CCJ2007 Sociology of Crime: Weekly Review of Readings (Weeks 1-4)

This assignment delves into various aspects of the sociology of crime, beginning with an examination of predator crimes and their portrayal in the media, emphasizing how media influences public perception. It then explores the sociological paradigms involved, particularly symbolic interactionism. The assignment further investigates the causes of homelessness and drug addiction in San Francisco, linking them to societal changes, economic distress, and historical events like the World Wars. Participant observation and ethnography are discussed as valuable research methods for understanding criminal behavior. The concept of Panopticism is introduced as a social framework for disciplinary surveillance, with an example of how CCTV surveillance impacts behavior in a university setting. Finally, the assignment addresses the relationship between mental illness and violent acts, critiquing Rosenhan’s research on psychiatric diagnosis and labeling. The conclusion recommends avoiding a perfect structure of crime in society through media and implementing surveillance disciplinary as it creates the sense of being watched that makes people obey rules.

Running Head: Sociology of Crime 1
Sociology of Crime
Student Name
Institutional Affiliation

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Week 1
Empirical reality of predator crimes
The predatory crime involves the conscious intention and preparation to act on a
susceptible target. The crimes range from drug crimes such as selling drugs to street crimes
like rape, assault, robbery (with or without violence), burglary, and theft. Raymond Surette
states that predator crimes have dominated the perception of misconduct in society.
According to Surette, many people build their attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors based on
the language used to communicate with them. The media publicizes crime in such a way that
people are convinced that the way a murderer in a movie conducts the act is better or at a
higher percentage than how one does the act in real life (Surette, 2015). The people are thus
influenced by a false and misinformed insight on crime. The public is torn between the real
and fictitious image of what a murderer looks like. The eminence of the criminal offenders in
movies is hyped up to a point where the public views them as perfect at what they do.
Importance of the concept to the public’s view
The media is heavily involved in the construction of reality in society; people’s
perceptions should not be built on objective reality. Exaggerating the severity of crimes and
those who commit or omit them creates a sense of fear and paints the picture of violence in
society in the people’s minds. Most people get a general knowledge of predator crimes from
the media; the press often covers predatory crimes (Surette, 2015).
The sociological paradigm involved
Surette brings out the idea of symbolic interactionism. The model portrays the society
as a continuous interaction procedure in a particular setup built on views on the variable

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realities. The media has the power to create an empirical reality that influences the social
behavior.
Week 2
Question 1
Several people feel like they have been trapped by their private lives. The feeling is
usually correct especially if one is overwhelmed by troubles. Ordinary people are often
restricted to a private orbit revolving around their family, neighborhood and work. The more
a person becomes aware of the boundaries, the more he/she continues to feel trapped. The
societal changes and classes could be a source of psychological trauma in a person. Some of
the causes of homelessness include inadequate food, lack of housing facilities, and
unemployment. The tough times and suffering in the streets of San Francisco have prompted
the abuse of heroin. People have become addicted to the drug since it helps them forget about
their problems in the long run. War could also be a cause of unemployment in society; it
leaves many people homeless and jobless. The people are forced to adapt; this pushes them to
drug addiction.
Question 2
The severe depression in the 19th and 20th centuries accelerated the drug addiction and
homelessness of people in San Francisco. The inability to acquire housing and the
prominence of drug trafficking were increasing during that period. The two world wars
brought about economic distress thereby creating a large unemployed population. The poor
Americans were forced to live and starve in the streets under scarcity conditions. The changes
in societal structure and social segregation have caused trouble among many people. This
history of wars and unemployment has affected homeless people in San Francisco. These

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historical factors are crucial since they create the image of how society should be. The heroin
addicts are made to believe that they deserve to be in the state they are. The people are aware
of their connection to such issues to the people they are growing into. The instability of the
mind brings a depression state that forces these people to be addicted to heroin.
Question 3
Participant observation involves the joint interaction of the group under study and the
researcher. The researcher observes and interprets the social behaviors of the group.
Ethnography, on the other hand, involves the exploration of people’s cultures. Ethnography is
the use of participant observation and writing a detailed explanation of one’s discoveries.
Ethnography and participant observation have theoretical advantages over other methods in
as far as crime observation is concerned. These two approaches allow researchers to interact
with the criminal offenders to know what they do; they find out the experiences of the people
(why people engage in crime; the driving factor). The close interaction helps in avoiding a
superior-inferior relationship between the two parties; the group of criminals involved will
not view the researchers as authoritative figures. The researchers can interpret, understand,
and comprehend the people better than they would have if they had incorporated they use of
other methods like questionnaires.
Week 3
Question 1
Panopticism is a social framework that involves laboratory experimental of power
whereby societal behavior is amended. Jeremy Bentham and Michael Foucault define
Panopticism as disciplinary surveillance by society.

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Question 2
Education is one of the institutions whereby rules and regulations are laid out for
people to follow and obey them. Sometimes people have to be coerced to adhere to the
standards (Ball, 2013). However, with the use of modern information technology and the
Panopticism principles, authorities can get their subjects to obey the enacted laws without
being forced or threatened. For instance, creating a sense of surveillance; the sense of being
watched makes one do the right thing since they know that they are being observed. Use of
CCTV observation mechanisms constructs a feeling which makes one believe that they are
being monitored (Lyon, 2015). Such devices help the authorities enforce the law in schools
without being present physically.
Question 3
When I discovered that there were CCTV surveillance machines within the
university’s vicinity, I started becoming more cautious. I had not broken the rules before, but
the discovery that I was being watched made me review the school rules. I felt like there was
a person continually monitoring my behaviour and that I had to behave appropriately.
Week 4
Question 1
Mentally ill persons are prone to violent acts mostly when they are around doctors,
clinicians or psychiatrists. The retraining nature presented by the hospitals brings about the
violent behavior of mentally ill patients; the patients misunderstand their environment. The
public is not used to these violent acts; the violent acts are usually depicted as vicarious in
killer movies or real-life situations by the media. Mentally challenged people are sometimes

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victimized and threatened by their family members when they act up. The victimization
molds them into fearing beings have to protect themselves from any person that comes their
way. The mentally ill people thus become violent and the public is put at risk. The people
may end up committing vicarious crimes.
Question 2
Rosenhan’s research lacks logic. Rosenhan concedes that psychiatrists and medical
staff apply medication without doing a proper analysis of the patient. He explains that if a
person drinks blood and runs to the emergency room while vomiting, the staff will assume
that the person is suffering from peptic ulcers (Fontaine, 2013). However, this concept is
illogical. There is no way medical intervention is administered before tests are run on the
patient.
The study also labels some people as “insane”. The insanity tag weighs down on the
victims as they feel humiliated. The label can make people mentally ill; they feel like they are
not worthy in society. This makes the research unreliable; the labeling is unfair to diagnosed
patients.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The media is heavily involved in the social reality of behaviors. The images of
predatory crimes portrayed by the mass media are objective realities. The press should thus
avoid creating a perfect structure of crime in society to reduce criminal acts. Surveillance
disciplinary should also be implemented as it creates the sense of being watched that makes
people obey rules.

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References
Ball, S. J. (2013). Foucault and education: Disciplines and knowledge. Routledge.
Fontaine, M. (2013). On Being Sane in an Insane Place–The Rosenhan Experiment in the
Laboratory of Plautus’ Epidamnus. Current Psychology, 32(4), 348-365.
Lyon, D. (2015). Beyond cyberspace: digital dreams and social bodies. Information
Technology, Education and Society, 16(1), 5-21.
Surette, R. (2015). Performance crime and justice. Current Issues in Criminal Justice, 27(2),
195-216.