1. Right & Left Realist: Explanations and Solutions
Realism
Right & Left Realist: Explanations and Solutions

2. EARLY APPROACHES RADICAL APPROACHES
DURKHEIM (1895) – Early functionalist view
BONGER (1916) –
Early Marxist View
EARLY APPROACHES
MERTON (1938) –
Strain Theory
SUBCULTURAL EXPLANATIONS ( )
BECKER, YOUNG etc. – Labelling Theory (1963/4)
STAN COHEN – Moral Panics (1973)
TAYLOR, WALTON & YOUNG – The New Criminology (1973)
RADICAL APPROACHES
CHAMBLISS, PEARCE etc. – New Marxist Views (1975-7)
RIGHT REALISM ( )
REALIST APPROACHES
LEFT REALISM ( )

3. Discuss
What does it mean to have “left wing” or “right wing” political views?
What do we mean by the ‘political spectrum’?

4. Life is about survival of the fittest.
The government shouldn’t tell consenting adults what they can do in bed!
Life is about survival of the fittest.
People shouldn’t have to pay taxes!
All people should be treated equally!
Private companies should run services, not the government.
Big businesses should be allowed to do what they want!
Healthcare should be free to everyone.
The benefits system is essential to help people who can’t help themselves...
The traditions of a society should be sacred.
We need to deal with climate change urgently!!!!!!

5. People shouldn’t have to pay taxes! LEFT
The government shouldn’t tell consenting adults what they can do in bed!
People shouldn’t have to pay taxes!
LEFT
The benefits system is essential to help people who can’t help themselves...
Life is about survival of the fittest.
On the left, are some key ‘left wing’ ideas. On the right, some key ‘right wing’ ideas. The more you hold on one side, the more ‘left’ or ‘right’ wing you are.
Big businesses should be allowed to do what they want!
Healthcare should be free to everyone.
The traditions of a society should be sacred.
We need to deal with climate change urgently!!!!!!
Private companies should run services, not the government.
All people should be treated equally!
RIGHT!

7. The Realist Perspectives
Rather than just theorizing on the explanations for crime and deviance, realists accept the reality of the situation and promote solutions...
...They do a bit of explaining too, but their explanations tend to be linked to firm solutions...
...Right and Left realism, linked to right and left politics, are often directly opposed. How a society tackles crime may be largely down to the political views of its government.

8. Right Realism Right Realism
Sometimes, you’ll hear this referred to as the “New Right” perspective. The “New Right” describes a combination of right-wing approaches. For the purpose of A Level Sociology, “New Right” and “Right Realism” are interchangeable.

9. The Core RIGHT WING VIEWS ON CRIME (What perspectives does right realism seem to be most influenced by?)
CONSENSUS
Society is based on common values and the law reflects these. All crime is therefore deviant.
2. NATURE
Human nature is naturally selfish and destructive. It needs to be regulated, otherwise there would be anomie.
3. RATIONAL CHOICE
Human beings make rational choices about how to behave and are aware of the consequences of their actions. Criminals choose to be criminals.
4. THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT
The job of government is not to change society, but to keep it stable. Therefore, the government should not tackle the causes of crime, but should focus on making life tough for those who choose crime.
5. THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY
Informal social controls from within the community are the best way to prevent crime. The bonds between people in a community need to be made stronger to keep crime down…

10. Causes of crime?
So, the right realists are not particularly interested in the causes of crime – they are more focused on dealing with criminals…
...But they do still have ways of explaining what does and does not cause crime, and we need to be aware of what they are.
In an exam question, you may be asked for EITHER Right Realist Explanations for Crime OR Right Realist Solutions to Crime

11. PAIRS
Rank the following in order of the extent to which they cause crime (biggest cause first):
Poverty
Greed
Poor upbringing by parents
Can’t be bothered to work
Led astray by peers
Drugs
Decline of traditional communities
Too few police officers
Other (please specify)

12. PAIRS
Rank the following in order of the extent to which you think they would be effective in limited crime (most effective first):
More Police
More spending on deprived areas
Harsher prison sentences
Better parenting
Punishing parents of young offenders
Government action to reduce poverty and inequality
Other (please specify)

13. Discuss
Revisit your lists: Which do you think are the Right Wing explanations and solutions? Why?
Keep your lists to hand: We can revisit them to check throughout this section…

14. No it doesn’t you lazy devil!
The New Right (played by Maggie Thatcher)
Normal Person (played by Keanu Reeves)
You know, I think poverty causes crime...
No it doesn’t you lazy devil!
What!? How do you know?
In the early ‘60s, the country was wealthy; individuals had more money than ever and there were lots of schemes to help the poor. Yet the crime rate rocketed!!!!
Oh.

15. The New Right: WHAT DOESN’T CAUSE CRIME
They reject any argument that links poverty and unemployment to crime...
...Although they do accept the statistics that claim crime is mostly committed by poor people, who are often unemployed and in poverty!?!

16. SO…WHAT DOES CAUSE CRIME?
The decline of traditional communities may be at the heart of it…
….but what has caused this decline?

17. The Welfare State Charles Murray, 1992
It encourages dependency and a lack of motivation that is handed down through generations. It creates an underclass.
The welfare state “saps moral fibre, erodes Christian ethics and threatens family values”.
Marsland (1992) agreed: The ‘nanny state’ removes individual choice and desire to work.

18. Discuss LAZINESS? IMMORALITY? SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES? SECULARISATION?
Why might Murray blame the welfare state for the following:
LAZINESS?
IMMORALITY?
SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES?
SECULARISATION?
POOR SOCIALISATION OF CHILDREN?

19. Murray... Welfare Crime Single parenting SINGLE-PARENTS CAUSE CRIME!!!
Lack of positive parental role models
children not socialised into values of hard work and responsibility
Crime
Psst...don’t tell anyone, but I left my wife and kids...

20. SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES
According to Murray, single-parent families have different values to married couples. In his book, Murray gives examples, such as:
Children of single-parent families have no set bedtime
They are allowed to play unsupervised in the street
They are left at home without adult supervision
They are allowed to get away with being physical and aggressive
Any thoughts?

21. Cultural Explanations for Crime
Blame a decline in ‘civility’ and respect for authority.
The rise of ‘fatherless families’, in which young males are denied an appropriate role model.
Decline in family values and lack of discipline both inside and outside of the home.

22. BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM?
Many from a New Right perspective, including Murray, believe that human nature is a key cause of crime.
Murray goes further, claiming that poor people are genetically different to wealthier people.
What are the implications of this view, for thinking about crime – and for societies as a whole?

23. Wilson: Individual Choice
Wilson (1975) believed that individuals choose to be criminals.
He said crime was a result of “wickedness”.
He claimed “the criminal engages in a rational calculation before engaging in crime” (cost/benefit analysis)
Wilson also accepted statistical data that criminals tended to be young males, so believed that any increase in this demographic would lead to an increase in crime.
Note: James Q. Wilson is often considered the originator of the Right Realist perspective.

25. Broken Windows (Wilson & Kelling; 1982)
“Have you ever wondered why you never see just one broken window?”
This has proved an influential Right Realist study and shows how crime
flourishes when social
control and
communities break
down.

29. An “incivility” or sign of deterioration appears in a community.
Normally, a community acts immediately to stamp out the problem. But if they don’t...
Offenders realise the community doesn’t do anything....so further incivility/deterioration occurs...
Residents withdraw further from the community; the community and control within it breaks down...
The area becomes a hotspot for more frequent and serious crime.
A Broken Windows Escalation Model.
Discuss: What could be done to stop this happening?

30. Broken Windows
So, the theory suggests that any form of low level disorder must be dealt with immediately to prevent the problem getting bigger and causing disruption to an area (Bottoms, 2012).
The longer something is left, the longer-term the effect on the area might be.
Research has not found any solid evidence of a long-term effect, or of an ‘escalation’. Wilson & Kellings may have underestimated the local response, or may have been incorrect in assuming one problem attracts another. However, the theory has been very influential…

31. Zero Tolerance
For many on the right, like Wilson, the job of the police is to maintain public order – at any cost. Even if it means the police themselves being able to ignore laws…
Right Realists promote this police strategy for managing crime.
It is often linked to Broken Windows Theory.
No offence, however minor, is tolerated.
Views about what is acceptable are therefore reshaped.
New York City, in which a zero tolerance policy transformed the city, is cited as an example of how successful it can be.

32. Situational Crime Prevention
These are strategies which seek to change environments in which crime can take place...
...The changes should increase the risk and difficulty to the offender, reduce any reward for committing the crime.
The costs of committing a crime in this place will outweigh the benefits.

33. New York City Toilets: A Situational Crime Prevention Example
Toilet Feature
Before the change
Links to Crime
After the change
Ceiling Panels
Removable
Attendants
None
Lighting
Fairly dim, regular light-bulb fittings
Walls
Normal brick and normal paint
Nooks
Lots
Sink size
Six users at a time
Copy & Complete, identifying changes that could be made to stamp out crime in public toilets!

34. How has SCP been used in these places...

35. Walklate (1996) Typology of Prevention Strategies
Offender-Centred (harsher sentences, treatment and rehabilitation)
Victim-Centred (advice to individuals via govt. literature and insurers regarding precautions that need taking)
Environment-Centred (target-hardening; CCTV)
Community-Centred (Neighbourhood Watch; involvement of schools and local businesses in tackling crime).

36. CCTV: Pairs
List all the places where you are aware of CCTV cameras in your local area...

37. CCTV: Discuss
Is someone less likely to commit a crime because they are aware they might be caught on film?
Does CCTV prevent crime, or displace it?
Is it really a solution to crime, considering that so much crime happens in private places?
Does it make us less afraid of crime?

38. What sort of freedoms are we giving up as CCTV expands?
CCTV: Discuss
What sort of freedoms are we giving up as CCTV expands?
Who should have the right to conduct surveillance – and how should they be monitored?

39. Criticisms of Right Realism
Many of the policies displace crime, rather than prevent it.
Greater surveillance reduces our privacy and our freedom.
Its policies focus on street crime, burglary etc. They ignore crime like domestic violence and corporate crime.
Places blame on victims!

40. Criticisms of Right Realism
The idea that some people are just born ‘wicked’ is dangerous...
Platt & Takagi (1977) point out that it completely ignores crimes of the rich and powerful. Its policies and theories are designed entirely to criminalise working-class people.
It assumes that crimes are calculated behaviours...but many crimes are done from passion, in the heat of the moment.

41. Complete
Right Realist Explanations
Right Realist Solutions

42. Taylor, Walton & Young (1973)
THE NEW CRIMINOLOGY
Taylor, Walton & Young (1973)

43. EARLY APPROACHES RADICAL APPROACHES
DURKHEIM (1895) – Early functionalist view
BONGER (1916) –
Early Marxist View
EARLY APPROACHES
MERTON (1938) –
Strain Theory
SUBCULTURAL EXPLANATIONS ( )
BECKER, YOUNG etc. – Labelling Theory (1963/4)
STAN COHEN – Moral Panics (1973)
TAYLOR, WALTON & YOUNG – The New Criminology (1973)
RADICAL APPROACHES
CHAMBLISS, PEARCE etc. – New Marxist Views (1975-7)
RIGHT REALISM ( )
REALIST APPROACHES
LEFT REALISM ( )

44. ORIGINS OF THE NEW CRIMINOLOGY
Taylor, Walton & Young had their roots in Interactionism and Marxism…
…But they felt neither of these perspectives could fully explain crime and deviance…
…They therefore combined them into a fully social theory of deviance.

45. The fully social model of deviance
There are seven elements which need to be considered in order to fully explain crime.
So, when a crime is committed, we need to understand…
(For each one, identify what it has either influenced, or been influenced by…)

46. 1. THE WIDER ORIGINS OF THE DEVIANT ACT
What else is happening in that society?
What are the social issues?
What are the political issues?
What is the state of the economy?

47. 2. Immediate origins of the deviant act
Why did this individual choose to commit the crime when other people in the same social situation did not? What is different about this person?

48. 3. THE ACTUAL ACT
Does the individual have the opportunity to commit the crime? Were the criminal options easily achievable?
Just choosing a criminal solution does not lead to a crime being committed. The individual has to have the ability and opportunity to carry out their deviant plans.

49. 4. Immediate origins of social reaction
How do the following react to the individual’s behaviour:
Witnesses?
People significant to the offender (e.g. family members, friends)?

50. 5. WIDER ORIGINS OF SOCIAL REACTION
What is the State’s response to this type of behaviour?
What are the responses of the following – and how are they influenced by the State:
Criminal Justice System?
Media?
Wider public?

51. 6. The outcome of social reaction on deviant’s further action…
What is the impact of social reaction?
Does the immediate and wider reaction to the behaviour/individual influence future behaviour?

52. 7. THE NATURE OF THE DEVIANT PROCESS AS A WHOLE…
Taylor, Walton & Young argue that not only do all the previous elements need to be considered – they also need to be considered in relation to one another…

53. MUGGING: GROUPS Consider one of the following cases we have studied:
‘Mugging’ in the 1970s
Mods & Rockers
Marijuana Use in the 1960s
Apply the elements of the
New Criminology to this issue as
a mind-map/poster.

54. THE END OF THE NEW CRIMINOLOGY
This theory was only briefly popular…the creators themselves moved away from it…
…Jock Young retained some of its key ideas, however, and went on to form a new perspective…

55. Left Realism
Left Realism

56. Marxists are too idealistic
Marxists are too idealistic...and they ignore that most victims of crime are poor...
Realistically, most people are more worried about street crime and burglary than they are corporate crime...
The Origins of
Left Realism.
Jock Young (along with John Lea & Roger Matthews) are considered the main founders of Left Realism.
The Right Wing are making things worse by over-dramatising the problem and distorting focus..
We have to develop realistic strategies to reduce the harm that crime does in the lives of the poor and powerless...

58. Left Realist Explanations
Accept poverty and unemployment as factors. Lea & Young (1984) point to “growing army of unemployed”, for whom collective violence and temporary control of territory is a reaction against political thinking of the time.
However, also accepted that the problem went beyond poverty.

59. Left RealisM: THREE Explanations
Note: Left Realists get most of their data on crime from victim studies.
RELATIVE DEPRIVATION
Crime is not caused by poverty itself, but by the resentment of the poor at how little their income matches their expectations (Lea & Young)
2.SUBCULTURE
Groups in society possess their own values, as a response to their own problems and priorities. These can conflict with one another (e.g. the police are a subculture, and working-class black youths are a subculture).
3. MARGINALISATION
Certain people find themselves – economically and politically – on the ‘edge’ of society. They are not listened to and have no power to influence society. The only way they can be heard is through protest and riot.

60. ABOUT RELATIVE DEPRIVATION
The term was derived from the work of Runciman (1966)...
“...Revolution can only occur when the poor became aware of the sheer scale of the differences between themselves and the rich...”
Note:The concept of relative deprivation can be identified in both Functionalist and Marxist theory (where?)

61. ‘The Square of Crime’: To understand and tackle crime, you need to understand how each corner of the square acts and reacts in the situation (and in regards to each other).
Decides what is/is not a crime and how to enforce it…
Relative deprivation, marginalisation, subculture…
React to crime in different ways…also can informally control crime (e.g. through family, peer group, community)
The victim usually decides whether or not a crime has taken place and then decides whether or not to report it…

62. In Small Groups, create a ‘Square of Crime’ poster showing how the framework can be applied to understanding drug crime. Use this guide if in doubt.
Ext: Are there any other areas that could/should be considered that aren’t included in the ‘square’?
Why do people take drugs?
Why do people turn to dealing drugs?
What are the attitudes to drugs by the government and the CJS? How are drugs policies enforced?
Square of Drug Crime
How do families, peers and communities react to drugs/drug problems? How are drugs dealt with by the media and how does this influence people?
Who are the victims of drug crimes? Who reports these crimes to the police?

63. The Role of the Police
Left Realists are critical of ‘zero tolerance’ measures, or of any measures that encourage the police to act in a more hostile or aggressive manner.
They believe Military policing only leads to mobilisation of bystanders

64. The Role of the Police
Left Realists want to rebuild trust between troubled communities and the police. They promote a police force who:
Are democratically controlled
Abandon ‘stop and search’ policies
Focus on racial attacks, domestic abuse and corporate crime
Consult with communities
Are approachable!
Discuss: Why would left realists believe it is important for the public to regain their trust in the police?

65. “…tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime…” – Tony Blair

66. Left Realist: Long Term Goals
Changes in the structure of society to promote social justice.
Removal or reduction of inequality.

67. Left Realist: Immediate Policies
Young & Matthews (1992)
Build strong communities and “not expect them to resemble the soap operas we watch” (Young; 1997).
Ensuring all sectors of society (e.g. Families, schools) – not just the police - join the fight against crime…
Work with victims to minimise suffering / Empower victims (e.g. restorative justice, victim statements)
Focusing on deprived, high-crime-rate areas…

68. Criticisms of Left Realism
Don’t spend enough time focusing on offenders...
Relative Deprivation is useful for explaining some crimes, but not others (e.g. rape, assault).
Focuses too much on street crime and almost completely ignores corporate crime...
Marxists accuse them of “selling out” (ignoring the true causes of crime and just dealing with the establishment’s view of crime...)

69. Complete
Left Realist Explanations
Left Realist Solutions

70. Written Task / homework
1500 Word Essay/Blog:
Compare and contrast Left & Right Realist approaches to crime. Which one do you think offers the clearest and most useful approach and why?