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Criminological Theory - Left Realism
Criminological Theory (m900)
University of the West of England
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Left Realism 24.
LR identified three key problems with Marxist criminology:
- Marxists perspective gives us only one solution to the problem of law and order. That is; getting rid of capitalism and replacing it with socialism. It has a all or nothing approach. Getting rid of capitalism doesn’t offer practical reform to improve the crime problem.
- Romanization of working class deviance. Therefore neglected the victims of crime. Law breakers as victims of capitalism Only victims were those who committed crime not those affected.
- Blame state and CJS for the crime problem (Taken from LT) Official statistics show that there was a massive increase in the crime rate in the UK/US in the 60/70/80s. Crime appeared to radically increase in that period. Minimise importance of that crime increase – crime was distorted by the police. Data explosion not crime explosion. LR disagree, some of this increase is real. Marx/LT Underestimates problem of crime, focusses too much on CJS and media on distortion of crime.
Marxism and LT are left idealism in contrast to LR.
LR defines its role by two political agendas:
- REFORM CJS
Criminology should be part of a movement, a movement to reform the criminal justice
system.
This is the result of wrong police tactics: they have become highly militarised (the rise of
militarised policing)
Only 12% of stop and searches 05-06 resulted in an arrest – that was a good year. (Ministiry
of Justice, 2007:25)
Alienates people who live in the slums, this makes policing more difficult.
Local residents will respond to this by not cooperating with the police. If the police are going
to be effective they rely on people cooperating. Lower clear up rates.
What can be done:
- Police should shift to minimal consensus policing – police should respond differently, in response to what local residents actually want. And abandon stop and search (borderline illegal)
- CAMPAIGN FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE Criminologists should campaign to make the police more accountable to the wishes of local communities. Making these reforms will make the police more efficient – this is because the flow of information from the police/public will be restored.
Only if social inequalities are reduced will crime be brought under control. LR recommends measure that would help bring about greater social justice and greater equality of opportunity in society.
- Improves leisure facilities
- Tax and welfare system
Basic Theoretical Agenda of LR
- Focus of street crime
Radical criminologists pay too much attention to crimes of the rich and powerful and don’t pay enough attention to street crimes.
Street crime tends to victimise the poor - don’t have the money to cope with the loses (home insurance etc) Street crime has no rational economic motive: Sexual harassment, hate crime etc. These aren’t reactions to injustice or disadvantage or correcting injustice. These are form of criminality that increase disadvantage and lead to oppression of the oppressed.
- Multi-causal explanation of crime
LR rejects the idea that poverty (material deprivation) are directly responsible for crime (marx would want to claim) If poverty and unemployment is a cause of crime then crime must have been a bigger problem in the great depression (1930s). Yet the reverse is true, crime was far higher in 50/60s than 30s. Young has recently made the point that crime rates have gotten higher since post war period. Crime problem only begins with the affluent consumer society (after WW2)
Three Major Causes of Crime
- Relative Deprivation Cause by feelings or a sense of injustice. Crime rates remain low in 30s – because people didn’t see themselves as unjustly deprived. People expected to live lives of hardship. Only when the connection between hardship and injustice do they then experience frustration and sense of discontent that will lead them into crime and deviance. Crime results from relative deprivation. (business man may resent unemployed etc) Cause of RD is a culture which has come into being in post war society.
A consumer culture – people have high expectations. people expect to be prosperous. Caught up in the race to acquire wealth. Growth of the civil rights movement taught us that all forms of inequality are unjust and oppressive. Expect to have the same opportunities because we live in a rights culture.
Crime a result of consumer driven expectations. Those who can’t acquire status and wealth in society will experience injustices of inequality. Crime is cause by RD, and RD is caused by consumer society where everyone expects equality.
- Marginalisation social exclusion: people who are denied the opportunity for economic success. Make up an underclass – suffering from stigmatisation and experience a sense of RD. This class of marginalised group lack policies organisation to empower themselves to change through legit means. Marginalised are prone to street crime (economic) rioting (political protest) LR don’t believe marginalisation leads directly to crime:
Criminological Theory - Left Realism
Module: Criminological Theory (m900)
University: University of the West of England
