Crime & Deviance and Sociological Theory
Apply the theory to each statement

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Functionalist 7

Marxist 5

Subcultural 6

Interactionalist/labelling 6

Feminist 6

Right Realism 3

Left Realism 2

1. crime and deviance in Western society can only be understood in terms of capitalism and the class struggle

2. those who commit crimes share some values which are to some extent different from the main values of society as a whole

3. the label 'criminal' or 'deviant' can become the master status which overrides all other characteristics of that person

4. the law reflects the interests of the dominant class

5. the zone of transition is supposed to contain the highest amounts of deviant, criminal and delinquent activity

6. such writers question the thesis that poverty causes crime

7. committed by working-class people against other working-class people is viewed as a serious problem due to its real, symbolic and growing impact on in general and working-class communities in particular

8. the female criminal is seen as doubly deviant, both as criminal (as opposed to law-abiding) and unnatural (as opposed to the natural, mothering woman

9. the police and other agencies not only shift their priorities over time but also use their discretion to target specific groups

10. stereotypes of criminals and criminality guide police actions on a day-to-day basis and inform the definitions of criminal situations within which the police operate

11. a decline in family values, in particular a lack of sufficient discipline both inside and outside the home is a crucial factor explaining rising rates of crime

12. too little crime and deviance is unhealthy because it indicates that the values and norms are so strong that they prevent the innovation and change necessary for a healthy society

13. acts of delinquency can enable some working-class youths to gain a status in their peer groups which the wider society has denied them

14. suicide is a social instruction and so therefore are suicide statistics and suicide rates

15. serious questions have been raised regarding the alleged leniency and chivalry shown to female offenders

16. local surveys indicate that people see crime s a major problem and regard as a serious crimes which others may see as minor or trivial

17. degradation ceremonies such as criminal trials remind us of our shared norms and values

18. deviance means to stray from the norms and values of the ruling class

19. the task of the sociologist is to interpret how deaths come to be categorised as suicide

20. working class male adolescents evolve the delinquent gang solution as a means both to acquire n a more accessible form and to hit back at the system that has branded them a failure

21. an important factor in crime is the decline in civility and respect for authority in communities which are characterised by anomie and cultural disorganisation

22. social groups create deviance by making the rules whose infraction constitutes deviance and by applying those rules to particular people

23. the source of anomie for the working class is the contrast between the American dream and persistent economic inequality

24. the deviant is one to whom that label has been successfully applied; deviant behaviour is behaviour that people so label

25. studies of the victims of domestic violence have altered us to the fact that victimisation is often not a one-off incident but a habitual and pro-longed affair

26. the police and other agencies not only shift their priorities over time but also use their discretion to target specific groups

27. the law is enforced selectively and there is a systematic bias in favour of those at the top

28. youths who fit the stereotype tend to be arrested and charged while those who do not are, if arrested, typically counselled, cautioned and released

29. women and girls commit significantly fewer crimes and acts of delinquency than makes because they lack the means and opportunities

30. the four types of deviance are distinguished by their combination of either acceptance or rejection of the goal and the means for realising the goal

31. marriage and domesticity provide powerful controlling mechanisms to ensure the good behaviour of adult women

32. the immediate reaction needs to be located with the wider social system, with particular attention being paid to who has the  power to define certain activities as deviant

33. brought up frequently in female-based households where little reliance is placed on the stability and earning power of men male adolescents seek to demonstrate their masculinity in street corner gangs

34. A moral panic exists when a condition episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests

35. Gendered crimes are frequently invisible in the official crime statistics because they are characterised by a fear to report

36. no actions are by nature criminal or deviant; it depends on the norms of society and the reaction of members of society in different situations and contexts

37. humble objects such as bikes, clothes and make-up can be magically appropriate: carry secret meanings which express, in code, a form of resistance to the order which guarantees their continued subordination

38. the zone of transition is supposed to contain the highest amounts of deviant, criminal and delinquent activity 

39. Deviance - and especially delinquency - is the result of groups being excluded from the goals of society because of their position in the social structure, usually a class position

40. when the values or culture goals are internalised, many people fail to live up to them or achieve them. A dysfunction of this strain or tension is deviance

41. means to stray from the norms and values of the ruling class

42. stereotypes of criminals and criminality  guise police actions on a day-to-day basis and inform the definitions of criminal situations within which the police operate

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