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2-mark Questions (identify two things each)
Q1: Identify two types of crime.
Answer:
White-collar crime
Violent crime
Q2: Identify two agents of social control.
Answer:
Police
Family
Q3: Identify two reasons why people commit crime.
Answer:
Poverty
Peer pressure
4-mark Questions (describe two things each)
Q1: Describe two formal agents of social control.
Answer:
Police – Enforce the law by arresting and investigating offenders.
Courts – Decide on guilt and deliver punishments like fines or prison.
Q2: Describe two informal agents of social control.
Answer:
Family – Teaches children acceptable behavior through rewards and punishments.
Peers – Influence behavior through approval or rejection.
Q3: Describe two reasons why working-class people may be overrepresented in crime statistics.
Answer:
Police targeting – Police patrol working-class areas more heavily.
Economic strain – Poverty may lead to crimes of survival or opportunity.
8-mark Questions (2 strengths + 2 limitations with explanations)
Q1: Describe two strengths and two limitations of using official crime statistics.
Answer:
Strength 1: Large-scale data – Covers whole populations for broad trends.
Strength 2: Comparability – Allows tracking crime over time or across areas.
Limitation 1: Dark figure – Many crimes go unreported or unrecorded.
Limitation 2: Police bias – Statistics may reflect policing priorities, not true crime levels.
Q2: Describe two strengths and two limitations of using self-report studies to research crime.
Answer:
Strength 1: Hidden crime revealed – Captures offenses that aren't in official stats.
Strength 2: First-hand insight – Provides offenders’ own views.
Limitation 1: Honesty issues – People may lie or forget.
Limitation 2: Limited sample – Often focuses on young people, missing other groups.
Q3: Describe two strengths and two limitations of using participant observation to study deviance.
Answer:
Strength 1: High validity – Observes real-life deviant behavior in context.
Strength 2: In-depth understanding – Builds trust and detailed knowledge.
Limitation 1: Ethical issues – Researcher may witness or become involved in crime.
Limitation 2: Time-consuming – Requires long-term immersion.
10-mark Questions (5 points each with explanation)
Q1: Explain reasons why people commit crime.
Answer:
Poverty – Crime as survival or due to lack of opportunities.
Peer pressure – Friends may encourage criminal acts.
Status frustration – Cohen argued subcultures form when goals can’t be met legally.
Greed – Desire for wealth or luxury items.
Lack of socialization – Poor upbringing may fail to teach respect for rules.
Q2: Explain how formal agents of social control work.
Answer:
Police – Enforce laws, investigate crimes, arrest offenders.
Courts – Judge guilt and assign punishments.
Prisons – Confine and rehabilitate criminals.
Probation services – Supervise offenders in the community.
Government laws – Define crimes and set penalties.
Q3: Explain how informal agents of social control work.
Answer:
Family – Teaches norms through discipline and rewards.
Peers – Approve or reject behaviors, encouraging conformity.
Religion – Sets moral guidelines and expectations.
Community – Neighbors monitor and report deviant behavior.
Media – Shapes views of right and wrong through portrayal of crime.
15-mark Essay Questions (full essay form)
Essay 1: ‘Crime is caused mainly by poverty.’ Discuss this view.
Introduction
Crime is behavior that breaks the law. Some argue poverty is the main cause, while others believe factors like socialization, peer pressure, or opportunity also play important roles.
Body 1: Arguments crime is caused mainly by poverty
Poverty can lead to crimes of necessity, like theft to survive. Merton’s strain theory argues poor people face blocked opportunities, leading to innovation through crime. Statistics often show higher crime rates in poorer areas. Relative deprivation (as described by Lea and Young) can also motivate crime when people compare themselves to wealthier others.
Body 2: Other causes of crime
However, not all poor people commit crime. Albert Cohen highlights subcultures and status frustration as causes. Peer pressure can lead young people into gangs or vandalism regardless of class. White-collar crime by wealthy individuals shows crime isn’t only linked to poverty. Inadequate socialization or family breakdown can also lead to crime, as seen in New Right theories.
Conclusion
While poverty is an important cause of crime, it is not the only one. I believe crime results from multiple factors, including socialization, peer influence, and inequality.
Essay 2: ‘The mass media encourages crime and deviance.’ Discuss this view.
Introduction
The mass media includes TV, newspapers, internet, and social media. Some argue it encourages crime by glorifying violence or spreading deviant values. Others say it reflects rather than causes crime, or even discourages it.
Body 1: Media encourages crime
Violent movies and games may desensitize viewers. Copycat crimes can occur when people imitate media reports. Media glamorizes criminal lifestyles, especially in celebrity culture or rap music videos. Moral panics (as described by Stanley Cohen) can create deviant identities by labeling groups like "mods and rockers" as threats.
Body 2: Media does not necessarily encourage crime
However, media also warns people about crime through news reporting. Crime shows may reinforce fear of punishment. Functionalists argue media promotes social norms by showing consequences for crime. Some people are critical viewers who don’t copy what they see. Media may reflect existing social problems rather than cause them.
Conclusion
While media can influence behavior, it is not the sole cause of crime. I believe media can both encourage and discourage crime, depending on content and audience.
Essay 3: ‘Formal social control is more effective than informal social control.’ Discuss this view.
Introduction
Social control refers to ways society ensures conformity to rules. Formal control is enforced by police and courts. Informal control comes from family, peers, and community. Some argue formal control is more effective, while others emphasize the importance of informal controls.
Body 1: Formal control is more effective
Police enforce laws and deter crime through arrests. Courts punish offenders, reinforcing consequences. Prisons remove dangerous individuals from society. Probation services monitor offenders after release. The fear of legal punishment is a powerful deterrent, making formal systems essential for maintaining order.
Body 2: Informal control is also effective
However, informal control shapes behavior from early childhood. Family teaches norms and values, preventing deviance before it starts. Peers can encourage conformity through approval or rejection. Religion sets moral guidelines and a sense of right and wrong. Communities watch and report deviant acts, creating pressure to behave. Without informal control, formal systems would be overwhelmed.
Conclusion
Both forms of control are important. I believe informal social control is fundamental for preventing deviance, while formal control is essential for dealing with crime when informal controls fail.
QUESTIONS DONE BY FARIDA SABET
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