AQA GCSE Sociology: The sociology of crime and deviance overview

The sociology of crime and deviance is one of the two topics on Paper 2 of AQA GCSE Sociology (8192), alongside social stratification. It asks what counts as crime and deviance, why crime happens, how it is measured, and how society controls behaviour. This overview maps the topic and links to the dot-point answer pages.

Defining crime and deviance

Crime breaks the law; deviance breaks the norms of a society and may or may not be illegal. Deviance is socially constructed, varying by time, place and culture, so the same act can be normal in one context and deviant in another. See defining crime and deviance.

Theories of crime

Durkheim argued some crime is normal and useful, reinforcing shared values. Merton's strain theory explains crime as the result of a gap between society's goals and the means to reach them. Marxists blame capitalism. Becker's labelling theory argues crime depends on who is labelled. See theories of crime.

Data on crime

Crime is measured by official statistics, victim surveys and self-report studies. Official statistics miss the dark figure of unreported and unrecorded crime. The data show patterns by age, gender, class and ethnicity, which may partly reflect bias. See data on crime.

Social control

Society controls behaviour through informal agencies (family, peers, education, media) and formal agencies (police, courts, prisons), using positive and negative sanctions. See social control.

How to revise the crime topic

1. Line up the theories. Durkheim, Merton, Marxism and Becker each explain crime differently; learn to contrast them.
2. Be critical of statistics. Always mention the dark figure and possible bias in patterns.
3. Separate formal and informal control. Give the right agencies and sanctions for each.
4. Practise evaluation. Twelve-mark questions reward competing theories and a judgement.

Test yourself with the crime and deviance quiz.