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Violence, Crime and Criminal Justice Michael Itagaki Sociology 102
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Violence in the Sociological Perspective Violence Use of force to injure people or destroy their property Social context Sociological question of violence What is it about a society that increases or decreases the likelihood of violence?
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Violence in the Sociological Perspective Types of Violence Individual (personal) violence
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Violence in the Sociological Perspective Types of Violence Group (collective) violence Situational group violence
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Violence in the Sociological Perspective Types of Violence Group (collective) violence Organized group violence
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Violence in the Sociological Perspective Types of Violence Group (collective) violence Institutionalized group violence
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The Scope of the Problem Violence A personal or social problem? Must be a widespread subjective concern to be a social problem.
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What is a Social Problem? Review: Something in society that concerns people to the point they would like to change it. Social problems are relative Social problems are dynamic
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The Scope of the Problem Violence A personal or social problem? Must be a widespread subjective concern to be a social problem. Subjective concerns about violence Amount of violence (objective condition) leads to subjective concerns Fear of violence
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Figure 5.1a (p. 129) “ Is there any area right around here—that is, within a mile—where you would be afraid to walk alone a night?”
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The Scope of the Problem Subjective concerns about violence Amount of violence (objective condition) leads to subjective concerns Fear of violence Objective conditions about violence Crimes of violence have decreased Still a lot of violent crime
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Figure 5.2 (p. 131) The Rate of Violence Source: Various editions of FBI Uniform Crime Reports, including 1997, 2001, and 2003.
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Figure 5.1 (p. 130) The Clock of Violence These totals are U.S. national averages. Crimes do not occur with this regularity. As the text indicates, crimes vary by time of day and by seasons. The FBI also counts armed robbery as a violent crime, whether or not anyone is hurt during the crime. Armed robberies, occurring on average every 1.2 minutes, are included in the total. Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 2002.
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The Scope of the Problem Subjective concerns about violence Objective conditions about violence Violence varies with social location Race: African American males seven times more likely than white males to be murdered Country you live in
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Theories of Violence— Nonsociological Theories Frustration-Aggression (Dollard) Violence built into our nature Frustration, when strive for a goal but can’t reach it Relieve frustration by striking out at others
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Theories of Violence— Nonsociological Theories Learning (Skinner) If rewarded for violence, person will be violent again Rewards vary Modeling (Bandura & Walters) Copying another’s behavior Experiment of children hitting dolls
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Theories of Violence/Crime— Differential Association Differential Association Edwin Sutherland Deviate or conform to norms because of different groups we associate with Deviance/crime is learned
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Theories of Violence/Crime— Differential Association Differential Association (Sutherland) Violent behavior is learned Associations with significant others… who define some behavior favorably The frequency of associations The duration of associations.
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Theories of Violence/Crime: Functionalism Functionalism and Durkheim Crime is normal (normal violence) Crime is an integral part of healthy societies.
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Theories of Violence/Crime: Functionalism Social Control Theory (Reckless, Hirschi) Inner controls Outer controls Stronger bonds with society, more effective inner controls.
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Theories of Violence/Crime: Functionalism Merton’s Strain Theory (anomie) Cultural goals Institutionalized means What happens when goals… through approved means? Strain between goals and means
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Theories of Violence/Crime: Conflict Theory Conflict Theory Violence is inherent in society Class opression leads to violence Capitalist class vs. working class violence
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Research Findings: Rape The social patterns of rape 72,000 U.S. women forcibly raped each year (FBI, 2003) Actual total is three times higher: 200,000 as only 32% of rapes get reported More likely an acquaintance vs. a stranger
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Research Findings: Rape The social patterns of rape More likely to occur during the summer than winter Victim: Ages 16 to 19 Four of five rapists use no weapon
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Research Findings: Rape The social patterns of rape Social location
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Figure 5.4 (p. 141) Social Map: How Safe Is Your State? Rape in the United States Source: By the author, based on Statistical Abstract 2003: Table 307.
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Research Findings: Rape The social patterns of rape Social location Rapists almost exclusively male: young males Race element Theoretical explanations? (Conflict? Functionalism/Strain?)
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger
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Table 5.4 (p. 149) How Are Murder Victims Related to Their Killers?
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill
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Figure 5.6 (p. 149) Killers and Their Victims Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 2.8.
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill Race element
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Table 5.5 (p. 150) Race-Ethnicity of Killers and Their Victims
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill Race element Weapon of choice: Guns
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Figure 5.7 (p. 151) America's Choice of Murder Weapons Source: By the author, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 2.10.
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill Race element Weapon of choice: Guns Nights, summers, weekends most dangerous for murders
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Figure 5.8 (p. 151) The "Where" of Murder Source: By the author, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 5.
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Research Findings: Murder The social patterns of murder Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill Race element Weapon of choice: Guns Nights, summers, weekends most dangerous for murders Cities more dangerous than country
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Table 5.6 (p. 152) Murder: The Ten Safest and Most Dangerous U.S. Cities
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Research Findings: Murder Social bases for social patterns of murder Why aquaintances? Why is poverty a factor? Is there cultural meaning in murder/violence?
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Social Policy Preventing violence Longer prison terms Gun control Culture of violence? How is violence normalized in our culture?
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Future of the Problem Continuing High Rates of Violence Theoretical perspectives: Conflict Theory Functionalism Symbolic Interaction To reduce violence, major structural changes are needed Reduction of inequalities in society
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Bowling for Columbine (2002) Look for social problems discussed in the film Identify objective conditions Identify subjective concerns Think about how Moore views those social problems What theoretical perspective fits those views?
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Bowling for Columbine (2002) Theoretical Perspectives: Conflict Theory Functionalism Symbolic Interaction Differential Association Strain Theory Social Control Theory
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