Knife Crime: Sociological Analysis of Moral Panic and Criminology

This essay delves into the issue of knife crime, examining it through a sociological framework. The study explores the concept of moral panic and its role in exacerbating the fear and terror associated with such crimes, particularly among teenagers. It investigates the psychological factors and societal influences that contribute to knife crime, including the impact of media coverage and peer group dynamics. The essay draws upon criminological theories, such as sociological theories, to understand the motivations behind these acts, suggesting that neighborhood experiences and emotional triggers play a significant role. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of stronger policies and reduced media sensationalism to prevent moral panics and mitigate the occurrence of knife crime, advocating for a focus on prevention rather than solely on the amplification of these issues through media channels.

Running head- KNIFE CRIME
Knife Crime
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1Knife Crime
Introduction
Knife crime is stated as the crime that involves the usage of the knife or any sharp
objects such as dagger, swords, blades or any sharp objects. Crimes associated with the usage
of such sharp objects and the outcome may cause harm or serious injury by the usage of such
sharp objects. Crime associated with it can also result in theft or burglary. Knife crimes are
generally due to specific strong emotion or out of trauma. Recent trends show that even
teenagers are also involved in such criminal activity. So it becomes crucial to understand the
psychology of the criminal behind such an action. The study shows the reason for the conduct
of such crime and the psychology of the criminal or the victim behind doing such an act.
Theories and Application
A knife crime paves its way from the past decades and, in recent times, has increased
enormously all over the country. It has engrossed a sense of terror and strain over the citizens
of the country and has ended up losing the lives of various people among them who are
teenagers or kids (Libcom.org 2020). Further, it has induced moral panic between all the
citizens due to its growing amounts. It is not just a crime but became a concern for its
increasing count and increased in the panics of the citizens to tackle it. Moral panic is
denoted as the dread or the feeling of unease existing in the thoughts of the people
insignificance of such crimes that are increasing daily. Moral panic creates responses that an
act is a self- rewarding and hence seen that it results in the construction of the delinquent and
does not provide any solution to it. As per the theories of Marx and Durkheim, moral panics
are caused from the significant concerns that have been stimulated due to a transformation in
the society, and moral panics are purposely made to serve the political disputes. The media
have played a significant role in such a widespread of the crime due to its telecast and

2Knife Crime
broadcast. Moral panics generally create a long-lasting impact on the minds of the public as
the people who are victimised also include people who are children (Dingley and Herman
2017). It has severe consequences that only results due to the terror of the people due to its
newscast by the media.
For example, in the case of Northwest London school, a person named Quamari
Barnes was attacked while waiting at the bus stop for school. In this case, a 15-year-old boy
was arrested for the murder (Muncie 2014). Though the motive of the injury is not known
yet, it shows that even teenagers indulge themselves in such a heinous act. So for that
purpose, it is essential to understand that whether the teenager committing the crime is the
criminal or a victim of fear, depression and anger. The real motive behind the act is vital to
understand the psychology of the person. The criminological theories such as the sociological
theory suggest that the expression of an individual concern the crime (Ritzer 2020). Factors
such as the experiences with the neighbourhood or the relationship with the peer groups
trigger the psychology to conduct the crime. The crime may be out of aggression or
depression or other issues that the person faces daily resulting in the conduct of a crime that
may kill a person. This suggests that the crime is due to the functioning of the neighbourhood
and the emotions that trigger due to the behaviour of the neighbourhood and not solely upon
the individual practices of the person. The media coverage for such incidences has increased
and due to the telecast or the broadcast of it people and the overreactions to such an issue,
especially teenagers develop a sense for revenge hence end up conducting such a crime.
Preventing a crime like that should be of more critical than telecasting it for political benefits
of the parties (Naylor 2016).

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Conclusion
In conclusion, it is stated that moral panic is the primary reason behind the conduct of
such a crime. The crime feeds upon the terror and fear of the people, which gives strength to
the offenders to conduct such a crime. Such reactions are generally due to the overreaction of
the society on such an issue. Offenders do get the strength to conduct the crime and
teenagers, by directly indulging themselves out of the specific idea of revenge to induce fear
among society. Further, the method of prevention would be by increasing stronger policies
and reducing the telecast so that it does not induce moral panics by the overreactions of the
telecast on the people.

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Reference
Dingley, J. and Herman, S. (2017). Terrorism, radicalisation and moral panics: media and
academic analysis and reporting of 2016 and 2017 ‘terrorism’. Small Wars & Insurgencies.
Libcom.org (2020). Knife crime - analysing a moral panic. [online] Libcom.org. Available
at: https://libcom.org/news/knife-crime-analysing-moral-panic-12032019 [Accessed 21 Feb.
2020].
Muncie, J. ( 2014). Youth and crime. Sage.
Naylor, L. (2016). Revisiting Moral Panics. Practice, 29(5).
Ritzer, g. (2020). Classical sociological theory. [s.l.]: Sage Publications.