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<v Speaker 1>Hello, and welcome to episode nine of Crime and Deviants

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<v Speaker 1>for the Sociology Show podcast. In this episode, we'll look

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<v Speaker 1>at right realist explanations of crime and deviants. So what

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<v Speaker 1>is realism? Will realists believe that crime is a real

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<v Speaker 1>problem that requires a real solution. In this sense, they

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<v Speaker 1>are more practical than other sociologists. Right realism developed in

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<v Speaker 1>the nineteen eighties with its strong held belief that crime

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<v Speaker 1>is committed by rational people and is prominent amongst the

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<v Speaker 1>norms and values of the underclass. Right realists focus on

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<v Speaker 1>how a lack of attachment to societal norms, and in particular,

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<v Speaker 1>a decline in community norms, has led to crime. The

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<v Speaker 1>first sociologists we look at is Wilson and Kelling, and

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<v Speaker 1>they believe that crime will flourish in the areas of

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<v Speaker 1>social disorder. In their book Broken Windows, Wilson and Kelling

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<v Speaker 1>argued that crime flourishes in situations where social controls break down.

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<v Speaker 1>According to their analysis, in any communities there are broken windows.

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<v Speaker 1>The term broken windows doesn't just refer to broken glass,

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<v Speaker 1>but various signs of disorder and a lack of concern

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<v Speaker 1>for others living in the community. So issues such as litter, vandalism,

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<v Speaker 1>or rowdy behavior. They argue that leaving broken windows unrepaired,

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<v Speaker 1>such as graffiti and begging, sends out a signal that

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<v Speaker 1>no one is taking responsibility for their environment, and it

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<v Speaker 1>encourages people to commit more crime. In most communities, this

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<v Speaker 1>behavior is prevented from going further by informal control mechanisms

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<v Speaker 1>such as comments, disapproval, and actions of other members of

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<v Speaker 1>the local community. Effectively, the amountain extent of broken windows

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<v Speaker 1>are held in check by the response of others. However,

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<v Speaker 1>if the broken windows go unchecked, then the entire social

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<v Speaker 1>order of the area breaks down, and gradually there is

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<v Speaker 1>a move to more frequent and more serious crime. This

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<v Speaker 1>might happen, for example, if those who would take responsibility

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<v Speaker 1>and do something to tackle crime move out of the area.

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<v Speaker 1>Wilson and Kelling asked, do you ever just see one

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<v Speaker 1>broken window? The answer is, of course, that once one

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<v Speaker 1>window is broken, they all were. Once crime is allowed

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<v Speaker 1>to happen, it flourishes. The psychologist Zimbardo proved this theory

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<v Speaker 1>when leaving a damaged versus a non damaged car in

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<v Speaker 1>the area. The damaged car was always vandalized more and

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<v Speaker 1>the normal car was left untouched. The second right realist

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<v Speaker 1>we look at is Clark, and Clark talks about rational

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<v Speaker 1>choice theory. Ron Clark argues that the decision to commit

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<v Speaker 1>crime is a choice based on a rational calculation of

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<v Speaker 1>the likely consequences of being caught. If the perceived rewards

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<v Speaker 1>of crime, such as money, outweigh the perceived costs of

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<v Speaker 1>the crime, such as getting caught and being punished, then

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<v Speaker 1>people will commit the crime. For example, when considering whether

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<v Speaker 1>or not to rob a bank, right realists believe we

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<v Speaker 1>balance the rewards against the chances or costs of being

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<v Speaker 1>caught and make our own rational decision. Right realists argue

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<v Speaker 1>that currently the perceived costs of crime are low, and

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<v Speaker 1>this is why the crime rate is increased. Criminals perceive

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<v Speaker 1>there is little risk of being caught or punished, making

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<v Speaker 1>it harder to break into places. By installing more CCTV

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<v Speaker 1>would make committing crime irrational because the costs would outweigh

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<v Speaker 1>the rewards. Surveillance cameras and other situational crime prevention techniques

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<v Speaker 1>should be used to put off potential criminals. They can

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<v Speaker 1>refer to the word deterrent, and right realists believe that

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<v Speaker 1>the more deterrence we have in terms of surveillance, the

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<v Speaker 1>lower the crime weight will become. A further right realist

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<v Speaker 1>is that of Hershey, and he talks about attachment to society.

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<v Speaker 1>Travis Hershey asks why don't people commit crime? By asking

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<v Speaker 1>this question, Hershey focuses sociologist's attention on what forces lead

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<v Speaker 1>to social control or hold people's behavior in check, rather

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<v Speaker 1>than what propels them into crime. Hershey argued that criminal

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<v Speaker 1>activity occurs when people's attachment to society is weakened in

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<v Speaker 1>some way. This attachment depends on the strength of the

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<v Speaker 1>social bonds which hold people to society. Four social bonds

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<v Speaker 1>are Firstly, commitment. This refers to the personal investments that

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<v Speaker 1>each of us makes in our lives. What have we

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<v Speaker 1>got to lose if we commit a crime. A person

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<v Speaker 1>who has lots of commitments through work, family, friends, and

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<v Speaker 1>community has too much to lose by committing crimes. Secondly,

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<v Speaker 1>we have attachment. To what extent do we care about

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<v Speaker 1>other people's opinions and wishes. The more attachments we have

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<v Speaker 1>to people, the less likely we are to commit crime,

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<v Speaker 1>because we care about how they might view us if

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<v Speaker 1>we get caught and our actions are revealed. The third

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<v Speaker 1>point is belief. How strong is a person's moral sense.

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<v Speaker 1>For many of us, the idea of committing a crime

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<v Speaker 1>is morally wrong, and this alone is reason enough for

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<v Speaker 1>us not to do it. And the fourth point is involvement.

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<v Speaker 1>How busy are we are there times and spaces for

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<v Speaker 1>law breaking and deviant behavior. A student or a teacher,

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<v Speaker 1>busy with hours of classes and homework, has a little

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<v Speaker 1>time to get involved with crime. And so what do

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<v Speaker 1>right realists think are the solutions to crime? Well, since

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<v Speaker 1>right realists focus on the erosion of community norms and

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<v Speaker 1>the likelihood of getting caught as reasons for committing crime,

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<v Speaker 1>they believe that making crime more difficult to commit and

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<v Speaker 1>increasing punishments will ultimately deter criminals. So the first solution

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<v Speaker 1>for right realist is SCP or situational crime prevention target hardening.

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<v Speaker 1>This approach looks to make specific changes to a location,

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<v Speaker 1>making petty crimes harder to commit or capture more likely.

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<v Speaker 1>A technique of SCP is target hardening, which refers to

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<v Speaker 1>increasing the security surrounding the targets of crime, such as houses, cars,

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<v Speaker 1>and other property. This can be achieved through installing alarms,

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<v Speaker 1>better locks, anti clime paint, and CCTV Clark site's examples

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<v Speaker 1>such as the introduction of steering column locks on newer

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<v Speaker 1>cars and having security devices as standard as greatly reducing

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<v Speaker 1>car theft. Felson tested this solution on the Poor Authority

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<v Speaker 1>bus terminal in New York, which he believed was poorly

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<v Speaker 1>designed and provided opportunities for deviant conduct such as theft

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<v Speaker 1>from toilets, rough sleeping, and drug dealing. Reshaping the environment

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<v Speaker 1>to design crime out greatly reduced such activity. Examples of

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<v Speaker 1>this were increasing the brightness and frequency of lighting to

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<v Speaker 1>avoid dark corners, They installed a centralized CCTV system, more

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<v Speaker 1>security surveying the area, and the final change with small

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<v Speaker 1>sink basins rather than large ones in the toilets, as

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<v Speaker 1>this would stop homeless people from bathing in them. Another

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<v Speaker 1>situational crime prevention strategy is improved lighting. Farrington and Painter,

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<v Speaker 1>in their ninety nine study in Stoke on Trent, showed

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<v Speaker 1>that the incidence of crime decreased by forty three percent

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<v Speaker 1>in an experimental area where street lighting was improved. The

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<v Speaker 1>improved lighting could be seen as directly causing a reduction

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<v Speaker 1>in crime, but it can also have the indirect effect

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<v Speaker 1>of people being encouraged out onto the streets as they

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<v Speaker 1>feel safer, and this further reduces criminal opportunity. Painter and

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<v Speaker 1>Farrington call this diffusion of benefit a second right ring.

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<v Speaker 1>Solution is ECP environmental crime prevention. Wilson and Kelling argue

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<v Speaker 1>that crime flourishes in areas where social control breaks down.

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<v Speaker 1>Broken windows are signs that the community cares less about

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<v Speaker 1>an area and crimes spirals out of control. In areas

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<v Speaker 1>such as this, the police are too concerned with serious crime,

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<v Speaker 1>so they turn a blind eye while respectable members of

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<v Speaker 1>the community feel intimidated. Without action, the neighborhood will spiral

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<v Speaker 1>into further disorder, and respectable people will move out. They'll

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<v Speaker 1>move away. Wilson and Kelling argue that environmental crime prevention

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<v Speaker 1>should be adopted with more police on the streets and

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<v Speaker 1>a zero tolerant attitude. In terms of punishment, this means

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<v Speaker 1>punishing absolutely everything. The criminal antisocial behavior in that area

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<v Speaker 1>should clear up quickly. According to Wilson and Kelling, they

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<v Speaker 1>propose that firstly, what an area should do is repair

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<v Speaker 1>any sign of environmental decline such as broken windows, cleaning

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<v Speaker 1>up graffiti, and also dealing with neighborhood disturbances. Wilson and

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<v Speaker 1>Kelling suggest that people can form to the norms of

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<v Speaker 1>an area, so if there's low crime already in that area,

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<v Speaker 1>people are adhere to that, and if there's high crime levels,

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<v Speaker 1>crime will further flourish. Secondly, please should have a presence

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<v Speaker 1>by visibly patrolling areas of social disorder in their cars.

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<v Speaker 1>They should concentrate on order maintenance. By this, what Wilson

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<v Speaker 1>and Kellyn mean is that they should be using the

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<v Speaker 1>law to ensure that smaller signs of disorder such as

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<v Speaker 1>groups of rowdy use, noisy parties, and public drug use,

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<v Speaker 1>are all crushed and stopped. According to Wilson and Kelling,

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<v Speaker 1>this would help to create a different view of what

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<v Speaker 1>was acceptable behavior and would make public areas feel safe

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<v Speaker 1>again for the majority of people. A version of these

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<v Speaker 1>ideas are adopted in New York under the slogan's zero Tolerance,

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<v Speaker 1>and there appeared to be a decline in crime. The

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<v Speaker 1>term was adopted throughout America and to some extent in

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<v Speaker 1>the UK as a description of a much harsher form

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<v Speaker 1>of street policing. The third and final proposal is that

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<v Speaker 1>all public housing buildings should not exceed three flows and

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<v Speaker 1>all residents should be encouraged to take responsibility for the

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<v Speaker 1>communal space in order to protect it from crime and

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<v Speaker 1>antisocial behavior. The purpose of not exceeding three flows is

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<v Speaker 1>so the police can easily access all flows quickly and

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<v Speaker 1>the top floors of public housing don't become crime havens

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<v Speaker 1>with residents living in fear. A third New rights solution

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<v Speaker 1>is retributive justice. Retributive justice refers to the idea that

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<v Speaker 1>the punishment should match the crime that is being committed.

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<v Speaker 1>The New Right argue that criminals should be punished by

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<v Speaker 1>being excluded from society, ie being incarcerated or locked up

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<v Speaker 1>in prison, or by being electronically tagged. The idea here

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<v Speaker 1>is that those who make bad choices based on inadequate

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<v Speaker 1>socialization should be removed from society to protect others. Long

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<v Speaker 1>prison sentences will serve as a deterrent to others to

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<v Speaker 1>warn them from the consequences if they commit a crime,

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<v Speaker 1>making it less likely that they were rationally choosed to

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<v Speaker 1>commit a similar crime. Clerk suggests the cost must outweigh

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<v Speaker 1>the benefit so that criminals think twice before committing further crimes.

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<v Speaker 1>In the USA, the policy of three strikes and You're

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<v Speaker 1>out is a good example of retributive justice. This essentially

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<v Speaker 1>means that after three separate convictions, you will receive an

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<v Speaker 1>automatic life sentence, even if the third instance is less serious.

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<v Speaker 1>There are people in prison in the USA right now

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<v Speaker 1>a life sentence, no parole, no release for theft. The

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<v Speaker 1>New Rights suggests that prism works because it deters many

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<v Speaker 1>potential offenders away from crime while taking as many persistent

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<v Speaker 1>and serious offenders as possible out of the circulation of society.

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<v Speaker 1>This has led to the quadrupling of the US prison

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<v Speaker 1>population since the nineteen nineties. Right wing politicians, especially in

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<v Speaker 1>the USA, often support the return of capital punishment too,

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<v Speaker 1>as this would reduce the prison population and the cost

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<v Speaker 1>of incarceration while having the same effect as being a deterrent.

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<v Speaker 1>So the key information you should take from the right

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<v Speaker 1>realist view is that they have a much stricter and

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<v Speaker 1>harsher idea of how crime should be dealt, with the

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<v Speaker 1>reasons why it occurs, and how people should be punished. However,

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<v Speaker 1>the right realist view is heavily criticized, in particular by

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<v Speaker 1>the left realist approach, and so if you want to

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<v Speaker 1>understand the difference, then please do go back and listen

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<v Speaker 1>to episode eight of Crime and Deviants for the Sociology

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<v Speaker 1>Show podcast. Thank you very much for listening.