How is Crime and Deviance examined in AQA A-Level Sociology?

Crime and Deviance is examined in Paper 3 (Crime and Deviance with Theory and Methods), worth 50 of the 80 marks, alongside a 30-mark Theory and Methods section. It uses short outline items (4 and 6 marks), a 10-mark applying material from the item analyse question, and 30-mark essays. Because the paper combines Crime with Theory and Methods, synoptic links to theory, methods and the social construction of statistics are central.

Which theories of crime do I need?

You need functionalist and subcultural theories (Durkheim on the functions of crime, Merton's strain theory, Cohen's status frustration, Cloward and Ohlin's three subcultures), Marxist and realist theories (traditional and neo-Marxism, left and right realism), and labelling theory (Becker, Lemert, deviancy amplification). Strong answers compare these and link them to power and the social construction of crime statistics.

How do I explain gender and ethnic patterns in crime?

For gender, explain the gender gap, the chivalry thesis (Pollak), Heidensohn's control theory, Carlen's class and gender deals, the liberation thesis (Adler) and male offending through hegemonic masculinity (Messerschmidt). For ethnicity, weigh whether differences are real or constructed: stop and search, sentencing and institutional racism (Macpherson), Gilroy's myth of black criminality, Hall et al.'s Policing the Crisis, and left realism on relative deprivation and marginalisation.

What are green crime and state crime?

Green crime is harm to the environment; South distinguishes primary green crime (direct destruction such as pollution) from secondary green crime (breaking the regulations meant to control it). State crime is illegal or deviant activity by state agencies, including genocide, war crimes and torture (Green and Ward, McLaughlin, Cohen on techniques of neutralisation). Both raise the question of how widely crime should be defined, including the harm-based (zemiology) approach.

How should I revise Crime and Deviance?

Build a grid of what each theory says about the causes of crime and the policy response, then add the social distribution of crime (class, gender, ethnicity), the role of the media, globalisation, and crime control and punishment. Because the paper is combined with Theory and Methods, revise the methods and theory strand alongside crime, and always question how far statistics are socially constructed. Drill the 30-mark essays and item-based questions.

EnglandSociology

AQA A-Level Sociology Crime and Deviance: a complete overview of theories, gender, ethnicity, media, globalisation and control

A deep-dive AQA A-Level Sociology guide to the Crime and Deviance topic. Covers functionalist, subcultural, Marxist, realist and labelling theories, gender, ethnicity and crime, crime and the media, globalisation, green and state crime, and crime control, prevention and punishment, with the debates and exam patterns AQA repeats.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.824 min read4.3.1Updated 2026-06-02

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

Jump to a section

What the Crime topic demands
Theories of crime
The social distribution of crime
Media, globalisation and control
How Crime is examined
Check your knowledge

What the Crime topic demands

Crime and Deviance is examined in Paper 3 alongside Theory and Methods. It asks you to compare theories of crime, explain the social distribution of crime by gender and ethnicity, analyse the role of the media, understand globalisation, green and state crime, and evaluate crime control, prevention and punishment. The paper's combination with Theory and Methods makes synoptic links essential.

This guide walks through the topic in specification order, then sets out the exam patterns AQA repeats. Each part has a matching dot-point page; this overview ties them together.

Theories of crime

Functionalist and subcultural. Durkheim (crime is inevitable and functional, but too much signals anomie), Merton's strain theory (the gap between goals and means), and subcultural theory (Cohen's status frustration; Cloward and Ohlin's criminal, conflict and retreatist subcultures).
Marxist and realist. Traditional Marxism (criminogenic capitalism, selective law enforcement), neo-Marxist critical criminology (Taylor, Walton and Young), right realism (rational choice, the underclass, control) and left realism (relative deprivation, marginalisation, subculture).
Labelling. Becker and Lemert (primary and secondary deviance, master status, the deviant career), the social construction of statistics, and Cohen's deviancy amplification.

Gender. The gender gap, the chivalry thesis (Pollak), Heidensohn's control theory, Carlen's deals, the liberation thesis (Adler) and hegemonic masculinity (Messerschmidt).
Ethnicity. Whether differences are real or constructed: stop and search, institutional racism (Macpherson), Gilroy's myth of black criminality, Hall et al.'s Policing the Crisis, and left realism, plus victimisation.

Media, globalisation and control

Crime and the media. Distorted representations, the fear of crime, the media as a cause of crime, moral panics and folk devils (Cohen), and cyber-crime.
Globalisation, green and state crime. The global criminal economy (Castells), glocal organisation, green crime (South's primary and secondary), and state crime (Green and Ward, McLaughlin, Cohen on neutralisation).
Control, prevention and punishment. Situational and environmental prevention, surveillance (Foucault's panopticon, Feeley and Simon's actuarial justice), theories of punishment, and victimology.

How Crime is examined

A typical AQA profile for the Crime topic:

Short outline items (4 and 6 marks). Defining concepts and outlining ways or reasons.
The 10-mark "analyse" question. Applying material from the item to develop two points.
The 30-mark essay. Evaluating a view (for example on Marxist, subcultural or labelling theory, or on gender or ethnic differences) with named studies and a justified conclusion.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and application questions covering the Crime topic. Attempt them under timed conditions, then check against the solutions.

Outline two functions of crime according to Durkheim. (4 marks)
Explain what Merton means by innovation. (4 marks)
Outline the three causes of crime in left realism. (4 marks)
Explain the difference between primary and secondary deviance. (4 marks)
Explain the chivalry thesis. (4 marks)
Explain what Gilroy means by the myth of black criminality. (4 marks)
Explain what Cohen means by a moral panic. (4 marks)
Explain what Foucault means by the panopticon. (4 marks)

Solutions

Q1: For example boundary maintenance (punishment reaffirms shared values) and enabling social change (today's deviance can become tomorrow's norm).
Q2: Accepting society's success goals but using illegitimate (criminal) means to achieve them, the response Merton links most to the blocked working class.
Q3: Relative deprivation, subculture and marginalisation (Lea and Young).
Q4: Primary deviance is un-labelled rule-breaking with little effect on self-concept; secondary deviance is the deviance that results from being labelled and the societal reaction.
Q5: Pollak's claim that the criminal justice system treats women more leniently, so female crime is under-recorded and the gender gap is exaggerated.
Q6: The higher black crime rate is largely a social construction produced by racist stereotyping and policing, not evidence of genuinely higher offending.
Q7: An exaggerated and widespread overreaction to a group defined as a threat, in which the media create folk devils and amplify the deviance.
Q8: A prison design enabling constant possible observation; because inmates never know when they are watched, they discipline themselves, an example of self-surveillance and disciplinary power.

Sources & how we know this

AQA A-level Sociology (7192) specification — AQA (2015)