Unit 4 DB Exceptional Geek Only
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criminology_phase_4_1.pptxSocial Process
Social groups, social institutions, the arrangement of society, and social roles are the focus of criminological study
Social Process
Group dynamics, group organization, and subgroup relationships form the causal nexus from which crime develops
Social Process
The structure of society and its relative degree of organization or disorganization are important factors contributing to the prevalence of crime
The probability that a member of a given group will engage in a specific type of crime can be estimated
Social Process
Sociological theories:
Examine institutional arrangements within society (social structure) and the interaction between and among social institutions, individuals, and groups (social processes) as they affect socialization and have an impact on social behavior (social life)
Social Process
Social structure theories: crime is the result of an individual’s location within the structure of society
Social process/social development theories: crime is the end product of various social processes.
Conflict theories: crime is the product of class struggle
Social Process
Social structure theories
Explain crime by reference to economic and social arrangements of society
See the various formal and informal arrangements between social groups as the root causes of crime and delinquency
Social Process
Culture Conflict Theory
Sees the root cause of crime in a class of values between various socialized groups over what is acceptable or proper behavior
Period: 1920s – present
Social Process
Primary conflict:
Results from a fundamental clash of cultures
Secondary conflict:
Arises when smaller cultures within the primary one clash
Social Process
Subculture:
A collection of values and preferences communicated to participants through a process of socialization
Subcultural theory:
Sociological perspective emphasizing the contribution made by variously socialized cultural groups to the phenomenon of crime
Focal Concerns
Walter Miller (1858)
Lower class culture:
A long established, distinctively patterned tradition with an integrity of its own
Behavior that upholds lower class norms may be seen by the middle class as deliberately nonconforming
Focal Concerns
Trouble
Getting in, staying out, dealing with trouble
Toughness
Concern with masculinity
Smartness
Ability to outsmart or con others and avoid being duped
Focal Concerns
Excitement
Search for thrills
Fate
The concept of luck, being lucky
Autonomy
Taking care of oneself, not getting pushed around
Social Process
Sykes and Matza (1957)
Members of delinquent subcultures also participate in the larger culture
Offenders use neutralizing self-talk to mitigate shame and guilt associated with violating social norms
Techniques of Neutralization
Denying responsibility
“It’s not my fault”
Denying injury
“Everyone does it”; the victim can afford it
Denying the victim
Deny or justify the harm done; the victim “deserves it”
Techniques of Neutralization
Condemning the condemners
Authorities are corrupt; “They’re all on the take”
Appealing to higher loyalties
Defense of family honor, gang, neighborhood
Social Process
Delinquents tend to drift between crime and conventional action – choose the most expedient
Use techniques of neutralization to keep from being alienated from larger society
Violent Subcultures
Ferracuti and Wolfgang (1967)
Violence is a learned form of adaptation to problematic life circumstances
Learning to be violent takes place within the context of a subculture emphasizing violence over other forms of adaptation
For participants in violent subcultures, violence can be a way of life
Violent Subcultures
Southern subculture of violence
Southerner, violence and weaponry
Certain violent crimes may be more acceptable in the South than other parts of the US
Black subculture of violence
Created by generations of white-on-black violence
Seek status through ability to harm, intimidate, dominate others
Delinquent Subcultures
Criminal subcultures:
Criminal role models readily available
Conflict subcultures:
Status through violence
Retreatist subcultures:
Drug use and withdrawal from wider society
Types of lower Class Youth
Type I:
Desire entry into middle class by improving their economic position
Type II:
Desire entry to middle class but not improvement in economic position
Types of lower Class Youth
Type III:
Desire wealth without entry to middle class
Type IV:
Dropouts who retreat from mainstream through drug and alcohol use
