CRM 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Age Of Enlightenment, Homo Economicus, Social Class
5 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Criminology:
● Vocational/professional
○ An applied orientation that seeks to study and research alternate theories to
reform the system (focusing on what can be done now)
● Critical/analytical
○ Delves into larger philosophical issues of the day (focusing on overarching
structural variables)
● Three areas
1. The Sociology of law
○ Examination of social aspects/institutions of law, including the legislation
of morality
2. Theories of crime causation
○ Such as criminogenesis
3. The study of social responses to crime
○ Public perceptions of law, crime, and offenders
○ Formal institutions of criminal justice--police, courts, corrections
○ How certain groups become criminalized
Crime is Socially Defined:
● Criminality is not inherent in an activity, it is defined under particular circumstances and
in relation to specific social processes
● There are many diverse conceptions of crime
● These reflect different scientific/ideological viewpoints
● Definitions of crime are not static (they change over time)
Legal and Sociological ways of Conceptualizing Crime:
● Legal definition: That which is defined by criminal law
● Social harm: Criminal (such as assault) and civil (such as negligence) offences in which
action/inaction brings with it some type of harm
● Cross-cultural universal norm: Fundamentally, crime does not vary across cultural norms
(for example, murder is murder)
Objective/Consensus/Normative Definitions of Crime:
● Prior to the 1960s, almost every criminologist adhered to normative/objective definitions
of crime, which basically assert that it is a rule breaking behaviour
Normative Definitions of Crime:
● Supporters of normative conceptions assume that in any given group, these rules or
social norms are given; they exist, and group members uphold them
● Group members who violate these objective standards or norms, are deviants, their rule
violations constitute deviance
● Legal norms are backed by the coercive power of the government and constitute a sub-
set of norms
● Often, legal norms regulate behaviours thought to be most harmful to society and/or
threaten its major values
Not all Criminal Behaviour violates normative definitions of crime:
● Just because some behaviours violate legal norms does not mean they violate the social
norms of a large number of people
○ Many people smoke marijuana for illnesses and medical purposes, yet many
people still oppose criminalizing marijuana smoking in any shape or form
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Building Theory:
● Three broad levels of criminological theory or explanation
1. Individual
○ Focuses on individual characteristics/choices of the offender/victim
2. Situational
○ Focuses on the immediate circumstances or situations in which criminal
or deviant activity occurs
3. Structural
○ Crime is the result of broad social relationships and the major institutions
of society
● Three broad perspectives influence how we view crime
○ The conservative perspective supports traditional ways of doing things
■ Dissenters need to conform
○ The liberal perspective accepts the limitations of the status quo and encourages
limited change to social institutions to address inequality to reduce crime
○ The radical perspective rejects the legitimacy of the status quo
■ Society is divided on the basis of class, gender, race, etc. perpetuated by
the powerful who oppress the weak
■ Structural change is necessary to address inequalities
There is no such things as “value-free” criminology:
● Crime is socio-historically relative
● The political orientation of any approach has major implications for how crime is
understood and defined
● Dominant policies, views of crime, and political orientations influence societal initiatives
to address crime (such as the way that resources are deployed)
Howard S. Becker:
● Social reaction theorist and sociologist who posed the question “who’s side are we on?”
● He suggests that it is not possible for any sociological exploration to be completely
objective and without bias
Historical Contexts:
● 17th century England (1600s)
○ Conflicts over power, authority, and the role of law resulted in principles covering
■ Supremacy of law;
■ Fundamental rights of humans;
■ Equality before the law; and,
■ Democratic basis of political authority
● Sovereign Power
○ Centralized power
○ Corporal and public punishment
○ Harsh and extreme
■ Examples: cutting off hand for theft, public shaming (stalks), drawing and
quartering
○ Example of sovereign power:
■ Punishment and death of Robert-François Damiens
■ He had attempted to assassinate King Louis XV of France in 1757
■ Very gruesome public execution
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
An applied orientation that seeks to study and research alternate theories to reform the system (focusing on what can be done now) Delves into larger philosophical issues of the day (focusing on overarching structural variables) Three areas: the sociology of law. Examination of social aspects/institutions of law, including the legislation of morality: theories of crime causation. Such as criminogenesis: the study of social responses to crime. Public perceptions of law, crime, and offenders. Formal institutions of criminal justice--police, courts, corrections. Criminality is not inherent in an activity, it is defined under particular circumstances and in relation to specific social processes. There are many diverse conceptions of crime. Definitions of crime are not static (they change over time) Legal definition: that which is defined by criminal law. Social harm: criminal (such as assault) and civil (such as negligence) offences in which action/inaction brings with it some type of harm.
