 | This article includes a list ofgeneral references, butit lacks sufficient correspondinginline citations. Please help toimprove this article byintroducing more precise citations.(September 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Criminology andpenology |
|---|
 |
Theory |
Largely based on the writings ofKarl Marx,conflict criminology holds that crime incapitalist societies cannot be adequately understood without a recognition that such societies are dominated by a wealthy elite whose continuing dominance requires the economic exploitation of others, and that the ideas, institutions and practices of such societies are designed and managed in order to ensure that such groups remain marginalised, oppressed and vulnerable. Members of marginalised and oppressed groups may sometimes turn to crime in order to gain the material wealth that apparently brings equality in capitalist societies, or simply in order to survive. Conflict criminology derives its name from the fact that theorists within the area believe that there is no consensualsocial contract between state and citizen.
Conflict theory assumes that every society is subjected to a process of continuous change and that this process createssocial conflicts. Hence, social change and social conflict are ubiquitous. Individuals andsocial classes, each with distinctive interests, represent the constituent elements of a society. As such, they are individually and collectively participants in this process but there is no guarantee that the interests of each class will coincide. Indeed, the lack of common ground is likely to bring them into conflict with each other. From time to time, each element's contribution may be positive or negative, constructive or destructive. To that extent, therefore, theprogress made by each society as a whole is limited by the acts and omissions of some of its members by others. This limitation may promote a struggle for greater progress but, if the less progressive group has access to the coercive power oflaw, it may entrenchinequality and oppress those deemed less equal. In turn, this inequality will become a significant source of conflict. The theory identifies the state and the law as instruments of oppression used by the ruling class for their own benefit.[1][full citation needed]
There are various strands of conflict theory, with many heavily critiquing the others. Structural Marxist criminology, which is essentially the most 'pure' version of the above, has been frequently accused ofidealism, and many critics point to the fact that theSoviet Union and such states had as high crime rates as the capitalist West. Furthermore, some highly capitalist states such asSwitzerland have very low crime rates, thus making structural theory seem improbable.
Instrumental Marxism partly holds to the above, but claims that capitalism in itself cannot be blamed for all crimes. A seminal book on the subject,The New Criminology, by Taylor, Walton, and Young, was considered groundbreaking and ahead of its time at the point of its publication in 1973. However, 11 years later, co-author Jock Young turned against the work, claiming it too was overly idealistic, and began to form yet another line of criminological thought, now commonly known asLeft realism.
Sellin was a sociologist at theUniversity of Pennsylvania and one of the pioneers of scientificcriminology. His method involved a comprehensive view of the subject, incorporatinghistorical,sociological,psychological, andlegal factors into the analysis. He applied both Marxism andConflict Theory to an examination of the cultural diversity of modernindustrial society. In a homogeneous society, norms or codes of behaviour will emerge and become laws where enforcement is necessary to preserve the unitary culture. But where separate cultures diverge from the mainstream, thoseminority groups will establish their own norms. Socialization will therefore be to the subgroup and to the mainstream norms. When laws are enacted, they will represent the norms, values and interests of the dominant cultural or ethnic group which may produce border culture conflict. When the two cultures interact and one seeks to extend its influence into the other, each side is likely to react protectively. If the balance of power is relatively equal, an accommodation will usually be reached. But if the distribution of power is unequal, the everyday behavior of the minority group may be defined as deviant. The morediversified and heterogeneous a society becomes, the greater the probability of more frequent conflict as subgroups who live by their own rules break the rules of other groups.
Vold introduced the theory in 1958,[2][full citation needed] in Theoretical Criminology, approaching an understanding of the social nature of crime as a product of the conflict between groups within the same culture. Humans arenaturally social beings, forming groups out of shared interests and needs. The interests and needs of groups interact and produce competition in an increasingly political arena over maintaining and/or expanding one group's position relative to others in the control of necessary resources (money, education, employment, etc.). The challenge for all groups is to control thestate for their own sectional interests. Hence, the group which proves most efficient in the control of political processes, obtains the mandate to enact laws that limit the behaviour of other groups and, in some cases, prevent the fulfillment of minority group needs. Although the theory has some interest, it is limited in its application to thecriminal law because it is not so much the law that represents sectional interests, but the way in which it is enforced. For example, the definition oftheft might remain constant but the allocation of resources to investigate and prosecute theft may be unequally distributed betweenblue-collar andwhite-collar versions of the behaviour.
Turk[3][full citation needed] draws on the work ofRalf Dahrendorf, who expanded on Marxism's emphasis on the social relations ofproduction as a key to understanding power and focused on the struggle in a modern industrial society for institutional authority. This is power exercised by thesocial institutions that dominate everyday life; the authority vested in groups which control key positions in religious, educational, governmental, and even family relations. This authority can be linked to economic position, but it is not necessarily dependent upon it. Turk argues that some conflict is beneficial to society because it encourages society to consider whether the current consensus is justified, i.e. there is a balance between stasis and evolution. In this debate, there is a distinction betweencultural norms which set out what behaviour is expected, andsocial norms which represent the reality of what happens. Those who have the power transform their cultural norms into law. The mechanisms for enforcement determine the social norms and so affect the beliefs and actions of the majority of citizens. If those who are subject to the laws agree with the law's cultural values, there will be co-operative enforcement by the community and thepolicing agencies. Conflict emerges when the subjects do not support the cultural norms in particular laws and the policing agencies attempt their rigorous enforcement, e.g. the policing of soft drugs. There may also be conflict within the enforcement system. Whereas the police may set of policy of tolerance, judges may wish to enforce the law with more severe penalties. If fewer offenders are brought before the courts, the judges may increase the severity of the sentences in an attempt to offer a generaldeterrent.