Crime and Deviance

???? Criminal activity-nature or nurture?

What Is Deviance? Deviance Society establishes social norms A behavior, belief, or condition that is a violation of social norms Society establishes social norms When norms violated, behavior considered deviant Definitions of deviance are relative to the values and beliefs of society Defining deviance is a social and historical construct

Crime An act, or the omission of an act, that is a violation of a federal, state, or local criminal law for which the state can apply sanctions. Put simply-Breaking the law

Significance of Relativity of Crime Understanding what is considered a social problem and how certain problems are constructed as the social structure changes Changing attitudes The political nature of defining crime and deviance-Drugs and sexuality- The case of marijuana The effect of society on the individual The Sociological Imagination

The Cultural Production of knowledge about crime The social problems perspective Measurements of crime and deviance Uniform crime reports The dark figure of crime Victimization surveys The social construction of the crime problem

Images of crime and justice from the media Crime news sells Reality based cop shows

Crime Scares The social construction of crime as a social problem 1980’s-Missing children scare 80’s and 90’s-Serial murder scare 80’s and 90’s-The drug scare How might a critical constructionist view these crime scares?

Street Crime versus Violent Crime Corporate violence Critical construction and crime

Street Crime U.S.-high rates of violent crime Culture and social structure American values and crime Robert Merton and the American Dream Strain Theory People adapt to inconsistency between means and goals in society. Structural limitations  Strain adaptation(Crime)

Race and Street crime Representation of minorities in prison Bias in the CJS Moral deficiency argument=anti-sociological Poverty and crime rates A self fulfilling prophecy

The American Punishment Frenzy The Death Penalty Escalating incarceration rates and expenditures Began in mid 1970’s The prison experience is so common in America today that the Federal government predicts 1 in every 11 men will be imprisoned at some time during his life Why the increase in incarceration rates?

The American Punishment Frenzy Punitive policies Imprisonment of non-violent offenders 1980’s-The drug war Mandatory minimums Three strikes laws Plea bargains In 2007, the United States had the highest incarceration rate in the world Over 7 million people in prison, jail, or under correctional supervision

Is our criminal justice system “soft on crime”? Are we really the freest nation in the world? Who benefits from the incarceration boom? The massive escalation in imprisonment has occurred despite the fact that there was no corresponding increase in crime

The Prison-Industrial Complex Idea that correctional expansion serves many other interests rather than the public’s interest Prison guards union-Strong lobbyists for tough on crime strategies Prison construction=money and jobs Prison labor benefits government and corps Many prisons now run by corporations For these groups, whether or not incarceration is an effective method of crime control is not a concern

Is massive incarceration working? Has little deterrent effects on crime Serves as an example of what happens to criminals and will therefore deter crime There is very little evidence indicating that imprisonment has any effect on crime “Despite extensive research…a direct link between increased incarceration and lower crime has never been empirically established”

Public Opinion A majority of Americans tend to believe that we are “soft on crime,” despite the fact that we already lock up criminals at higher rates and for longer sentences than every other country in the world As a result, state expenditures on education continue to decrease, while spending on prisons has been increasing Does this make sense? What role does the media play in this process?

Cross Cultural Comparisons Societies more punitive than the United States Societies less punitive…

Social and Financial benefits of treatment programs Drug treatment programs not only make neighborhoods safer, but save residents money RAND Corporation study For every dollar invested into a treatment program, taxpayers save $7.56 in criminal prevention costs In light of such evidence, why are treatment programs rarely used or suggested by politicians?