What Are The Patterns Of And Explanations For Crime And Deviance?

Look at the people in any country's prisons and a striking pattern appears: they are overwhelmingly young, mostly male, and drawn far more often from the poorer than the richer end of society. In many countries certain ethnic groups also appear in the figures out of all proportion to their numbers. Why? Is it that these groups really commit more crime, or that society notices, suspects and punishes them more? That question sits at the heart of this topic.

Here you will learn the social patterns of recorded crime by age, class, gender and ethnicity, and the explanations sociologists offer for them. Some explanations point to real differences in behaviour, such as a lack of opportunity or status frustration among the young; others point to the way the police and the courts target some groups, label them and so help create the very pattern the statistics seem to show. By the end you will be able to argue both sides and reach a balanced judgement.