This article examines the effect of gender on crime in violent offenses. In the article, authors attempt to identify the cause of change in the difference between the amount of criminal offenses made by females and males, also known as gender gap. The authors used data from a variety of sources including the Uniform Crime Report (UCR), the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), and the Nation Crime Survey (NCS) to research gender differences in violent offenses. “The NCS and NCVS ask respondents about whether specific behaviors have occurred, and typically the responses are used by researchers to code incidents using the official definitions of violent crimes in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) UCR” (Lauritsen, Heimer, and Lynch 366). Data from these sources was collected on three specific types of violent offenses: aggravated assaults, simple assaults, and robberies. The data collected was then separated into three categories: male related offenses, female related offenses, and offenses perpetrated by a combination of one or more males and females. …show more content…
The authors state that certain hypotheses were similar in correlation to the data with which they were comparing it to. However, they also identify some dissimilar results which does not cause an absolute conclusion due to the inconclusive variables that could exist in the data. Throughout the paper the authors explained their methods of formulating a calculation for comparison to the data they were reviewing. Depending upon the data being quantified, the authors noted the differences between the data in the different reports. Although some hypotheses can be related to data, the authors believe more research should be done to prove other
Every report was different for males and females. Males where committing more crimes than female in every category mentioned above for offenders. Aggravated assault victims had more male than female. The crimes where committed against males more than females. This was reported by both systems noting that males where victimized more than females. Robbery was the same way noting that males were victimized more than females.
The rate of women’s conviction is on the rise (Van Wormer, Bartollas). The increase of incarceration is outdoing the conviction of the men (Van Wormer, Bartollas). Female defendants found guilty of felonies in State courts has more than doubled the proportion of male offenders since 1990 (Greenfeld, Snell). Male offenders are estimated to commit about one violent offense for every nine males; the estimation is six times that of women (Greenfeld, Snell). Women are held accountable for about 2.1 violent offenses (Greenfeld, Snell).
For every crime, the offense and charge are different. In addition, not every crime is committed by the same gender. Crimes such as larceny, fraud, forgery, and prostitution (Chesney-Lind, 1986) tend to be committed more often by women; whereas, assault, murder, trafficking, etc tend to be committed by men. When it comes to the stereotyping of women in the criminal justice system, one could say that women present themselves as victims to reach a lesser sentence or that by presenting themselves as victims they will have a longer sentence that will protect them. Statistical evidence has shown that women do in fact receive lesser and longer sentences when they are convicted of the similar crimes as men; such as drug related crimes (Coughenour, 1995).
Since 1970, there has been an increasing and alarming rise 138 percent of violent crimes committed by women. Still, while the equivalent percentage compared to male violence is small 15 percent to 85 percent the fact that the numbers have elevated so drastically points to something changing in society.
Table 1 of the Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, January-June, 2015 demonstrates the percent change by population group. The population group is broken down into cities and counties according to population. According to table 1, the crimes with the highest arrest rates were murder, rape, and aggravated assault, followed by robbery and motor vehicle theft. Murder, rape, and aggravated assault fall under Violent Crime Index whereas robbery and motor vehicle theft
Between 1991 and 2000, arrest rates for girls increased more than arrests for boys, and by 2004 girls accounted for 30 percent of all juveniles taken into custody. Researchers have yet to establish if this trend is representative of a quantifiable increase in female juvenile crime, or if social attitudes and law enforcement response to girl’s delinquency have influenced the increase (Zahn, “Causes” 1-3). Juvenile crime overall has been declining since reaching its peak in the late 1990’s, yet the rates of girls have not experienced the same rate of decline when compared to boys.
Within society, more men than women are imprisoned. However, women’s incarceration rates have significantly increased since the 1980s. International Centre for Prison Studies found that more than 200,000 US women are confined in the prison population in 2013. Despite the figure, most women were serving sentences for nonviolent offenses. Women were usually incarcerated primarily for property crimes, drug offenses and victims of domestic violence. Statistic found that only one-third of imprisoned women were sentenced for violent crimes. While 56 percent of imprisoned women were sentenced for non-violence crimes. This essay will critically discuss the different experiences of female prisoners. This essay will also highlight the issues faced by
Criminology as a genre is defined as the scientific study of crime, as well as its causes, law enforcement interaction, criminal behavior, and means of prevention. In its own way criminology is the history of humanity. As long as people have been on earth there has been criminal activity. Much like most other work atmospheres, it was a male dominated field. A woman seeking to work in criminology was unheard of. Men filled the jobs as police officers, lawyers, judges, and politicians. However, in the 1860s Belva Lockwood became determined to pave the way for women in criminology. As a women’s rights activist, she became one of the most influential women in criminology.
The 1920’s was a time of social and political change. Food, entertainment, home appliances, and dancing, were roaring but my interest was focused on women’s roles. More women were becoming flappers, wearing shorter, more freeing dresses, having short hair ( History.com Staff ), but more specifically women were becoming more involved in crime. Murderess row was a group of 3 women, Katherine “Kitty” Malm, Belva Gaertner, and Beulah Annan, and a reporter Maurine Watkins. The three women all have something in common, murder and they also were the inspiration of a famous show, Chicago.
Traditionally, there has been little research on or interest in the impact of female crime in modern society. In addition, juvenile crime rates are on the rise, which combine for a void of research or information on female juvenile offenders. In general, crime rates for women offenders have risen since the 1990's. Increasing numbers of young women are also offending at higher rates. In a 1996 U.S. Department of Justice Report, the number of arrests of young women had doubled between 1989 and 1993. Twenty percent of all juvenile arrests were committed by girls, an increase of 87 percent. However, according to The National Study of Delinquency Prevention in Schools, males are far more likely to admit to criminal involvement than are females. For example, 12 percent of males and 4 percent of females reported carrying a hidden weapon other than a pocketknife in the past year (Wilson, p.150). There are several theories for this rise in crime proposed by modern feminists, including that the introduction of women into traditional male roles prompted women to commit increasingly dangerous and violent crimes. However, this paper will rely on Meda Chesney-Lind's theories from The Female Offender.
Throughout history, certain crimes have been separated into different categories based on their prevalence. For every crime, the offense and charges are different. In addition, certain crimes tend to be committed more often by women than men, and vice versa. Crimes such as larceny, fraud, forgery, and prostitution (Chesney-Lind, 1986) tend to be committed more often by women; whereas, assault, murder, trafficking, etc tend to be committed by men.
In 2011, a total of 61,423 youths in the United States were considered juvenile and of that statistic 14% were females (Child Trends, 2013, p.1). The topic of Female Delinquency is important to discuss these days because it wasn’t until recent years that researchers even looked at females and the reasons behind their crime rates. Society normally looks upon males as being the normal criminal; however, with recent studies, females can be just as delinquent as males. Most people look at females as being feminine and not participating in criminal behavior, which is why not until recent years we have stepped out of this incorrect view and saw that not all females are the same. Therefore, we need to understand these female delinquents and gain
The world will always be full of crime, thus it is necessary for scientist to grow along with the gruesome and increasing amount of violations. Due to this it sparked scientist to develop crime theories in which emerged to explain why crime is caused by individuals. Some of the few theories that have advanced over the past century and provided many answers to why crimes are committed are biological theories, psychological theories and learning theories. These theories provide an insight to its first use and change in order to provide answers.
By the end of Dostoyesky’s Crime and Punishment, the reader is no longer under the illusion of the possible existence of “extraordinary” men. For an open-minded reader, and even perhaps the closed-minded ones too, the book is a journey through Raskolnikov’s proposed theory on crime. It is a theory based on the ideas that had “been printed and read a thousand times”(313) by both Hegel and Nietzsche. Hegel, a German philosopher, influenced Dostoyesky with his utilitarian emphasis on the ends rather than the means whereby a superman existed as one that stood above the ordinary man, but worked for the benefit of all mankind. Nietsche’s more selfish philosophy focused on the rights to power which allowed one to act in a Hegelian manner. In committing his crime, Raskolnikov experienced the ultimate punishment as he realized that his existence was not that of the “extraordinary” man presented in his theory. In chapter five of part three in Crime and Punishment, this theory is outlined by its creator, Raskolnikov. Such an innovative theory would clearly have placed him in the “extraordinary” category, but when he fails to meet its standards, by submitting to the common law through his confession, the theory crumbles right before the reader’s eyes.
We are all affected by crime, whether we are a direct victim, a family member or a friend of a victim. It can interfere with your daily life, your personal sense of safety and your ability to trust others.