Sociology of Crime & Deviance PDF

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this essay looks at crime and deviance in society...

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Sociology of Crime & Deviance Crime is defined by the actions an individual takes which breaks the law. ‘Society  sees most crimes, such as robbery, assault, battery, rape, murder, burglary, and embezzlement, as deviant. But some crimes, such as those committed in violation of laws against selling merchandise on Sundays, are not deviant at all. Moreover, not all deviant acts are criminal.’ (Cliffsnotes.com, 2018). Michel Foucault believes deviance is a social construction which changes through the years, The definition for deviance is ‘Differing from a norm or from the accepted standards of a society.One that differs from a norm, especially a person whose behavior and attitudes differ from accepted social standards.’(TheFreeDictionary.com, 2018) Individuals often construct society through socialization by interacting with other individuals. This often create new norms and values which act as a guideline on how to fit in with society. Norms and values often vary throughout history, cultures and societies. For example in some cultures its considered deviant if an unmarried women was to be alone with a man without supervision whereas it other cultures it is considered the norm. Therefor how behaviour is viewed depends on the perspective of the people involved. ‘According to Becker, no actions are by nature criminal or deviant but instead depends on the norms created by any given society. Therefore,  deviance is only deviance if labelled as such through the process of interaction in which meaning is established’ (Sociology  in perspective, pg 604) Many sociologists use official crime statistics when researching the link between society and crime, these statistics are often readily available on the British Crime Survey website, they are also reliable and they provide detailed quantitative data. However these statistics only record the crimes that are reported and so if a victim chooses to not report a crime committed it cannot be recorded, this is known as the Iceberg effect. The police also don’t record every single crime that is reported for many reasons for example a lack of evidence. They also have to prioritize the crimes that are reported and so they might be willing to turn a “blind eye” towards a shoplifter in order to free up resources to investigate a murderer. This shows that crime statistics need to be interpreted carefully due to them not showing the whole picture, it also demonstrates a way in which crime is socially constructed. Cohen focuses on crime and deviance within different subcultures and about why some subculture groups commit crimes. Cohen argued that working-class boys often failed at school resulting in a low status. A response to failing school was the formation of subcultures or gangs with values that go against society's norms and values. What was deemed taboo or deviant in mainstream society was praiseworthy and good in the subculture. Likewise what was considered praiseworthy in mainstream culture was deviant and discouraged in the subculture. 1

Cohen's theory sought to explain delinquency among particular groups in society (young, working-class males) and non-utilitarian crimes. Crimes like vandalism or fighting can be explained by the subcultures inverting the values of mainstream society, turning socially deviant acts into ones that are praiseworthy and a way of achieving status within the group. Cohen's suggestion that members of these deviant subcultures consciously break the norms and values of society has been criticised. When someone decides to graffiti a bus shelter, it seems unlikely that they have consciously thought that society would consider this act unacceptable. Postmodernist sociologists like Lyng and Katz argue that it is more likely the individual is influenced by boredom or is seeking a "buzz". However, it could be countered that delinquents can be conscious of how deviant acts might provide them to be accepted into their social group more. For example teenage boys will often do deviant acts such as breaking into an abandoned building in order to impress their peers. Emile Durkheim believes that crime and deviance are socially constructed. They are concepts that were created by people. Émile Durkheim also believed that deviance is a necessary part of society. He argues that it challenges society's norms and values and individuals perspectives on what deiviancy is. For example, when black students across the United States participated in sit-ins during the civil rights movement, they challenged society’s notions of segregation. Durkheim also noted, when deviance is punished, it backs up currently held social norms, which also contributes to society. Seeing a student given detention for skipping class for example reminds other high school children that skipping school isn’t allowed and that they, too, could get detention. Anomie was first introduced by Durkheim who suggested that traditional norms and values in modern society often become undermined without being replaced with new ones, this means that there is no clear guide on how to behave in society. ‘According to Durkheim, people in the modern age are less constrained than  ue to there being those than those in traditional societies.’ (Giddens and Sutton, n.d.) D more room for individual choice, it is more likely to see some non-conformity/deviance. Marxists believe that the bourgeois often use the law to socialise and control the prolitate. They believe that the law is only enforced on the working class and that the upper and middle class are exempt. Their view is that the official crime statistics aren't valid as they fail to show a true picture of the crime committed by all classes and it only shows the crimes committed by the lower classes. Marxists argue that the laws only benefit the capitalists and as they believe the law only defines behaviours or activities as illegal if it affects them making money or they will make things illegal as long as they can profit from it, for example, not paying for a parking ticket is illegal and you will be issued a fine if caught. Capitalists also create laws protecting 2

themselves and their private properties. Marxists believe that tax laws for example show how the rich target the working class whilst using the law to avoid paying tax themselves. The media plays a big role in relation to crime and deviance. The media's influence over important issues can often shape how people think and feel. The media needs to be selective on the crime incidents they choose to report as it would be impossible for them to report everything and so individuals are likely to only discuss the issues that are brought to attention by the media. This will influence people's perception of what crime is. For example the media often reports on murder which influences the audiences to see murder as a crime that needs a serious punishment such as prison where as tax evasion is often an issue avoided by the media and so it isn’t seen as a crime by some people. Some believe the media is also controlled by the bourgeois and so they will influence the media to only report on news that won’t affect them. This allows them to continue to break laws without drawing the public's attention to them. The media can also exaggerate violent crimes in order to sell more papers for example and the facts can often become distorted. The media also contributes go the labelling theory for example, if the media portrays all lower class people as criminals they will then be treated as such and they will start to believe the labels they have been given and so they will change their behaviour to fit. ‘Stan Cohen’s work, Folk Devils and Moral Panics, illustrates this. His initial work focused on the minor confrontation in Clacton, 1964. The media overreacted in three seminal ways. Firstly, the media exaggerated the numbers involved and the extent of the violence via headlines like ‘day of terror by scooter gangs’. Secondly, the media regularly assumed and predicted that further violence would result. And finally, the media used symbolism; the hairstyles, clothes, bikes and scooters, the music of Mods and Rockers, were all labelled and associated with violence. The media portrayal of events produced a deviance amplification spiral by making it seem that the problem was spreading. This leads to calls for greater activity by the police and courts, and further labelling and marginalisation of Mods and Rockers. The media further amplified the deviance by defining the subculture, therefore many youths joined these groups and were involved in future clashes in what became a self-fulfilling prophecy of escalating conflict, due to polarisation. Individuals reading and seeing these reports felt that they were at risk from all young people who dressed as Mods or Rockers.’ ( Shout Out UK, 2018)

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Bibliography Cliffsnotes.com. (2018). Defining Crime . [online] Available at: https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-guides/sociology/deviance-crime-and-social-control/defining-crime [Accessed 25 May 2018]. TheFreeDictionary.com. (2018). deviancy . [online] Available at: https://www.thefreedictionary.com/deviancy [Accessed 4 Jun. 2018]. Kirby, M. and Hope, T. (2000). Sociology in perspective for OCR . Oxford: Heinemann. Shout Out UK. (2018). How the media controls our perceptions of crime | Shout Out UK . [online] Available at: https://www.shoutoutuk.org/2014/11/08/how-the-media-controls-our-perceptions-of-crime/ [Accessed 14 Jun. 2018]. Giddens, A. and Sutton, P. (n.d.). Sociology . 6th ed. pp.940-941.

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