Sociology · May / June 2020 · Paper 21 · Question 3

0495

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Many people believe that stricter controls are needed in order to reduce the problem of crime in society. Different explanations have been offered for why crime occurs, ranging from inadequate 3 socialisation to relative deprivation. Some sociologists also think that the formal agencies of social control are unfair and do not treat everybody in the same way.

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3(a)[2]
What is meant by the term ‘relative deprivation’? One mark for partial definition, e.g. being poor. Two marks for clear definition, e.g. the feeling of having less than others in a society.
3(b)[4]
Describe two agencies of social control. Candidates will describe two different agencies of social control, these can be either formal or informal or a mixture of both. Possible answers:
the police – control through the power of arrest, surveillance and their presence;
the Government – control through the making and implementation and enforcement of the law;
the penal system – control through incarceration/prison, taking away freedom and choices;
the judiciary – control through sentencing, deciding if someone is guilty or innocent and, if guilty, how best to sentence them;
the family – control through sanctions, imitation, gender roles (canalisation etc.);
education and schools – control through negative and positive sanctions, the hidden curriculum etc.;
the workplace – control through promotion, dismissal, paying wages, re- socialisation;
the peer group – control through peers wanting to fit in, peer pressure, role models;
the media – control through representations and stereotypes, moral panics, imitation, agenda setting, norm referencing etc.;
religion – control through the ultimate sanctions of heaven and hell, dress codes, dietary requirements, prayer etc.;
other reasonable response. One mark for each point correctly identified (up to maximum of two). One mark for each point that is developed (up to a maximum of two).
3(c)[6]
Explain how Marxists view crime. Candidates should show an understanding of the Marxist view of crime. This can also include Left Realist explanations such as Lea and Young’s. Possible answers:
laws are made in the interests of the ruling class and criminalise the actions of the working class – this is why there are so many more working class criminals;
white-collar and corporate crime is hidden in the OCS as the agents of social control focus their attentions on the lower classes;
police, as agents of the state, target and arrest the working class far more than the ruling class meaning they are over-represented in the OCS and the prison population;
working class crime as an expression of resistance against the structural inequalities of society;
material deprivation – poverty leads to crime;
relative deprivation – in a consumer driven society material possessions become highly valued but not everyone can afford them, hence crime occurs;
status frustration, marginalisation and alienation – lower social classes and some ethnic minorities do not feel part of wider society so have no other outlet for their frustrations and anger than rioting, vandalism and crime;
Marxists believe that capitalism causes crime;
Marxists believe that the police operate a system of selective law enforcement through, for example, targeting particular social groups;
other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of Marxist explanations for crime and may talk about e.g. ‘some people in society are poor so they can’t get all the things they want and so turn to crime’. Responses may be short and un/under developed. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2-3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point, but there may be a tendency towards simplistic answers, engaging with sociological ideas without using sociological language. Band 2 [4–6 marks] A clear and accurate explanation, showing good sociological knowledge and understanding of Marxist explanations for crime. Sociological terms and concepts should be expected e.g. ‘Marxists believe the laws and the criminal justice system are made in favour of the ruling class. Thus the working classes are frequently targeted by the state agents, the police, and so are arrested and imprisoned more. This can often lead to frustrations and anger at the perceived unfairness and this can cause more crime to occur’. This would be followed by explanation of factors leading to this. At the bottom of the band, the range of points covered may be narrow or lack detail. Higher in the band, answers will cover more than one factor in a well-developed way or cover several factors in less detail.
3(d)[8]
Explain why prisons are thought to be an effective deterrent to crime. Candidates should show an understanding of a range of reasons why prisons are thought to be an effective deterrent to crime. Answers focusing on policing or non-custodial sentences should not be credited. Possible answers:
incapacitation – prison prevents the offender from committing more crime by locking them away, this deters people from crime;
prison is represented in the media as a violent, scary place and so this deters people from committing crime as they do not want to be sent here;
warning function – sending criminals to prison deters others in society from committing crime as it serves as a reminder of what could happen to them;
prison forces criminals to deal with the consequences of offending – there are now schemes of restorative justice as well as compulsory counselling and treatment programmes that prisoners have to attend. This acts as a deterrent to others;
prison uniforms are thought by many to act as a form of humiliation and thus as a deterrent to others to not commit crime – stripping away of an individual’s identity;
restrictions on everyday, taken for granted activities such as showering, seeing loved ones, exercise etc. are a deterrent as these are seen as basic human rights;
prisons act as a deterrent to crime as people do not want to get a criminal record – this can, for example, negatively affect job opportunities;
other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of why the penal system is an effective deterrent to crime. A tendency to description is likely. Responses may be short and undeveloped, e.g. ‘people are afraid to go to prison so they don’t commit crime’, stated without explanation. Sociological terms and concepts are unlikely to be used. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2-3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will show basic sociological knowledge and understanding of why the penal system is an effective deterrent to crime. Responses may be underdeveloped and lacking in range. e.g. ‘Prisons deter people from committing crime because they are represented in the media in a negative and scary way meaning people are afraid to go there and so conform to the law’ etc. At the bottom of the band, candidates are unlikely to use sociological terms and concepts accurately. Higher in the band, candidates may be beginning to use sociological terms and concepts with greater accuracy. However, some aspects of the answer may only be partially developed/explained. Band 3 [7–8 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding of why the penal system is an effective deterrent to crime and will be well developed and explained. e.g. ‘Prisons are thought to act as a warning function in society. This means that they are a constant reminder to others of what the consequences of committing crime are. Prisons are shown to be violent and intimidating and so most people are scared of the thought of them which means they act as an effective deterrent and promote societal conformity’. etc. They can then expand on the explanation of this and other factors as necessary. Sociological terms and concepts will be used accurately overall. Answers will be well focused on the question and there will be a range of reasons presented. At the top of the band explanations will be clear throughout.
3(e)[15]
To what extent are the formal agencies of social control racist? Candidates should consider the extent to which the formal agencies of social control may be racist. This may include consideration of the judiciary, the police and the prison system. They could talk generally about this topic or could focus more specifically on specific examples of racism. Local/culturally specific examples may be referred to and should be credited accordingly. Possible answers: FOR
arrest and stop and search rates for ethnic minorities are considerably higher than for the ethic majority e.g. 6 times higher for Afro-Caribbeans than whites in the UK;
Cicourel’s study shows that the police and courts have a picture in their heads of the ‘typical delinquent’ and this is linked to ethnicity;
the police, judiciary and other formal agents of social control are all dominated by the ethnic majority, this may lead to prejudice and discrimination against ethnic minorities;
the Metropolitan police in London were branded as institutionally racist by an independent report after the death of Stephen Lawrence, a black teenager;
ethnic minorities are over-represented in the prison system which may be a sign of the formal agents of social control being racist;
police labelling of ethnic minorities as criminals may lead to police targeting of areas dominated by ethnic minorities e.g. inner city gangs, this could be racist;
Hall et al ‘Policing the Crisis’ shows how young Afro-Caribbeans became stereotyped as muggers which led to police crackdowns on this social group following pressure from the Government;
research shows that members of ethnic minorities face more custodial sentences than the ethnic majority as well as receiving a longer prison term;
Islamaphobia has been blamed by many sociologists for the increases in targeting, arresting and sentencing of Asians in recent years;
other reasonable response. AGAINST
Marxists would claim that the formal agents of social control are more biased against those from the working class than ethnic minorities;
many sociologists believe that being young and male are greater ‘risk’ factors when it comes to unequal treatment by the formal agents of social control than ethnicity;
the Race Relations Act and other equal opportunities legislation means that everyone is very aware of the need to treat all ethnic groups fairly, thereby eliminating racism in the formal agents of social control;
there have been several active campaigns to increase numbers of ethnic minorities in positions of power in the formal agents of social control e.g. the police, in order to prevent future cases of racism;
racism is illegal and therefore the formal agents of social control would be subject to severe negative sanctions were they shown to be racist;
positive ethnic discrimination may take place which may lead to the more favourable treatment of ethnic minorities in the criminal justice system;
many sociologists believe that the reason there seems to be a disproportionate number of ethnic minorities involved with the formal agents of social control is because demographically they are a young population – something which is proven to be linked with higher levels of offending;
Marxist/Left Realist sociologists believe ethnic minorities may commit more crime than the ethnic majority due to material deprivation and marginalisation – this is not evidence of racist formal agents of social control;
New Right cultural explanations (Murray) that the formal agents are not racist but instead that some ethnic groups do commit more crime;
other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–4 marks] Answers in this band may be vague and largely based on common sense showing limited knowledge of the extent to which formal agents of social control are racist. Use of sociological terms or concepts is very unlikely. Responses may be short, undeveloped and one-sided. e.g.‘the formal agents may well be racist because there are a lot more ethnic minorities in prison than the ethnic majority’. Lower in the band (1-2 marks), expect one or two weak points. Higher in the band (3-4 marks) candidates may offer more than two points or provide a weak definition of key terms, e.g. the formal agents are the police, prisons and the courts. Band 2 [5–8 marks] In this band candidates will show some basic knowledge of the extent to which the formal agents of social control is racist. Alternatively, they may offer an answer which is list-like in nature but there will be no real attempt to assess the issues raised by the question. There may be limited/some use of sociological terms or concepts. Responses may be underdeveloped and lack range. Answers may be simplistic and two-sided responses are unlikely e.g ‘Media stereotypes of ethnic minorities as criminals may lead the police to believe that they are bad people and so arrest them more’ etc. Lower in the band, the response will be rather narrow in the points covered and there will be little development. Higher in the band, more points will be covered and there will be limited development of some points. Alternatively, a list-like answer with little development covering both sides of the argument may score up to 8 marks. A one-sided answer cannot score higher than 8 marks. Band 3 [9–12 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding of the extent to which the formal agents of social control are racist. Sociological terms and concepts will be used with greater accuracy and/or frequency. For the most part, answers will be well developed, focused on the question and there will be a range of points presented. Candidates may say that e.g. ‘despite there being much evidence to suggest racism in the formal agents of social control, it may be more accurate to consider the reasons why ethnic minorities do commit crime. The Marxists, for example talk about material deprivation and how this may lead some ethnic minorities to crime as they do not have legitimate means to succeed or gain status. The Left Realists similarly believe their higher rates of offending may be due to them feeling alienated from the host nation and not experiencing those bonds of attachment. It is thus the society itself that is racist, not the formal agents’. There will be a two-sided response but this may be unbalanced. At the bottom of the band, candidates may provide a narrower range of well-developed points. At the top of the band, expect a wider range of points and clear focus on the question. Band 4 [13–15 marks] Answers in this band will show excellent knowledge and understanding of the extent to which the formal agents of social control are racist. There will be a strong grasp of the argument as well as accurate and frequent use of sociological terms and concepts. Answers will be well developed, clearly focused on the question and discuss a wide range of points. Responses will be two-sided and balanced. At the bottom of the band (13 marks), the answer may lack a specific conclusion. Higher in the band, there will be a clear attempt to offer an assessment of the ‘To what extent.?’ part of the question through a focused conclusion. Candidates should show consideration of points for and against the idea of whether the formal agents of social control are racist, citing some of the examples given.

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