Police Foundations SOC225 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Social Inequality, Social Conflict Theory
4 Jun 2016
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Document Summary
Rejects notion that law is intended to maintain a tranquil, fair society and that criminals wish to trample on rights of others because they wish them ill. Crimes of poor are rage over unjust social conditions. Marxist thought forms the basis of all social conflict theory. Sees criminal behaviour as a function of conflict. Pure conflict theory intergroup conflict/rivalry causes crime in all societies, no matter the economic structure. Branch focusing on crime-producing traits of capitalist societies includes critical, radical (marxist) criminology. Class-crime correlation in official crime data not accurate. Crime more even through entire social structure than what was recorded. Contention that criminal law being used to advance interest of powerful groups, impose their morality on others. Provided basis for challenging government"s application of law. Describing how control of political and economic system affects way criminal justice is administered. Showing how definitions of crime favour those who control the justice system. Analyzing role of conflict in modern society.
