Crime and Deviance — AQA A-Level Sociology
Test yourself on Crime and Deviance with AQA A-Level practice questions.
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Crime and Deviance explained
This topic explores four interconnected contemporary issues in crime.
Read the full explanation
Globalisation has created new transnational criminal networks, such as cybercrime and human trafficking, while increasing global inequality. The media shapes public perceptions of crime through news values, moral panics, and the amplification of deviance, often exaggerating the risk of victimisation. Green crime examines harms against the environment, distinguishing between traditional legal definitions and broader zemiological approaches that focus on environmental harm regardless of legality. Finally, state crime involves illegal or deviant activities perpetrated by state agencies. This includes human rights abuses, raising complex questions about how to define crimes committed by those who make the laws.
Your focus
- Analyse the impact of globalisation on the types and volume of crime in contemporary society.
- Evaluate the role of the media in shaping public perceptions of crime and deviance.
- Assess the sociological approaches to defining and explaining green crime and state crime.
Crime and Deviance exam tips
Marking Points
- Identify how globalisation facilitates transnational crimes like cybercrime, drug trafficking, and money laundering by crossing national borders.
- Explain the media's role in creating moral panics and deviancy amplification spirals through the disproportionate reporting of specific offences.
- Distinguish between primary green crimes (direct environmental destruction) and secondary green crimes (flouting environmental regulations).
- Define state crime and explain the difficulties in measuring it, particularly regarding the violation of human rights by sovereign governments.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Use contemporary examples, such as recent cyberattacks or environmental disasters, to illustrate the impact of globalisation and green crime.
- 💡When discussing state crime, evaluate the usefulness of defining crime based on human rights rather than domestic laws.
- 💡Apply concepts like 'news values' to explain why certain crimes receive disproportionate media coverage compared to their actual frequency.
Common Mistakes
- Mistake: Confusing primary and secondary green crime. Correction: Primary green crimes result directly from the destruction of the earth's resources, whereas secondary green crimes involve flouting rules aimed at preventing environmental disasters.
- Mistake: Assuming state crime only refers to actions by dictatorships. Correction: State crime can be committed by democratic governments, such as illegal wars, institutional racism, or torture.
- Mistake: Believing the media accurately reflects crime statistics. Correction: The media over-represents violent and sexual crimes, creating a distorted public perception of the risk of victimisation.