Sociology · May / June 2020 · Paper 22 · Question 3

0495

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The question as text

There are official and non-official statistics that measure the crime rate in a society. However, not all crimes are accurately represented in the statistics suggesting that some groups are less likely 3 than others to be prosecuted for their crimes. Some believe there is a need for more formal social control and harsher punishments to deal with the high levels of offending.

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3(a)[2]
What is meant by the term ‘formal social control’? One mark for partial definition, e.g. the police. Two marks for clear definition, e.g. formal social control is the ways the Government or its agencies get people to conform to the law.
3(b)[4]
Describe two punishments for crime. Candidates will describe two different punishments for crime – these could be formal or informal. Possible answers:
a prison sentence – takes away a person’s freedom;
the death sentence – for the most serious crimes the punishment may be death;
corporal punishment – some societies punish criminals physically e.g. with lashes;
community sentencing – non-custodial sentences that help the community in some way;
exile or ostracism – the offender has to leave or is excluded from their community;
tagging – electronic tags can be used to monitor a person’s behaviour and whereabouts;
fine – a monetary sanction designed to punish offenders financially;
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 poverty can be linked to crime. Candidates should show an understanding of how poverty can be linked to crime. Specific examples may be referred to as may the Marxist view. Possible answers:
relative deprivation – when individuals see themselves as deprived in relation to others crime may occur (Merton strain theory);
marginalisation – when groups have no organisations to represent and protect their interests therefore may turn to crime to vent their frustrations and anger at society (Lea and Young);
in countries with no/inadequate welfare systems, crime may be the only way to survive;
Cloward and Ohlin believed that in deprived and poor communities individuals engaged in criminal or deviant behaviour to be part of the illegitimate opportunity structure when mainstream society offered them few possibilities for legitimate success;
poorer people are more likely to be labelled as criminal and are thus targeted more by the formal agents e.g. stop and search/arrest rates;
deviant careers – the effects of public labelling can devastate a person and give them little choice but to adopt a life of crime;
Cohen – status frustration – poorer people may find it difficult to achieve status in legitimate means in society and so may turn to crime for this instead;
Marxists believe that capitalism causes crime as it creates an unequal society that keeps poor people poor and rich people rich and sees a growing gap in inequalities;
the media often turn the poor into folk devils and blame them for criminal activities in society;
individuals may turn to crime in response to these negative labels;
the underclass – Charles Murray – are said to have a distinct set of deviant values which can be linked to criminality;
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 how poverty can be linked to crime and may talk about e.g. ‘many poorer people may commit crime as a way to get desirable items in society’. 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 how poverty can be linked to crime and deviance. Sociological terms and concepts should be expected e.g. ‘The media create folk devils from poor people and the underclass in society who are blamed for certain crimes e.g. inner-city riots. This can lead to the group or individual feeling status frustration and therefore turning to crime as a response. They self-fulfil their negative label which further links poverty to crime’. 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 white-collar crime is under-reported and under-recorded in the official crime statistics. Candidates should show an understanding of a range of reasons why white- collar crime is under-reported and under-recorded in the OCS. Candidates do not need to discuss both under-reporting and under-recording separately to score the marks. WHITE-COLLAR CRIME – non-violent crime committed by middle class people for financial gain e.g. fraud, embezzlement. Possible answers:
not reported – as white-collar crimes are financial rather than physical people are not always aware that they have been a victim;
not reported – some people may feel that reporting a white-collar crime is a waste of time as nothing can be done about it;
not reported – sometimes white-collar crimes may not be reported because the victim may be part of the organisation that has committed the crime and does not want to get into trouble themselves;
white collar crimes are sometimes not seen to be as important as other types of crime hence why they are not always reported and not always recorded;
not recorded – the police may feel there is little chance of a prosecution due to a lack of evidence;
the police may take bribes from the offending company/individual which leads to under-recording;
Marxists believe that the police work for the state and therefore are reluctant to record white-collar crimes as they are part of this same exploitative elite leading to under-recording;
police may not record white-collar crimes because they are dealt with internally by the company involved;
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 white-collar crime is under-reported and under-recorded in the OCS. A tendency to description is likely. Responses may be short and undeveloped, e.g. ‘police officers take bribes from wealthy business men’ 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 white-collar crime is under-reported and under-recorded in the OCS. Responses may be underdeveloped and lacking in range. e.g. ‘white-collar crime is financial and so does not cause any physical harm to people which makes it harder to spot. Many people don’t know they have been a victim of this kind of crime and so that is why it doesn’t get reported’ 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 white-collar crime is under-reported ad under-recorded in the OCS and will be well developed and explained. e.g. ‘under-reported and under-recorded crime is known as the dark figure. There is a large dark figure of white-collar crime because many people are not aware that they have been a victim of this kind of invisible crime. The police may also not record these crimes very often as often other companies deal with the offence instead e.g. credit card companies, financial institutions. They do not want the crimes to be public knowledge and cause a moral panic and so these are often kept hidden’ 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 self-report studies the most accurate measurement of crime? Candidates should consider the ways in which self-report studies could be the most accurate measurement of crime. Local/culturally specific examples may be referred to. In evaluation the issues with self-report studies could be considered and/or the advantages of victim surveys and official statistics as better measurements of crime. Possible answers: FOR
official measures of crime such as statistics contain a huge dark figure and therefore unofficial methods like self report studies are a better measure of crime as the dark figure is uncovered;
self-report studies ask people anonymously whether they have committed a crime thus revealing a better, more valid picture of crime than the official one as non-convicted criminals are also included;
criminals may be more likely to talk about their offending to a researcher using a self-report study than a formal agent like the police as they know there are no repercussions and so feel more comfortable;
self-report studies are confidential therefore people may reveal crimes they have committed that they would not have otherwise admitted to;
self-report studies question who they ‘typical offender’ really is – they show, for example, that significant amounts of crime are committed by the middle class and women which challenges the accuracy of official measures of crime;
lots of data both qualitative and quantitative and can be gathered quickly and cheaply from different groups and large samples by using a self- report study;
other reasonable response. AGAINST
self-report studies may not include valid information as they are reliant on individuals admitting to crimes that they have committed;
self-report studies can be criticised for a lack of representativeness as they are often carried out with young people – serious and white-collar crimes may therefore be omitted;
official statistics are collected by official agencies and thus are more credible and trustworthy;
official statistics show police counts of the total numbers of charges for different types of offences;
official statistics show court records of the total number of convictions for different crimes;
official statistics reveal patterns and trends in the social characteristics of offenders;
official statistics are collected and published annually therefore always show an up-to-date picture of crime;
official statistics allow for comparisons to be made e.g. between different areas, genders etc;
many non-official measurements of crime such as self-report studies do not include victimless crimes such as drug use and therefore provide an incomplete picture of crime;
non-official measurements of crime such as self-report studies rely on the criminal or victim’s memory for its information and this may not be true – people forget things, exaggerate etc;
local victim surveys take an in-depth look at the experiences of victims which self-report studies do not, building up trust and so may get people to open up about what has happened to them e.g. feminist VS’s and sexual crime;
victim surveys may be more accurate than self-report studies as non- official ways of measuring crime as they ask the victims rather than the offenders who are more likely to tell the truth;
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 self-report studies are the most accurate way of measuring crime. Use of sociological terms or concepts is very unlikely. Responses may be short, undeveloped and one- sided. e.g. 'they find out about crimes the police don't know about'. 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. self-report studies ask people what crimes they have committed. in the question. Band 2 [5–8 marks] In this band candidates will show some basic knowledge of the extent to which self-report studies are the most accurate way of measuring crime. 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. Not everyone reports a crime committed against them to the police so unofficial measures of crime like self-report studies are a good way to find out about these unknown crimes’ 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 self-report studies are the most accurate way of measuring crime. 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 the OCS being recognised as the most easily accessible and generalisable source of information on crime in most societies, self-report studies are thought by many sociologists to produce a far more valid picture due to their uncovering of the dark figure of crime. They are both confidential and anonymous which means offenders are likely to be honest in their answers. It is from these sources that our understanding of who he typical criminal is in society has been challenged. Self-report studies reveal, for example, the large amount of crime committed by women and the middle classes.’. 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 self-report studies are the most accurate measurement of crime. 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 the usefulness of self-report studies as a measure of crime, citing some of the examples given.

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