What arguments have been put forward to explain the relatively low crime rates of some societies?
What arguments have been put forward to explain the relatively low crime rates of some societies?
This essay will critically contrast factors that contribute to producing 'low crime' societies such as Switzerland, and to compare this with Japan, which is also known to be a relatively low crime society, and explore what it is that makes some societies particularly low in crime. Necessary comparisons will be made with some 'high crime' societies in order to demonstrate and try to explain why it is that crime rates are so different. The type of crime being referred to in this essay will be mostly those 'minor' types of crimes such as graffiti, vandalism, minor assaults or muggings on the streets. The difference in cultures between different countries is probably what makes the difference in the way the people in their societies behave, and as a result, different levels and types of crimes that occur.
Switzerland is well known for its low crime society. Clinard (1978) highlights some of the main factors that could explain why Switzerland has such an apparently low crime rate. Firstly, Switzerland is an economically strong country. Swiss people have a very strong work ethic and a high standard of living. Unemployment is low as a result of this strong money making ethic present in Swiss culture, and because of this, the more conventional types of crime such as theft, robbery and burglary are rare occurrences.
Switzerland's capital city Geneva is relatively small, compared with the cities of New York and London, both of which have comparatively high crime rates. There are no 'slums' in Switzerland, as typically associated with the 'inner city'. Clinard (1978) proposed that this slower process of urbanization could contribute to its low crime rates. At the risk of generalizing and stereotyping, generally, lower classes make up a large proportion of conventional crime, because in the inner city are concentrated the worst housing, highest unemployment, the greatest number of poorer people and consequently the highest crime rates (Heidensohn 1989). This has been backed up by Lord Scarman who suggested that poor housing and poor location and environment were the main social conditions that led to the Brixton riots in London (Scarman 1981), representing the typical culture of meaningless, violent street crime.
Switzerland also demonstrates norms and values that result in strong communities and relationships, and a shared sense of identity, similar values and relationships of trust. By devoting power and resources to members of the community, responsibility is allocated to the community as well as the police, in order to promote a united community and to help tackling issues relating to crime (Clinard 1978). In other words, local communities have a part to play in preventing and controlling crime in their area, alongside police, and it seems this is having an impact on keeping crime down in Switzerland.
One major contribution to Switzerland's low crime rate is thought to be the generally conservative and patriarchal, orderly and well-regulated Swiss society. For example, all young men are required to undertake militia service. This is said to divert their energies and train them in responsibility, including exercise and fitness, obedience, shooting and personal confidence and responsibility. Militia service has been thought to be a factor in avoiding the alienation and segregation of young people from the rest of society (Clinard 1978).
In most countries, it is young people who tend to commit a large proportion of conventional crime. However, in Switzerland, offenders are older in general. Because young people do not proportionally engage in crime in Switzerland, the overall crime percentage is reduced (Clinard 1978). This is where labeling theory is relevant. Labeling has been a particular problem in the UK where it seems that as soon as a young person is labeled as 'bad' then they seem to conform to the label that they have been given (Schur 1971). Because Swiss youth are not alienated they are not ...
This is a preview of the whole essay
In most countries, it is young people who tend to commit a large proportion of conventional crime. However, in Switzerland, offenders are older in general. Because young people do not proportionally engage in crime in Switzerland, the overall crime percentage is reduced (Clinard 1978). This is where labeling theory is relevant. Labeling has been a particular problem in the UK where it seems that as soon as a young person is labeled as 'bad' then they seem to conform to the label that they have been given (Schur 1971). Because Swiss youth are not alienated they are not labeled like they are in other countries where they are labelled as 'yobs' or 'hoodies' or 'troublemakers'. They are seen and treated as an equal part of society to adults, and it could be this equality that means they do not have a label, or a stereotyped way in which to behave, resulting in them behaving in a more mature manner, and do no resort to petty crime to fill their time.
If a more minor type of crime is committed on the streets of Switzerland such as graffiti or vandalism for example, offenders are seldom arrested. The normal procedure is that a citation is given instead, which is basically similar to a warning issued by police in the UK. Prison populations have never been large, and it is possibly because of the low rates of arrests made out on the streets, for those more 'tolerable' offences. Most convictions are suspended and prison sentences are generally shorter in duration than other countries. Even though Swiss prisons are typically smaller, less crowded, with better regimes, more widespread and more effective education and training provision, low security risks, and informal atmosphere, they still experience fairly high recidivism rates after prison (50-70%), which is similar to other countries (Clinard 1978). However, this can be accounted for by the fact that the Swiss tend to send offenders to prison later in their criminal 'careers', so by the time offenders reach prison in Switzerland they tend to already be persistent offenders, with a significant criminal record, and are very unlikely to be reformed (Clinard 1978). In other words, Switzerland's generally more tolerant and creative Criminal Justice system could be another reason why crime rates are apparently so much lower than other western countries.
There is no real youth gang culture apparent in Switzerland, but a growing alternative youth 'protest' movement. Attention has been drawn to Swiss youth and 'drug culture', perhaps because this in the only area of society where there is a 'problem' that is visible to society. Drugs were seen as a resistance to the conservative, conformist culture of adult society, but not a crime problem. Young peoples opinions were that it would be unacceptable to steal from someone, as this would cause them harm, but they believe "the use of drugs is a personal decision" (Clinard 1978: 45). There is a noticeable absence of public vandalism in Switzerland, which leads to Kelling and Wilson's (1982) constructed theory of 'broken windows'. Their idea was that minor incivilities such as drunkenness, begging, vandalism, disorderly behaviour, graffiti and litter, if left unchecked and uncontrolled, produce an atmosphere in the community or on a street in which more serious crime will flourish (cited in Dennis et al 1997). This is where the theory of 'zero tolerance' stems from, which is adopted in cities such as New York, and increasingly around the UK (Croall 1998). On the other hand, 'problem orientated' policing is where the police use a variety of tactics to achieve their objectives, such as working with the local community and agencies, seeking the underlying causes of problems and trying to solve them for the longer term, rather than dealing with symptoms for a quick short term fix, as implied with a zero tolerance ethic (Dennis et al 1997). This is the style of policing most similar to that adopted by the Swiss police, therefore it could be suggested that Switzerland's low crime society could be because of this style of policing, and the way people are dealt with in the Criminal Justice system, as it is a very different method to those used in 'high crime' societies, which generally tend to adopt the zero tolerance approach.
The Swiss are known to be more tolerant of certain crimes and there are always different ways of interpreting crime statistics, even with the best intentions (Clinard 1978). Because crime has not been seen as a major problem in Switzerland, there has been very little scrutiny of Swiss crime trends. This could have had a major affect on the general perception of crime in Switzerland. One explanation is that crime is actually lower than in other countries, and that Swiss society is more conformist and less inclined to criminal behaviour. In contrast, it could also be that the reason for the apparently low crime in Switzerland is due to 'hidden' crimes such as white collar crime, and that in Switzerland, people expect a certain amount of deception and exploitation. In contrast to 'ordinary crime', crime in business and finance appears to be extensive. Making money is highly esteemed but stealing it directly remains much disapproved of. Anti-social acts by business organizations or corporations are not strongly criminalized (Clinard 1978). Another explanation could be the fact that the statistics do not show there to be much crime, because the policies for arrests is different in Switzerland compared to other countries such as the UK (Herrmann 2002). There are significantly fewer investigations into crime statistics than in America for example, and if the citations were arrests instead, Switzerland's crime rate could be much more similar to other countries of its size.
In many ways, Japan has a similar culture and law enforcement style to Switzerland, but there are also several differences as well. One major comparison that can be made between Switzerland and Japan is the fact that they are both developed, urbanized countries, which happen to have a much lower crime rate than other countries of a similar nature. Like Switzerland, Japanese culture is repressive, conformist, and generally imposes very strict rules, values and norms, particularly among its youth. This is in contrast to most western countries that adopt the permissive stance, and believe in the individuals' freedom (Komiya 1999). Japanese culture embraces the notion of individuals relying on one particular group, which means that the relationships within that group are particularly intimate and reliable. These groups are otherwise known as the 'inner-world'. The Japanese are surrounded by many rules about what is proper behaviour. For example, with reference to crime, violent crimes are so low because it is unthinkable to behave violently in their 'inner world'. However, violence is present in the external world (Komiya 1999).
Fenwick (1985) noted that Japan created its own legal system which combined Western legal codes and systems, together with traditional Japanese culture and ethics (cited in Dennis 1997). Japan also has a low level of unemployment, perhaps as a result of its high rates of literacy and education, and excellent economic performance, which again is similar to Switzerland. If people are not struggling to obtain good jobs and earn good money then there is this theory that there is no need for them to turn to crime in order to survive.
One stark contrast between Japan and Switzerland is the difference in their social and legal controls. Both countries are of a conformist nature; however, whilst Japan has a repressive system, not only in social and family situations but also in certainty of arrest, prosecution and punishment (Johnson 2002), Switzerland is more tolerant of certain crimes. It seems that Switzerland's social norms and pressures are more powerful than its law enforcement and this is what keeps its society in order. In Japan, it seems that it is a combination of repressive norms and values as well as a strict legal code that contributes to its low crime rates. However, whereas Switzerland is experiencing a rise in crime, particularly in relation to the youth 'drug culture', Japan is experiencing a rise in violent youth crime.
Referring back to the 'hidden' crimes in these two societies, domestic violence is very much hidden. It is not only viewed as a private matter, but it is also more tolerated than in any other culture (Yoshihama 1999).
Cities with little crime are often characterized by very conforming pressure. Switzerland would be recognized by some as an oppressively conservative culture (Clinard 1878). Japan, for example, has the lowest crime rate of any advanced society, and its citizens are culturally pressured from birth onwards (Komiya 1999). However, attention has been drawn to the fact that Japan in particular is experiencing rising crime rates, particularly mindless, violent crime, committed by young people (Balasegaram 2001). One must consider what it is that is changing about Japanese society, in order for its crime rates to be changing. Balasegaram suggested that it was because of the particularly strict culture that looks down on failure, that young people suddenly 'snap' under these huge pressures. It has also been suggested that the increase may be due to a breakdown of some family values within society. As already discussed, these values are particularly repressive and being under such pressures could be a reason as to why these young people breakdown and commit crimes out of frustration.
Clinard (1978) has suggested that there are core lessons to be learned from Switzerland. He suggests that other countries need to move away from the individual focus and focus instead on cultural and social patterns that shape a societies behaviour. Switzerland has avoided the alienation of young people, and Clinard argued that this is vital in maintaining control and social order amongst youth culture.
There will come a time when zero tolerance is not enough, and it will be seen as not enough by society (Pollard 1997). Respect and confidence in the police will be lost, and there will be no way that the 'community' style of policing will be able to control crime, if the police cannot control it. Alternatives to this heavy handed approach of zero tolerance need to be found in order to prevent crime, particularly youth crime, from getting out of control. Perhaps these methods can be found in the case of Switzerland, where a more tolerant approach seems to be working. However, much more thought needs to go into a suitable crime control method to help so-called 'high crime' societies, because Japan is also low crime, but it is more oppressive than Swiss culture. Some young Japanese people have committed horrific crimes because they were ashamed about something that we in the West would see as a trivial issue. One example is a young boy who killed his mother because she would have disapproved of an argument he has had with fellow pupils earlier that day (Balasegaram 2001). This 'shame' method of keeping young people in-line seems to work until the pressure becomes too much for Japanese youth, as discussed before, they are sometimes crushed under the pressure. A balance needs to be found between these (perhaps) overly repressive cultures and other cultures, which allow young people too much freedom to do as they wish. However, it does seem that the reason both these countries have such low crime rates is because of the strict values and norms applied by family and peers alike.
Word count: 2433
REFERENCES
Balasegaram, M. 2001 Violent crime stalks Japan's youth. British Broadcasting Corporation. Online, available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1377781.stm (Accessed 23 May 2006)
Clinard, M. 1978. Cities with little crime: The case of Switzerland. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Croall, H. 1998. Crime and Society in Britain. London: Longman
Dennis, N. 1997. (ed) Zero Tolerance: Policing a free society. London : IEA Health and Welfare Unit
Heidensohn, F. 1989. Crime and Society. Basingstoke: Macmillan Education
Johnson, D. 2002. The Japanese way of justice: prosecuting crime in Japan. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Komiya, N. 1999. A Cultural study of the low crime rate in Japan. In: The British Journal of Criminology. Vol 39. No. 3.
Pollard, C. 1997. Zero tolerance: Long-term fix, Short-term liability? In: Dennis, N. 1997. (ed) Zero Tolerance: Policing a free society. London : IEA Health and Welfare Unit
Scarman, L. 1981. The Brixton Disorders: 10-12 April 1981. Scarman Report. London: HMSO
Schur, E. M. 1971. Labeling deviant behavior : its sociological implications. London: Harper and Row
Yoshihama, M. 1999. Domestic violence: Japan's `hidden crime'. In: Japan Quarterly, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 76-82. Available at: http://uk1.csa.com/ids70/view_record.php?id=9&recnum=46&SID=9045f43907781205e93d09bd9cd22899&mark_id=search%3A9%3A23%2C40%2C50 (accessed 21 may 2006)
SS222 Student number: 04806321
