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Nexus between poverty and criminality
The Nexus between poverty and criminality
The Nexus between poverty and criminality
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One problem with sociology is it can often disregard its relation to psychology. In respect to crime, sociology explains that when communities become economically disadvantaged, rising crime rates are likely to follow. Other characteristics that
The youth that experience some type of abuse, poverty, neglect will engage in some type of criminal
According to Felson and Cohen the reason for the increase is that prosperity of contemporary society offers more opportunities for criminal behaviors to occur. According to this theorectical perspective, there are three main elements nessary for a crime to occur. Motivated offenders mustcome in contact with suitable targets in the absence of capable guradians. These three elements must converge in time and space for a crime to occur. This theory gives off a macro perspective on crime in that it predicts how changes in social and economic conditions influence the overall crime and victimization rate.
As such, reduction of crime to zero levels would trigger massive job losses. Another widely-held view of the root of crime is the breakdown of the family institution, inadequacies in the political, educational, and economic institutions as well as weakening religious beliefs. Crime is thus likely to occur in a society with weak social ties and absence of social control since people who grow up in places characterized with drug use, violence, and deprived parenting are more likely to take to criminal activities later in life than those that enjoy good schooling system and family life. Therefore, no one is born a criminal, but adopts the behavior as they grow up depending on their broader social
The underlying causes, ideology, and history surrounding crime and social classes lie within social constructs in society that deliberately deny people freedom and liberty for the privilege of others. The law defines what actions are harmful and this gives direction to the powers created that make the judicial system function. Therefore law and order can be used as an oppressive mechanism employed to protect privilege of other unequally or it can be the call of conscience reminding us that we should establish equality for everyone. One of the concepts that intersect in all of crime is social class along with others like race, gender, age, etc. One prevailing ideology of the 20th century was Marxism which asserted that all of human history
Social Structure theory is defined as a theory that explains crime by reference to the economic and social arrangements in society. This theory emphasizes relationships among social institutions and describes the types of behavior that tends to characterize groups of people rather than individuals (pg 151). Society structure and its relative degree of organization disorganization are important factors contributing to the prevalence of criminal behavior. Specific behaviors of single individual can be predicted but statistical group characteristics give probability that the same individuals will engage in those same specific crimes.
In the future they either become violent or victims of violent crimes. In addition to social factors there are three prominent views on delinquency. The first is social disorganization, economically deprived areas have really high delinquency rates. These areas are filled with delinquent gangs and groups. Cultural transmission is
Social structure theories emphasize poverty, lack of education, absence of marketable skills, and subcultural values as fundamental causes of crime. Three subtypes of social structure theories can be identified: social disorganization theory, strain theory, and culture conflict theory. Social disorganization theory encompasses the notion of social pathology, which sees society as a kind of organism and crime and deviance as a kind of disease or social pathology. Theories of social disorganization are often associated with the perspective of social ecology and with the Chicago School of criminology, which developed during the 1920s and 1930s. Strain theory points to a lack of fit between socially approved success goals and the availability
It might be to do with the fact that they could come from a broken home, they could’ve been abused, they live in poverty, or the lack of parental control. I believe to a certain extent that the individuals background plays a part in why young people commit crime, although I feel it is a way of them expressing themselves to get noticed, for example if a young lad has come from a council estate and committed a few petty crimes and went to prison his peers would then respect him and his street cred would go up this is also known as hyper masculinity. I would also argue to the point in which it may not always the background as you could have somebody who came from an upper class background, went to school and done well then go downhill from college by mixing in with the wrong crowd and getting up to stuff which they wouldn’t of thought about doing before. This links into Robert K. Merton’s “Strain theory”, this specific theory was built around the “American dream”. I feel that this theory fits in with Antisocial behaviour as there are 5 different types of deviance, which are conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism and rebellion, It also proposes that people commit crime to fit in, there are many different barriers which the individual will have to over come in order to feel that they fit
“Living in the streets, people are exposed to more crime, violence, and bad weather, including extreme heat” (Lopez). People without homes are also more vulnerable to physical assault or theft. They have no shelter which causes them to become an easy target when it comes to violence. Homeless individuals commonly face harassment, violence, or mistreatment from others. Frequently, individuals experiencing homelessness are also facing financial instability.
People see crime as an individual problem and not one that involves the entire community; however, according to Natalie Boyd, a teacher with a PhD in psychology, the sociological theory of criminology believes that people become a criminal by the influence of their surroundings. The theory states that people are not born with an evil gene in their body, but from the environment they live in. There are three sociological theories of crime causation: strain, social learning, and control (Boyd). Each of the theories is different in account of what they focus on. It could either be the different features in the environment, different accounts of why the environment can cause crime and explaining the differences in individual crime and group crime
But whether the fact if growing up in poverty results in a life of crime and violence is unclear. Crime exist everywhere whether it’s an area with low or high socioeconomic status. However, it presence is stronger in some come communities. Crimes affecting low socioeconomic communities are commonly carried out by an individual in a attempt to obtain resources or material good that they would not be able to acquire due to lack of funds or opportunities. Other factors that may be the reason for lack of crime in high socioeconomic communities may be a higher availability for assistance programs, recreational facilities, affordable education, and an increase in job opportunities.
Firstly, social disorganization theory can be used to explain why poor communities experience high levels of crime rates. These theorists argue that the key to maintaining social order in a neighbourhood is to have effective social control institutions,
Poverty’s effects on crime can be explained through a variety of reasons. There is a higher rate of mental illness among the poor than the rich. Poverty can lead to high levels of stress, which in turn drive individuals to commit theft, robbery or other violent acts. Moreover, poverty may lead to actual or perceived inferior education. Youth with less access to quality schools, jobs, and role models and opportunities end up spending time on the streets associating with gangs.
