Functionalist perspective of crime and deviance (30 marks)
Intro Functionalist sociologists would argue that both crime and deviance have positive functions for
society and that they are an inevitable part of social life. Without crime and deviance it would be
difficult to establish norms and values and a shared system of beliefs as no member of society would
ever deviate from normal social behaviour. Functionalists believe that the crime and deviance is both
positive and inevitable.
P1 POINT:
Durkheim - Inevitability and positive functions of crime
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- Crime as Inevitable: Durkheim argues that crime is an inevitable part of society because not
everyone will conform to shared norms and values, particularly in diverse, modern societies.
- Crime’s Positive Functions: He suggests that crime can have positive functions, such as
reaffirming societal norms and values when people unite to condemn deviant acts.
Deviance can also drive social change by challenging outdated norms, leading to reforms and
adaptations in society.
Society may be organised to promote violence.
Crime is normal and integral part of all societies:
- Boundary maintenance
- Adaptation and change
EVALUATION:
- Ignores how crime affects people differently - victims of crime won't see it as positive.
- Ignores the crimes of the powerful.
P2 POINT:
Davis - Crime as a Safety Valve :
Certain deviant acts, such as minor crimes, act as a safety valve by providing a harmless outlet for
frustration or tension.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Preserving Social Order: These acts prevent more serious disruption to society by allowing
individuals to express dissatisfaction without challenging societal norms directly.
- Eg. prostitution can serve this function by providing an outlet for sexual desires without
threatening the institution of marriage or family stability.
EVALUATION:
- Ignore differences in social groups.
P3 POINT:
Cohen - crime acts as a warning that society is not functioning well
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- Crime as a Warning: Cohen argues that crime serves as a signal that societal institutions,
such as education or family, are failing to function effectively.
Rising crime rates highlight underlying social problems, such as inequality or lack of opportunity,
that need to be addressed, prompting society to evaluate and adapt its norms, laws, or systems to
restore order.
Eg. truancy in schools indicating issues within social institutions such as education.
Eg. affairs in religion whereby terrorism could be regarded as a sign of political dissatisfaction.
EVALUATION:
- Assumes all crime has a constructive purpose, ignores victims.
P4 POINT:
Merton - adapts Durkheim's anomie + Deviance is a result of strain between 2 things:
1) the goals of society
2) what society allows people to achieve.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
If one cannot achieve goals of society legitimately then they will turn to crime to achieve them.
- Strain Theory: Deviance arises when individuals cannot achieve society's shared goals, like
wealth or success, through legitimate means.
Modes of Adaptation: Merton identifies five responses to this strain—
Conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion
, EVALUATION:
- Exaggerates and agreed concept of goals
- Focusing on utilitarian crime ignores violent crime.
P5 POINT: Subcultural Theories
Cohen - Subcultural strain theory
1) Crime is a response of status frustration - cohen
2) Wc youths are denied legitimate opportunities to achieve money success - deviance stems
from the way they respond to this - Cloward and Ohlin
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Subcultural Strain Theory: Crime arises as a reaction to structural inequalities and blocked
opportunities.
- Cohen - Status Frustration: Working-class youths, denied legitimate means to achieve
societal goals, experience frustration and seek status through deviant subcultures.These
subcultures reject mainstream success norms and create their own, where deviance provides
status and respect.
- Cloward and Ohlin - Differential opportunity: Cloward and Ohlin expand on this, arguing
that access to illegitimate opportunities varies, leading to different types of subcultures:
criminal (organised crime), conflict (violence), and retreatist (drug use).
Eg Gang activity often reflects the search for alternative success when mainstream opportunities are
blocked.
EVALUATION:
- Ignores the fact that wc boys may not have shared mainstream values in the first place +
only focus on wc males.
- Matza - most delinquents are not strongly committed to their subculture but rather drift in
and out of delinquency.
P6 POINT: Hirschi's control theory
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
There are four social bonds that pull us away from crime and towards conformity:
• Commitment
• Attachment
• Belief
• Involvement
EVALUATION:
- Fails to explain why those with strong social ties such as white collar criminals go on to
commit crime.
Conc To conclude, Functionalist theories can be credited in terms of their focus on the positive social
functions performed by crime and deviance but their views could be considered too simplistic as they
do not give great enough attention to the root causes of crime and the social systems of inequality
that brings them about.
,Marxist - Evaluate the contribution of marxist theories to the contribution of understanding of crime and
deviance (30 marks)
Intro Marxist sociologists argue that crime and deviance stem from the inequalities of capitalism,
reflecting class conflict and exploitation. They see crime as a response to oppression and believe
laws serve the interests of the ruling class, highlighting systemic injustice rather than being
inevitable or beneficial.
P1 POINT: The causes of crime
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Marxists believe capitalism is criminogenic — the very nature of capitalism generates crime in all
classes (Gordon)
Crime is a RATIONAL response to the capitalist system that is found in ALL SOCIAL CLASSES.
Capitalism encourages MIDDLE CLASSES to commit WHITE-COLLAR and CORPORATE
crimes.
Chambliss - argues capitalism gives rise to huge economic inequalities as the powerless
working-class are exploited by the powerful ruling minority to make a profit at their expense.
Type of crimes committed between the classes:
- The powerful tend to be drawn to corporate and white-collar crime
- The powerless to street crime.
EVALUATION:
- Too reductionistic. The idea that the causes of crime can be reduced to economic inequality
in society may be seen as a simplistic view. It ignores other possible social and
psychological factors such as ethnic differences, religion, geographical location, as well as
psychological factors that may lead to crime, e.g. depression.
P2 POINT: State and criminal law
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Law enforcement
What counts as crime and deviance is based on subjective decision making by the powerful (Pearce).
The state avoids enforcing laws that regulate large capitalist businesses, such as those on pollution,
wages, and safety, to protect profitability (Snider), such as the legislation against pollution, worker’s
pay, and health and safety issues.
Many laws which appear to benefit only the working class in reality also benefit the ruling class.
(Pearce). Factory legislation protecting the health and safety of workers also benefits capitalists
by keeping workers fit for their work and loyal to their employers, so ensuring profitability.
E.g. Grenfell tower
E.g. ‘Starbucks’ the coffee chain, who have avoided paying corporation tax.
E.g. Reports into calamities such as the gas explosion at Bhopal, India (1984 — 5000 died).
EVALUATION:
- Research evidence that does not support the theory that capitalism increases crime.
Research by Stephen Jones (1998), points out capitalism does not always produce high
crime rates. For example, in Switzerland, the crime rate is very low and often much lower
than in communist countries. This suggests capitalism may not be the cause of crime and
deviance.
P3 POINT: Selective law enforcement
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
There is a selective application of the criminal law.
Pearce - law enforcement agencies are more likely to focus on working-class crimes and are
therefore more likely to police, arrest and prosecute those committing working-class crime,
compared to crimes of the powerful (e.g. business activities).
As a consequence of selective enforcement, a high level of the working-class is over- represented in
criminal statistics (especially black people) while white-collar crime is under-represented.
, EVALUATION:
- Feminist evaluation: gender. Marxists place too much emphasis on class inequality and
ignore issues of patriarchy, e.g. the influence of patriarchy on the criminal justice system.
This shows sociological theory and research is still very much male-centric — focusing
only on male crimes.
P4 POINT: The ideological function of crime and the law
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Selective criminal law enforcement creates the belief crime is a working-class problem and therefore
directs attention away from crimes committed by powerful groups.
-The criminalisation of the working-class directs society’s attention onto working-class
values and norms and away from the real causes of crime (economic causes, e.g.
capitalism).
- Businesses and large corporations are occasionally prosecuted. Marxists argue this is
because: a. it creates the myth of corporate crime being minimal.
b. it maintains the myth the law is applied equally to all sections of society.
EVALUATION:
- Ruling classes are also prosecuted: failed to explain the ruling-class are sometimes
prosecuted, convicted and severely punished, though this may seem the exception rather
than the rule. An example is the prosecution and conviction of Bernie Madoff for running
one of the largest ever financial fraud schemes (A Ponzi scheme). He was sentenced to 150
years in prison.
P5 POINT: Neo- marxism
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Taylor et al - Capitalism makes people choose to turn to crime.
Critical criminology: Crime is voluntary and often has a political motive - actions are a deliberate
choice striving for change.
Example of critical criminology: London riots 2011
6 aspects of the Neo-marxist theory of crime:
1) The wider origins of the deviant act
2. The immediate circumstances (context) of act
3. The act itself (motives)
4. The immediate origins of social reaction
5. Wider origins of social reaction to deviance(law)
6. The effects of labelling
EVALUATION:
- Left realist evaluation: Left Realists criticise neo-Marxists for focusing on criminals and
neglecting crime's impact on victims, though other theories also overlook victims.
Neo-Marxists are accused of romanticizing the working class by portraying criminals as
victims protesting societal injustices, which cannot justify serious crimes like rape and
murder.
Conc To conclude, Marxist theories effectively highlight the link between crime, power, and inequality in
capitalist societies. However, their focus on class conflict and economic structures can overlook the
complexities of individual agency and non-class-based factors. While insightful, they require
integration with other perspectives to fully understand crime and deviance.
Intro Functionalist sociologists would argue that both crime and deviance have positive functions for
society and that they are an inevitable part of social life. Without crime and deviance it would be
difficult to establish norms and values and a shared system of beliefs as no member of society would
ever deviate from normal social behaviour. Functionalists believe that the crime and deviance is both
positive and inevitable.
P1 POINT:
Durkheim - Inevitability and positive functions of crime
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- Crime as Inevitable: Durkheim argues that crime is an inevitable part of society because not
everyone will conform to shared norms and values, particularly in diverse, modern societies.
- Crime’s Positive Functions: He suggests that crime can have positive functions, such as
reaffirming societal norms and values when people unite to condemn deviant acts.
Deviance can also drive social change by challenging outdated norms, leading to reforms and
adaptations in society.
Society may be organised to promote violence.
Crime is normal and integral part of all societies:
- Boundary maintenance
- Adaptation and change
EVALUATION:
- Ignores how crime affects people differently - victims of crime won't see it as positive.
- Ignores the crimes of the powerful.
P2 POINT:
Davis - Crime as a Safety Valve :
Certain deviant acts, such as minor crimes, act as a safety valve by providing a harmless outlet for
frustration or tension.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Preserving Social Order: These acts prevent more serious disruption to society by allowing
individuals to express dissatisfaction without challenging societal norms directly.
- Eg. prostitution can serve this function by providing an outlet for sexual desires without
threatening the institution of marriage or family stability.
EVALUATION:
- Ignore differences in social groups.
P3 POINT:
Cohen - crime acts as a warning that society is not functioning well
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- Crime as a Warning: Cohen argues that crime serves as a signal that societal institutions,
such as education or family, are failing to function effectively.
Rising crime rates highlight underlying social problems, such as inequality or lack of opportunity,
that need to be addressed, prompting society to evaluate and adapt its norms, laws, or systems to
restore order.
Eg. truancy in schools indicating issues within social institutions such as education.
Eg. affairs in religion whereby terrorism could be regarded as a sign of political dissatisfaction.
EVALUATION:
- Assumes all crime has a constructive purpose, ignores victims.
P4 POINT:
Merton - adapts Durkheim's anomie + Deviance is a result of strain between 2 things:
1) the goals of society
2) what society allows people to achieve.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
If one cannot achieve goals of society legitimately then they will turn to crime to achieve them.
- Strain Theory: Deviance arises when individuals cannot achieve society's shared goals, like
wealth or success, through legitimate means.
Modes of Adaptation: Merton identifies five responses to this strain—
Conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion
, EVALUATION:
- Exaggerates and agreed concept of goals
- Focusing on utilitarian crime ignores violent crime.
P5 POINT: Subcultural Theories
Cohen - Subcultural strain theory
1) Crime is a response of status frustration - cohen
2) Wc youths are denied legitimate opportunities to achieve money success - deviance stems
from the way they respond to this - Cloward and Ohlin
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Subcultural Strain Theory: Crime arises as a reaction to structural inequalities and blocked
opportunities.
- Cohen - Status Frustration: Working-class youths, denied legitimate means to achieve
societal goals, experience frustration and seek status through deviant subcultures.These
subcultures reject mainstream success norms and create their own, where deviance provides
status and respect.
- Cloward and Ohlin - Differential opportunity: Cloward and Ohlin expand on this, arguing
that access to illegitimate opportunities varies, leading to different types of subcultures:
criminal (organised crime), conflict (violence), and retreatist (drug use).
Eg Gang activity often reflects the search for alternative success when mainstream opportunities are
blocked.
EVALUATION:
- Ignores the fact that wc boys may not have shared mainstream values in the first place +
only focus on wc males.
- Matza - most delinquents are not strongly committed to their subculture but rather drift in
and out of delinquency.
P6 POINT: Hirschi's control theory
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
There are four social bonds that pull us away from crime and towards conformity:
• Commitment
• Attachment
• Belief
• Involvement
EVALUATION:
- Fails to explain why those with strong social ties such as white collar criminals go on to
commit crime.
Conc To conclude, Functionalist theories can be credited in terms of their focus on the positive social
functions performed by crime and deviance but their views could be considered too simplistic as they
do not give great enough attention to the root causes of crime and the social systems of inequality
that brings them about.
,Marxist - Evaluate the contribution of marxist theories to the contribution of understanding of crime and
deviance (30 marks)
Intro Marxist sociologists argue that crime and deviance stem from the inequalities of capitalism,
reflecting class conflict and exploitation. They see crime as a response to oppression and believe
laws serve the interests of the ruling class, highlighting systemic injustice rather than being
inevitable or beneficial.
P1 POINT: The causes of crime
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Marxists believe capitalism is criminogenic — the very nature of capitalism generates crime in all
classes (Gordon)
Crime is a RATIONAL response to the capitalist system that is found in ALL SOCIAL CLASSES.
Capitalism encourages MIDDLE CLASSES to commit WHITE-COLLAR and CORPORATE
crimes.
Chambliss - argues capitalism gives rise to huge economic inequalities as the powerless
working-class are exploited by the powerful ruling minority to make a profit at their expense.
Type of crimes committed between the classes:
- The powerful tend to be drawn to corporate and white-collar crime
- The powerless to street crime.
EVALUATION:
- Too reductionistic. The idea that the causes of crime can be reduced to economic inequality
in society may be seen as a simplistic view. It ignores other possible social and
psychological factors such as ethnic differences, religion, geographical location, as well as
psychological factors that may lead to crime, e.g. depression.
P2 POINT: State and criminal law
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Law enforcement
What counts as crime and deviance is based on subjective decision making by the powerful (Pearce).
The state avoids enforcing laws that regulate large capitalist businesses, such as those on pollution,
wages, and safety, to protect profitability (Snider), such as the legislation against pollution, worker’s
pay, and health and safety issues.
Many laws which appear to benefit only the working class in reality also benefit the ruling class.
(Pearce). Factory legislation protecting the health and safety of workers also benefits capitalists
by keeping workers fit for their work and loyal to their employers, so ensuring profitability.
E.g. Grenfell tower
E.g. ‘Starbucks’ the coffee chain, who have avoided paying corporation tax.
E.g. Reports into calamities such as the gas explosion at Bhopal, India (1984 — 5000 died).
EVALUATION:
- Research evidence that does not support the theory that capitalism increases crime.
Research by Stephen Jones (1998), points out capitalism does not always produce high
crime rates. For example, in Switzerland, the crime rate is very low and often much lower
than in communist countries. This suggests capitalism may not be the cause of crime and
deviance.
P3 POINT: Selective law enforcement
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
There is a selective application of the criminal law.
Pearce - law enforcement agencies are more likely to focus on working-class crimes and are
therefore more likely to police, arrest and prosecute those committing working-class crime,
compared to crimes of the powerful (e.g. business activities).
As a consequence of selective enforcement, a high level of the working-class is over- represented in
criminal statistics (especially black people) while white-collar crime is under-represented.
, EVALUATION:
- Feminist evaluation: gender. Marxists place too much emphasis on class inequality and
ignore issues of patriarchy, e.g. the influence of patriarchy on the criminal justice system.
This shows sociological theory and research is still very much male-centric — focusing
only on male crimes.
P4 POINT: The ideological function of crime and the law
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Selective criminal law enforcement creates the belief crime is a working-class problem and therefore
directs attention away from crimes committed by powerful groups.
-The criminalisation of the working-class directs society’s attention onto working-class
values and norms and away from the real causes of crime (economic causes, e.g.
capitalism).
- Businesses and large corporations are occasionally prosecuted. Marxists argue this is
because: a. it creates the myth of corporate crime being minimal.
b. it maintains the myth the law is applied equally to all sections of society.
EVALUATION:
- Ruling classes are also prosecuted: failed to explain the ruling-class are sometimes
prosecuted, convicted and severely punished, though this may seem the exception rather
than the rule. An example is the prosecution and conviction of Bernie Madoff for running
one of the largest ever financial fraud schemes (A Ponzi scheme). He was sentenced to 150
years in prison.
P5 POINT: Neo- marxism
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Taylor et al - Capitalism makes people choose to turn to crime.
Critical criminology: Crime is voluntary and often has a political motive - actions are a deliberate
choice striving for change.
Example of critical criminology: London riots 2011
6 aspects of the Neo-marxist theory of crime:
1) The wider origins of the deviant act
2. The immediate circumstances (context) of act
3. The act itself (motives)
4. The immediate origins of social reaction
5. Wider origins of social reaction to deviance(law)
6. The effects of labelling
EVALUATION:
- Left realist evaluation: Left Realists criticise neo-Marxists for focusing on criminals and
neglecting crime's impact on victims, though other theories also overlook victims.
Neo-Marxists are accused of romanticizing the working class by portraying criminals as
victims protesting societal injustices, which cannot justify serious crimes like rape and
murder.
Conc To conclude, Marxist theories effectively highlight the link between crime, power, and inequality in
capitalist societies. However, their focus on class conflict and economic structures can overlook the
complexities of individual agency and non-class-based factors. While insightful, they require
integration with other perspectives to fully understand crime and deviance.
