Crime 1
Sociological concept of crime
Any act that violates written criminal law, crime only exists when an act has been identified as being against the law
Functionalist theory of crime
Durkheim suggests that some crime is important for social order.
Recidivism
Reoffending Rates
Crimes against the person
crimes that direct violence or the threat of violence against others; also known as violent crimes
Crimes against property
One of the most common crimes in australia it includes destruction of homes, businesses, burglary and theft of vehicles eg house burglary
Deterrent and example
An aim to discourage someone from doing something. It could be the threat of a fine or some other punishment.
Rehabilitate and example
Refers to the idea that we can restore someone to a normal life (such as being away from crime or other deviant behaviour) by offering therapy, support and training as part of or after imprisonment or addiction treatment.
7 Types of Crime
- Crimes against the person
- Crimes against property
- Victimless crime
- White-collar crime
- Corporate
- Hate Crime
- Organised Crime
Victimless crime
Acts that involve a crime whereby all individuals consent to the criminal activity and whereby nobody is harmed in the process.
White-collar crime
Nonviolent crime committed by individuals of respectability and high social status in the course of thier occupation to obtain a personal or business advantage.
Corporate crime and example
Committed by large corporations which impacts individuals, groups or society. Types include
- administrative (paperwork)
- environmental (pollution)
- financial (tax violation)
- labor (working conditions
- manufacturing (labelling of goods)
- unfair trade practices (false advertising)
Factors leading to likelihood of committing crimes - Provide 3
Low or under-education
- Lack of employment opportunities
- Mental health issues
- Lack of appropriate housing
- The increasing availability of alcohol and drugs
- The increase and diversity of the population
Aims of punishment
- Retribution
- Deterrence
- Rehabilitation
- Societal protection
- Restoration
Aims of Punishment: Deterrence
Focuses on offender, the idea that the pain of punishment should outweigh the pleasure of committing the crime, e.g. expensive fines related to traffic laws
3 restorative justice approaches
sentencing circles
victim-offender mediation
conferencing
Aims of Punishment: Retribution
Focuses on victims and society oldest justification of punishment where punishment should be equal in severity to the crime, e.g. eye for an eye mentality
Aims of Punishment: Rehabilitation
Focuses on the offender, aims to change the criminal, a more modern strategy where a crime is seen as a social or personal problem e.g. mental health services
Aims of Punishment: Societal Protection
Focuses on society making the offender incapeable of future offences
Benefits and negatives of societal protection
Allows criminals to engage only with criminals and form wider isolation from society.
Protects the wider society as people deemed 'dangerous' are taken away
pros and cons of rehabilitation
Negative
Less of a punishment, is rehabilitation proper justice?
-Need a case by case approach, which is hard to achieve with the current legal system.
Benefits
Dismantles labels of the offender which reduces the risks like possibly committing that crime again
Australian data - Related to ethnicity
There is a lot of over representation of Indigenous Australians in prisons this could be due to disadvantage such as living rurally where there are limited resources and that some police could be racist
Australian data - Related to gender
Men are 4 times more likely to commit crime than women. crime in men may be due to gender roles and toxic masculinity as men don't always call out bad behaviour
Australian data - Related to age
Assault, drug and alcohol offences are most common in young people. this could be due to hormonal changes and potentially the need to be rebellious
Australian data - Related to Socioeconomic Status
Those that have immigrated may not be financially stable which could lead to a disadvantage, low ses could also result in a lack of healthcare and education leading to more crime
How can we link the labelling theory to the aims of punishment, in particular rehabilitation and societal protection?
Once being labelled as a criminal and excluded as you do in societal protection, a personal may be more likely to engage in crime and increases the chance of recidivism
Rehabilitation on the other hand dismantles the label and offers them alternatives to the harsh sentencing that may contribute to labelling