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Sociology - crime & deviance homework help

Got to do this essay for hwk:

"Assess the usefulness of official crime statistics to a sociological understanding of crime".

I have quite a bit noted down for this essay but nowhere near enough for 40marks!

I was told to consider:

**look at connections between crime and deviance, and sociological methods
**statistics as SOCIAL FACTS and SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS - ....'the distinction between' <<<<<<<<<<i have no idea about this, we haven't done it in class, and not mentioned on the net or in my books.

Also, any good, extra info you may have on area of Crime + Deviance would be greatly appreciated!!

THANKS!
verna-oxo
Got to do this essay for hwk:

"Assess the usefulness of official crime statistics to a sociological understanding of crime".

I have quite a bit noted down for this essay but nowhere near enough for 40marks!

I was told to consider:

**look at connections between crime and deviance, and sociological methods
**statistics as SOCIAL FACTS and SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS - ....'the distinction between' <<<<<<<<<<i have no idea about this, we haven't done it in class, and not mentioned on the net or in my books.

Also, any good, extra info you may have on area of Crime + Deviance would be greatly appreciated!!

THANKS!


I'll give you bullet points

* Reliabilty and validity
* Social fact - does it happen? (structuralism - look at Durkheim, Miller, Cohen, Cloward and Ohlin)
* Social construction - negotiation, societal reaction and processes (interactionism - Look at Becker, Lemert and Cicourel)
* Moral Panics
* Amplification of deviance
Reply 2
Avatar for LaurenFah
LaurenFah
14
When looking at synoptic links between C&D and Methodology here are some pointers to consider:

* Positivist VS Interpretivist (Positivists preference for official stats).
* Sociology a Science? (The use of objective data in stats)
* Reliability VS Validity (Stats have reliability whilst lacking validity)

Hope this helps in the synopticity aspect of your essay.
Reply 3
Avatar for NickiM
NickiM
14
This might not make any sense - haven't written the essay but talked about it in class, so some notes which make sense to me..

Official Statistics = police stats, BCS
Official Statistics collected by the police and courts show... (functionalism)
These statistics however can be criticsed - social construction (interactionism and white collar crime)
Self Report Studies and victime surveys
Alternatives --> advantages/disadvantages
Conclusion

_______

Theories

Early Positivism - causes
Durkheim/Strain theory/Social ecology/Functionalist subcultural theories - accept the statistics at face value and go on to explain crime. Use them as a starting point for research
---
Labelling theories - statistics are a social construction (lots on)
Traditional Marxism - OS ignores crimes of the powerful
New Criminology
Realism
When you're discussing it being a social construct, maybe that could include statistics about how many crimes are actually reported, and then the percentage of those which are actually followed up by the police- meaning that the crime figures are shaped by human action or inaction.

Hope that's correct ^^^ my sociology teacher is a little vague..

Good luck with it :smile:
Reply 5
Avatar for moragm40
moragm40
Try Muncie and McLaughlin or Jewkes and Letherby. All statistics are open to interpretation. Both those books have a whole chapter on what you're looking for. Good luck

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