Crime and Deviance: Social Control

Social Control

Definitions of Deviance:

• Normative - The idea that there is an agreed set of norms and values within society, anyone who breaks the norms with socially unacceptable behaviour is deviant. (This view on deviance is adopted by Functionalists).

• Relativistic - Conflicts of opinion, the people in power decide what is deviant and what isn't. (This view on deviance is adopted by Marxists/Feminists/Interactionists).

Formal Mechanisms of Social Control: The Criminal Justice System (CJS) has power through the law to regulate behaviour. This includes the polive, the courts and the prison service. 

Informal Mechanisms of Social Control:Institutions, such as the family, have power through socialisation as they regulate their behaviour through interaction. 

Functionalist view of the Criminal Justice System:

• Durkheim: Argued that the CJS performs a function as it maintains the value consensus, social order and the specialised division of labour.

 Marxist view of the Criminal Justice System:

•  Chambliss: Argues that the CJS is part of the superstructure and helps maintain the false class consciousness. He argues that the law is written by the Bourgeoisie in order to prevent a revolution, therefore any resistance is an offence. 

Radical Feminist view of the Criminal Justice System:

• Shacklady-Smith: Argues that all study of crime is 'malesteam' (focussed on men) and that statistics ignore female crime. She argues that the CJS is more lenient on women as the police try to maintain female reputations, as a woman's reputation is based on her sexual reputation the police take pity on women and not men. She argues that women should by judged as equals to men. 

Foucault: 'Panopticon'. Argues that the police and the CJS are from the modernist era. But now, ub the late modern era, discipline is maintained throughout society. Due to the threat of surveillance, people are now policing themselves. 

Stan Cohen: Summarised his work into three areas:

1. Penetration - Law is applied across all society by many agencies. 
2. Size and Density - State employs more people that impose social control. 
3. Identity and Visibility - Forms of social control are made obvious. 

Left and right realists accept crime statistics and a general understanding of crime. 

Left Realists: Do not blame the individual, they blame society. They would argue that the working class commit more crime due to poverty/unemployment.

Right Realists: Blame the individual. People commit crime due to a lack of norms and values. 

Hirshi: Believed that individuals commit crime if they lack one or more of these social bonds, (ACIB).
Attachment - Will their crime impact others?
Committment - Do they care about the community that could be affected?
Involvement - Are they in employment? If so they have less time to become involved in deviant behaviour.
Beliefs - Do they have norms and values in society? Are they properly socialised? Are they part of a religion?

Farrington and West: Conducted a study on council estates of 'problem families' through offical statistics they discovered that 50% of crime in the area was done by only 6% of that population. Therefore meaning that usually specific 'families' were committing the crime in the area. Those from broken homes, parents with criminal records etc.

Dennis and Erdos: Argue that the increase in single parent families with a lack of patriarchal influence leads to an increase in crime due to the lack of discipline. 25% of all UK family structures are lone parent ones. 

Charles Murray: Emergence of the underclass 'the idle theiving bastards of society'. Illegitimate family structures steal from the state by committing crime and claiming state support. 

Scraton: Structural theory, states that the Proletariat commit crime as a basis of early revolution against Capitalism. 

Jock Young: Conducted a study called 'social bulimia' that showed relative deprivation occured when a comparison is made to others, usually the working class comparing themselves to the middle class. Therefore they suffer from humiliation and commit crime to vent their frustration.

Stephen Box: Agrees on Hirshi's theory of ACIB but argues that as a result of this individuals vent their frustration on Capitalism who cause their exploitation.