Does Social Disadvantage Cause Crime - Literature review Example

Does Social Disadvantage Cause Crime Name Institution In order to understand social disadvantages, it is important to highlight the main cause of social disadvantages. Poverty happens to be the main cause of almost all social disadvantages (Saunders, Naidoo & Griffiths, 2007). Through poverty, all other forms of social disadvantages are manifested. Persons living in poverty have been known to have low self-esteem, poor health and are usually isolated from the rest of the community (Saunders, Naidoo & Griffiths, 2007). By understanding the cause of social disadvantages, it is possible to visualize the factors that manifest as a result of poverty, which form social disadvantages. According to (McLanahan & Sandefur, 1994), social disadvantages comprise of difficult factors that a person may have been exposed to. McLanahan and Sandefur go on to explain that some of these factors may include unemployment or low employment status, lack of education or low levels of education and in some cases, one’s status within the society. However, social disadvantages are not only limited to the above named factors; they may be any form of complexity that may not allow one to match up to the status of those who are not disadvantaged. This paper will focus on education, employment status, parenting and housing as social issues to highlight their relation to crime. According to Machin (2006), “education is a key driver of economic and social successes for individuals…” It has also been noted that education can improve one’s social wellbeing. Most people are of the opinion that with education it is possible to escape from a disadvantaged background. This implies that lack of education or low education levels exposes one to the risk of failing in life. Machin (2006), suggests that a large number of people, who possess low levels of education in many countries, come from impoverished backgrounds. As explained above, lack of education or possession of low levels of education can be characterized as a social disadvantage. According to Lochner (2007), possession of education leads to an increase in one’s wages, which in turn increases the risk of taking part in criminal activities. The risk in taking part in criminal activities is accentuated by the fact that committing a crime involves committing some time to it, and there is an associated incarceration time associated with each crime committed. For one who has had a good education and is employed, it is far much more difficult to use their time to plan for a crime since they should be working, secondly, it will cost them much more if they are jailed for the crime. It has also been noted that persons who are educated, tend to be more patient; thus, lowering their inclination towards risks. In the end, it can be seen that education allows one to be more productive. On the other hand, lack of education or possession of low education levels translates to low wages. Therefore, the returns from crime seem much more favorable to the individual. Without a sound education, it is not possible for one to calculate the risks associated with a crime. In the end, an individual who lacks education is more inclined to participate in criminal activities than one who is education. Winter-Ebmer and Raphael (2001) noted a relationship between criminal activities and unemployment, in that individuals react positively to incentive. Callie (1998) noted that there was a decline in all types of major crimes in the U.S. while at the same time a decrease in unemployment rates between 1993 and 1998. This concurrence of events clearly depicts a relationship between employment and crime rates. It shows that would-be-offenders turned their lives of crime after acquiring legitimate jobs. Unemployment being a social disadvantage, guarantees that one has a lot of free time. As stated above, persons who are employed risk a lot by getting involved in criminal activities. At the very least, it could take up much of their time in planning ending up in them being fired from their jobs. On the other hand, the unemployed have very little or nothing to lose. It is, therefore, possible for such persons to engage themselves in criminal activities. This may be due to various reasons such as trying to better their lives by stealing or they are just idle and need something to do. Therefore, given the human nature of preferring incentives, persons who are unemployed may find criminal activities rewarding. Parenting can be categorized as a social disadvantage, for instance, in cases where it is a single parent family, domestic violence regularly takes place, the parents are unemployed, etc. Many studies have been conducted on family backgrounds of criminals. According to Fagan (1995), individuals from single parent families are highly likely to fall into welfare dependence and poverty than their counterparts from intact families. This can be as a result of deprivation of love from one parent (Fagan, 1995). Delinquency in individuals starts at a young age. For instance, disobedience in kids may start after watching the parents quarreling, in which case the parents may vent their anger on them. Lahey et al. (1984) points out that parents who are depressed tend to harbor low tolerance levels for their children’s misbehaviors. Such parents impose an authoritarian rule in the home and are usually over controlling. Vondra (1990) observes that conflict, increased levels of irritability, physical punishment and arbitrary discipline seem to be a common factor in families that are undergoing an economic stress. This means that it is quite possible for children reared in such families to result in drugs just to “get away” from it all. From this point, it may be a downward spiral to criminal activities for these children as they seek to acquire resources to sustain their drug habits. In the case of a single parent family, substance abuse or psychiatric issues play a major role rather than the ill treatment of the child. Most single parents react to the pressure by having anxiety attacks or abusing drugs. In such a case, the quality of parenting in such households is diminished, resulting in child neglect. On the other hand, Chaffin, Kelleher and Hollenberger (1996), observe that the size of a family can be used to predict the child abuse and neglect despite the controls that may have been established to curb this. Teenagers and young children require stable homes in which to grow. Lack of this may lead to delinquency at a young age. With time and due to neglect and lack of discipline imparted on them, such children may grow up to be adult offenders. Hence, a child who grows up in a deprived family is more likely to engage in criminal activities as opposed to those from intact families, primarily due to neglect and inconsistency within the family. Finally, housing seems to be a social issue that directly or indirectly leads individuals to commit crimes. According to an article by Ramesh (2010), homeless individuals have committed crimes, which are “imprisonable” in an effort to find shelter in police cells. Women have endeavored to take up prostitution in order to be off the streets for the night. This means that such people would commit major crimes just to be arrested and have a place in the police cells. It has also been noted that such individuals have refused to be to be given bail. Housing forms part of the basic needs, therefore, it is quite important for one to have some form of shelter, for safety and comfort purposes. The above statistics show that lack of shelter may drive individuals to commit a crime, if not to get resources to acquire one, then to be arrested and spend the night in a police cell. Conclusion The discussion presented in this paper highlights poverty as the main cause of social disadvantages. Poverty directly or indirectly affects families resulting in different other forms of social disadvantages such as lack of education or low education level, unemployment or low wages, parenting practices and housing. Education is summed up to be a “gateway” to the good life. Through education, individuals can make better judgment and avoid engaging in crimes. It is also noted that such individuals have a lot to lose if they engage in criminal activities than their counterparts who are unemployed. This means that unemployed individuals, who have a lot of free time, are more likely to be involved in such activities. According to various studies, there exists a relationship between crime rate and unemployment rate. Potential offenders are noted to abandon their criminal activities when an opportunity for legitimate job opportunities comes across. This shows that those who are unemployed are more likely to engage in criminal activities than employed ones. This paper also notes that human beings tend to be influenced by the availability of incentives. Therefore, the prospect of “earning” while undertaking the criminal activity, coupled with the fact that they are idle and need to provide for themselves or their families drives unemployed people to commit crimes. Hence, an individual exposed to this social disadvantage is more likely to engage in crime. Parenting affects the behavior of children as they grow up. Children who come from deprived families are much more likely to engage in criminal activities. This is because of the stress that may be imparted on them as they grow or due to neglect that results in indiscipline. Finally, studies have indicated that homeless individuals would commit crimes just to spend the night in police cells. Homelessness is a social disadvantage that leads individuals either directly or indirectly to crimes as a way of escaping the cold streets. Despite all this, it is not proper to say that social disadvantage leads to crime. This is because there have been exceptions to this expectation. Many people have been able to overcome their social disadvantage by using it as an inspiration rather than feeling sorry for themselves. However, it would be right to say that social disadvantage increases the chance of one turning to crime. References List Callie M. Rennison, Criminal Victimization 1998: Changes 1997–1998 with Trends 1993–1998 (U.S. Dep’t Justice Rep. No. NCJ-1766353, 1999). Fagan, P. (1995). The real root causes of violent crime: The breakdown of marriage, family, and community. The Backgrounder, 202(1026). Lochner, L. (2007). Education and crime. International Encyclopedia of Education, 3, 1-14. Machin, S. (2006). Social disadvantage and education experiences. Paris: OECD. McLanahan, S., & Sandefur, G. (1994). Growing up with a single parent: What hurts, what helps. New York: Harvard University Press. Ramesh, R. (2010, December 23). A fifth of all homeless people have committed a crime to get off the streets. The Guardian. Raphael, S., & Winter-Ebmer, R. (2001). Identifying the effect of unemployment on crime. Journal of Law and Economics, 259 -283. Saunders, P., Naidoo, Y., & Griffiths, M. (2007). Towards new indicators of disadvantage: Deprivation and social exclusion in australia. Sydney: Social Policy Research Centre. Vondra, J. (1990). Sociological and ecological facts in Children at Risk: An Evaluation of Factors Contributing to Child Abuse and Neglect, eds R. T. Ammerman & M. Hersen, Plenum Press, New York. Read More