1. Read the following. What possible social causes of crime can you identify in the passage?
A local housing estate has developed a bad reputation for crime and violence in the local area.
The area is one of low rent private houses and council housing. Many people who live on benefits are in the area and incomes are generally low, even if people work.
There is little work available locally; most of the jobs are for women who are employed part time as cleaners or in supermarket checkouts.
Many of the families have only one parent, usually women who bring up their children on their own.
The local school has a poor reputation and less than half of the pupils get five good GCSE grades.
The police patrol the area regularly and they target gangs of young people who gather in the play area to drink and chat.

2. Does the way that society is organised cause some people to be criminal?
Can we blame society itself for crime and deviance?
Discussion

3. What are sociological theories of criminality?
Unit 1 – Assessment Criteria 1.3
Describe sociological theories of criminality.

4. Assumptions of sociological theories of crime
Crime is caused by the impact of society on individuals who form part of society.
There are dynamics within certain social groups that lead individuals to choose a criminal solution to their problems.

5. There are many approaches to understanding crime in sociology
Marxism
(Structural theory)
Interactionism
Functionalism
(Social structure)
Realism is a combination of different approaches

6. Click and drag the statements to the Venn Diagram
Functionalism
Marxism
Crime is caused by poverty and inequality
Crime is natural to society
People are labelled as criminal by society
It is less important to study crime than seek solutions
Interactionism

7. Names to research Robert Merton (Functionalist theory)
Willem Bonger (Marxist theory)
Howard Becker (Interactionist theory)
Jock Young (Realist theory)

8. Robert Merton
People aim for success in society but do not always achieve them so they develop strategies, some of which result in crime.
conformists
Live according to society’s aims, norms and values in order to achieve goals
innovators
Accept society’s aims, norms and values but have no legitimate way of attaining success so develop criminal behaviour
ritualists
Play by the rules but do not really expect to succeed, so they go through the motions
retreatists
Give up on social goals and on striving for them, so often take up alcohol and drugs
rebels
Set their own goals and their own methods of achieving them

9. Willem Bonger
Crime is caused by an unequal society. Poor people live in miserable conditions.
Poor people commit crime to survive.
People with power punish the poor more harshly than the rich.

10. Can this be criticised?
Carry out some individual research on Marxist views of crime.
This site has a useful booklet to download:

11. Evaluating Marxism
For:
Against:

12. What makes an action criminal?
According to Interactionists, crime depends on the situation rather than the action and it is how people respond that creates crime.
You are naked in your bathroom.
criminal
deviant
both
You are naked on a naturist beach in Greece.
criminal
deviant
both
You are naked in the middle of a shopping mall on a Saturday.
criminal
deviant
both

13. Howard Becker
All people commit criminal acts, but only some people are caught.
This results in some people gaining a label as a criminal. This label becomes part of their identity, so they commit more crime.

14. Person gains label as criminal
Initial action
Seen as criminal
Person gains label as criminal
Not seen as criminal
Nothing happens

15. Realism Crime is a problem. It requires solutions.
People who are Marxist in approach say crime is caused by discontent.
People who are Functionalist say crime is caused by bad parenting.

16. Harsh and strict policing
Solution to crime
Form of realism
Realism
Left Realism
Sensitive policing
Right Realism
Harsh and strict policing

17. Decriminalising drugs
Effective solutions to crime?
Good community
Most effective
Harsh sanctions
CCTV
Police on beat
Stop and search
Stamping out racism
More employment
More equal society
Strict punishments
Least effective
Decriminalising drugs

18. Public policy and social theory
Since the 1990s, the police and the government have given more status to Right Realist approaches to crime.
They encourage the use of CCTV and Neighbourhood Watch schemes.
They have used Zero Tolerance approaches to crime.

19. Discussion questions Does society cause crime? If not, then what does?
Have the policies of the New Right been effective in stopping crime?
Discussion

20. Personal Research
Look up Inner City Riots. There have been a number of these over the years.
You could research the Brixton Riots and the Scarman Report into the riots (both 1981)
What were the consequences of these for the police?
What have people suggested is the cause of urban rioting?

21. Independent Study before the next topic
Do further reading and research on the social approach.
Make revision lists of arguments in favour or rejecting the social approach to the origins of crime.
Independent Study before the next topic

22. Scenario Local Asian owned shop under attack
A group of young people have been stealing cars and riding them around the poor estates around town.
There have been accidents caused by this.
When the police tried to control the behaviour, this erupted into further violence including an attack on my shop.
Talking head here?

23. Assessment skill
Write a short report (one side of A4) applying one social theory of the origins of crime to the scenario.
Make a reasonable suggestion as to how the behaviour of the youths might be addressed using any one social theory.
Do not copy and paste from any website or textbook. Refer to the sources that you used.

24. Final self review
How has your understanding of sociological approaches affected or changed your opinions towards criminals or criminal behaviour?