Gender in Criminological Theorizing - Feminist Criminology - Essay Example

Feminist Criminology Feminists think that gender is important in understanding patterns of victimization. They believe that gender plays a role in determining who the usual victims are in crimes and who the usual perpetrators are. This pattern of thought arose mainly as a response to the male-dominated and traditional patterns of interpreting criminal behaviour, where women were pigeon-holed into more docile and maternal roles and men were cast as the domineering and aggressive species. In an attempt to understand the feminist perspectives in criminology, this paper shall explore the role of gender in criminological theorizing, the emergence of feminist and malestream criminology, and the factors affecting malestream dominance in criminal behaviour. Gender in Criminological Theorizing Various theories have been put forth about the role of gender in crimes and criminal victimization. These theories have mostly straddled the traditional planes of men and women’s role in the commission of crimes and in predicting trends in criminal victimization. One of the earliest theories relating to gender and crimes was put forth by Lombroso and Ferrero in their book ‘The Female Offender’ (1859, as cited by Braye, 2003) where they theorized that people displaying anti-social behaviour were biological throwbacks. Their theory was based on ‘Atavism’ where the female criminal offender was seen as a person possessing the criminal qualities of men and the worst qualities of women; hence they were actually seen as not normal women. Thomas and Pollack theorized that criminal behaviour is a pathologically and socially (not a biologically) induced behaviour. According to Thomas (1907, as quoted by Braye, 2003), “the girl as a child does not know she has any particular value until she learns it from others”. Pollack further supports this theory when he set forth that the behaviour that a girl learns from others at a very young age determines her future criminal behaviour. He goes on to say that our male-dominated society and culture views women as secretive and oftentimes, very dangerous. Hence, for Pollack, women can be more dangerous criminals than men. Others theorize about the role of testosterone in criminal behaviour. They credit the hormone for violent and criminal behaviour in men. As proof, they cite that women are less prone to violent behaviour like shoplifting and fraud. Many women are inclined to use their femininity to angle for leniency from police officers and judges. The offences that women commit are very much viewed according to their sexuality, and many perceive their criminal behaviour to be “manifestations of an inner medical imbalance or social instability” (Braye, 2003). Their punishment is focused more on resocialization and the treatment of their medical imbalance. This gender bias in criminology manifests how the perceptions of criminal behaviour is so far removed from the interplay of culture and biological factors in explaining criminal behaviour. Braye (2003) insists that steering away from gender biases in explaining criminal behaviour will also steer us away from the possibility of treating people as different and unique individuals capable of diverse acts based on different patterns of behaviour. The Emergence of ‘Malestream’ Criminology and its Characteristics ‘Malestream’ criminology emerged from the traditional perceptions of women criminals as a defective and biologically inferior breed (Baccaria, 1778, as cited by Sumner, et.al., 2004). ‘Malestream’ criminology is very much a product of the perception of women as a negligible member of the human race. Many feminists later pointed out that the malestream thoughts about women focused on the perception that “only women had a gender, only women were programmed by nature to behave irrationally, only women were victims of their body, their sexuality, and their reproductive roles” (Sumner, et.al., 2004). ‘Malestream’ criminology ignored female prisoners. The male-dominated society in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States dismissed women criminals and prisoners as too few to count. A population which was too few to count, in the light of governance, was perceived as non-existent. In most every country, the female population was indeed a very negligible number, and only abounded in crimes like prostitution and abortion. Malestream criminology built the penitentiary system with male offenders in mind. As a result, women were given minimal supervision and minimal provisions for their safety and comfort. For malestream criminology, “the dubious benefits of solitary confinement, silence, and congregate or solitary labor were not for them; they received instead, overcrowding, harsh treatment, and sexual abuse” (Sumner, 2004). The Emergence of Feminist Criminology and its Aims Feminist criminology emerged as an objection to the tenets and perceptions of ‘malestream’ criminology. It challenged the perceptions of the mainstream and traditional criminal theorists, saying that “the main weakness of traditional ‘malestream’ criminological theory is the failure to understand the important significance of gender and sex roles” (Gelsthrope & Morris, 1990, as cited by Burke, 2005). Feminist criminology argues that adjudication often reflects male dominance and traditional patriarchal leanings by reinforcing traditional sex and family roles. They further contend that society has become so much focused on gender inequality that it has failed to perceive the true causes of criminal behaviour. Feminist criminology aims to discover and reclaim female incarceration. Feminist criminology was able to achieve for itself, better incarceration conditions for women, arguing that women are sinners and lost souls “who needed protection from male inmates and jailers in addition to wise maternal guidance and measured but kindly discipline” (Sumner, 2004). Feminist criminology aims to focus on the importance of distinguishing between biological sex and gender while coming up with a liberal and modern theory about feminist criminology which is not based on any previous and traditional theories. “It aims for the voices of individual women to be legitimated and seeks to accommodate the intersections of varied identities such as race, class, gender, but also class and sexual identity, disability, nationality, and age and so forth” (Dekeseredy, 2006). Feminist criminology aims to be a more diverse and encompassing approach to criminology. It seeks not to be limited by the more traditional approaches that have come before it. Factors Affecting the Dominance of ‘Malestream” Crimes There are various factors affecting the dominance of ‘malestream’ crimes in our society. One such factor is self-control. This factor is especially seen in sexual harassment cases. “Self-control appears to be a personality trait that that can predict the likelihood of sexual harassment” (Gruber, et.al., 2005). It is a quality that determines a person’s control over his baser sexual instincts. Some theorists claim that men have less self-control than women, and this accounts for their being more prone to sexually aggressive behaviour against other people. Biology-more particularly-the hormone testosterone plays a role in the malestream dominance in crimes. This hormone is credited for aggressive, domineering, and competitive behaviour in both men and women. A study conducted covering prison inmates revealed that there was a higher levels of testosterone in those inmates who were convicted of violent crimes. The study concluded that “if the level of testosterone impacts aggressiveness, we can conclude that men are more aggressive than women” (Nazaryan, 2008). Many biologists claim that this hormone plays a big part in determining criminal tendencies in males. They cite the fact that most of our prisons are largely filled with males and the percentage of arrested offenders are also males. Another factor that contributes to male dominance in crimes is the tradition and culture of our society. From the time children are born, society expects and teaches them gender-appropriate behaviour. Boys are given toy soldiers and toy guns to play with and they are encouraged in rough-and-tumble play. Girls are given Barbie dolls and stuffed toys, and they are expected to play ‘House’. In their adult years, men are expected to watch war movies, violent and adventure packed movies; whereas women are expected to watch dramatic movies and the so-called romantic chick flicks. This expected behaviour predestines men and women towards certain acceptable roles in society. Men are expected to be aggressive, while women are expected to be docile. Consequently, in the criminal world, this builds men up to be the likely perpetrators of criminal activities. The Future of Malestream and Feminist Criminology Malestream and feminist criminology are patterns of thought that seek to explain criminal behaviour and patterns of victimization. Malestream or mainstream criminology is the more traditional approach of the two and is deeply rooted in the established criminal justice system. However, it does not satisfactorily explain the role of gender in the commission of crimes and in patterns of victimization. “Mainstream criminology still tends to focus on gender as a control variable, ignoring the different pathways to crime followed by males and females” (Sharp & Hefley, 2007). Feminist criminology is not that much different. It has yet to find widespread acceptance from the male-dominated penal system. However, feminist criminology “can be seen in criminological theory, in the nature and style of criminological methods and in all the major policy debates of the moment” (Newburn, 2007). There is a good future for both perspectives in criminology. Their basic tenets are well- founded and can potentially explain criminal behaviour and understand patterns of victimization. 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Understanding Criminology: Current Theoretical Debates, England: McGraw-Hill International. Read More