviour,
 Changes in the crime committed by women due to
women increase of self confidence and assertiveness,
 Denscombe (2001)
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Criticism?
 Female crime has been rising since the 1950’s,
 Most female criminals are working class,
 Chesney – Lind (1997) and Laidler and Hunt (2001)
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Compete the last two pages of your handout on
masculinity and crime using the “why do men
commit crime section of your handout”.
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Page 109 of your handout complete the 21
marks essay question which I will only take for
marking up to Friday 28th of November 2010.
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Remember it is optional but your best way to
practice writing exam questions.