Crime and Deviance

Critically analyse factors influencing the recording of crime statistics using at least 2 sociological theories.

The following essay will look at the factors influencing the recording of crime statistics whilst giving an overview of sociological theories regarding crime and deviance.

A century ago, most people who thought about the issue believed that some people were just biologically criminal (Giddens; 2006). Italian criminologist Cesare Lombroso believed that criminal types could be identified by anatomical features. Psychological approaches to criminality have searched for explanations of deviance within the individual, not society. Both biological and psychological approaches to criminality presume that deviance is a sign of something ‘wrong’ with the individual, rather than with society (Giddens; 2006).

Deviance may be defined as non-conformity to a given set of norms that are accepted by a significant number of people in a community or society. No society can be divided up between those who conform and those who deviate from social norms. (Giddens; 2006). Most of us on some occasions transgress generally accepted rules of behaviour. For example at some point in one’s life one may have committed minor acts of theft, like shoplifting or taking small items from work such as pens, paper - for personal use, exceeded the national speed limit, made prank phone calls or even smoked marijuana.

Deviance and crime are not synonymous, although in many cases they overlap. The concept of deviance is much broader than that of crime, which refers only to non-conformists conduct that breaks the law (Giddens; 2006).

The notion of anomie was first introduced by Emile Durkheim, who suggested that in modern societies traditional norms and standards become undermined without being replaced by new ones (Collins; 2006). Anomie exists when there are no clear standards to guide behaviour in a given area of social life. Under such circumstances, Durkheim believed, people feel disorientated and anxious anomie is therefore one of the social factors influencing dispositions to suicide which was regarded as a crime. Durkheim saw crime and deviance as social facts, he believed both of them to be inevitable and necessary elements in modern societies. According to Durkheim, people in the modern age are less constrained than they were in traditional societies, because there is more room for individual choice in the modern world, there will inevitably be some non-conformists.

Functionalists theories see crime and deviance resulting from structural tensions and a lack of moral regulation within society. According to Merson, deviance is a by-product of economic inequalities and the lack of equal opportunities (Giddens; 2006). Functionalists such as Merton can be criticised for presuming that middle-class values have been accepted throughout society.

Interactionists reject the idea that are inherently ‘deviant’ rather, Interactionists ask how behaviours initially come to be defined as deviant and why certain groups and not others are labelled as deviant (Collins; 2006).

To determine the extent of crime and the most common forms ...