Violence, Crime and Criminal Justice

1. Violence, Crime and Criminal Justice Michael Itagaki Sociology 102

2. Violence in the Sociological Perspective • Violence • Use of force to injure people or destroy their property • Social context • Sociological question of violence • What is it about a society that increases or decreases the likelihood of violence?

3. Violence in the Sociological Perspective • Types of Violence • Individual (personal) violence

4. Violence in the Sociological Perspective • Types of Violence • Group (collective) violence • Situational group violence

5. Violence in the Sociological Perspective • Types of Violence • Group (collective) violence • Organized group violence

6. Violence in the Sociological Perspective • Types of Violence • Group (collective) violence • Institutionalized group violence

7. The Scope of the Problem • Violence • A personal or social problem? • Must be a widespread subjective concern to be a social problem.

8. What is a Social Problem? • Review: • Something in society that concerns people to the point they would like to change it. • Social problems are relative • Social problems are dynamic

9. The Scope of the Problem • Violence • A personal or social problem? • Must be a widespread subjective concern to be a social problem. • Subjective concerns about violence • Amount of violence (objective condition) leads to subjective concerns • Fear of violence

10. Figure 5.1a (p. 129)“Is there any area right around here—that is, within a mile—where you would be afraid to walk alone a night?”

11. The Scope of the Problem • Subjective concerns about violence • Amount of violence (objective condition) leads to subjective concerns • Fear of violence • Objective conditions about violence • Crimes of violence have decreased • Still a lot of violent crime

12. Figure 5.2 (p. 131)The Rate of ViolenceSource: Various editions of FBI Uniform CrimeReports, including 1997, 2001, and 2003.

13. Figure 5.1 (p. 130)The Clock of ViolenceThese totals are U.S. national averages. Crimes do not occur with this regularity. As the text indicates, crimes vary by time of day and by seasons. The FBI also counts armed robbery as a violent crime, whether or not anyone is hurt during the crime. Armed robberies, occurring on average every 1.2 minutes, are included in the total.Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 2002.

14. The Scope of the Problem • Subjective concerns about violence • Objective conditions about violence • Violence varies with social location • Race: African American males seven times more likely than white males to be murdered • Country you live in

16. Theories of Violence—Nonsociological Theories • Frustration-Aggression (Dollard) • Violence built into our nature • Frustration, when strive for a goal but can’t reach it • Relieve frustration by striking out at others

17. Theories of Violence—Nonsociological Theories • Learning (Skinner) • If rewarded for violence, person will be violent again • Rewards vary • Modeling (Bandura & Walters) • Copying another’s behavior • Experiment of children hitting dolls

18. Theories of Violence/Crime—Differential Association • Differential Association • Edwin Sutherland • Deviate or conform to norms because of different groups we associate with • Deviance/crime is learned

19. Theories of Violence/Crime—Differential Association • Differential Association (Sutherland) • Violent behavior is learned • Associations with significant others… • who define some behavior favorably • The frequency of associations • The duration of associations.

20. Theories of Violence/Crime:Functionalism • Functionalism and Durkheim • Crime is normal (normal violence) • Crime is an integral part of healthy societies.

21. Theories of Violence/Crime: Functionalism • Social Control Theory (Reckless, Hirschi) • Inner controls • Outer controls • Stronger bonds with society, more effective inner controls.

22. Theories of Violence/Crime: Functionalism • Merton’s Strain Theory (anomie) • Cultural goals • Institutionalized means • What happens when goals… through approved means? • Strain between goals and means

23. Theories of Violence/Crime: Conflict Theory • Conflict Theory • Violence is inherent in society • Class opression leads to violence • Capitalist class vs. working class violence

24. Research Findings: Rape • The social patterns of rape • 72,000 U.S. women forcibly raped each year (FBI, 2003) • Actual total is three times higher: 200,000 as only 32% of rapes get reported • More likely an acquaintance vs. a stranger

25. Research Findings: Rape • The social patterns of rape • More likely to occur during the summer than winter • Victim: Ages 16 to 19 • Four of five rapists use no weapon

26. Research Findings: Rape • The social patterns of rape • Social location

27. Figure 5.4 (p. 141)Social Map: How Safe Is Your State? Rape in the United StatesSource: By the author, based on Statistical Abstract 2003: Table 307.

28. Research Findings: Rape • The social patterns of rape • Social location • Rapists almost exclusively male: young males • Race element • Theoretical explanations? • (Conflict? Functionalism/Strain?)

29. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger

30. Table 5.4 (p. 149)How Are Murder Victims Related to Their Killers?

31. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger • Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill

32. Figure 5.6 (p. 149)Killers and Their VictimsSource: FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 2.8.

33. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger • Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill • Race element

34. Table 5.5 (p. 150)Race-Ethnicity of Killers and Their Victims

35. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger • Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill • Race element • Weapon of choice: Guns

36. Figure 5.7 (p. 151)America's Choice of Murder WeaponsSource: By the author, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 2.10.

37. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger • Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill • Race element • Weapon of choice: Guns • Nights, summers, weekends most dangerous for murders

38. Figure 5.8 (p. 151)The "Where" of MurderSource: By the author, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reports 2003: Table 5.

39. Research Findings: Murder • The social patterns of murder • Murder least likely to be committed by a stranger • Poor, young, and males are more likely to kill • Race element • Weapon of choice: Guns • Nights, summers, weekends most dangerous for murders • Cities more dangerous than country

40. Table 5.6 (p. 152)Murder: The Ten Safest and Most Dangerous U.S. Cities

41. Research Findings: Murder • Social bases for social patterns of murder • Why aquaintances? • Why is poverty a factor? • Is there cultural meaning in murder/violence?

42. Social Policy • Preventing violence • Longer prison terms • Gun control • Culture of violence? • How is violence normalized in our culture?

43. Future of the Problem • Continuing High Rates of Violence • Theoretical perspectives: • Conflict Theory • Functionalism • Symbolic Interaction • To reduce violence, major structural changes are needed • Reduction of inequalities in society

44. Bowling for Columbine (2002) • Look for social problems discussed in the film • Identify objective conditions • Identify subjective concerns • Think about how Moore views those social problems • What theoretical perspective fits those views?

45. Bowling for Columbine (2002) • Theoretical Perspectives: • Conflict Theory • Functionalism • Symbolic Interaction • Differential Association • Strain Theory • Social Control Theory