Who is affected by crime, and how?
The impact of crime on victims, offenders and their families, communities, the economy and public services, and wider society, including the link between crime and deprivation in Scotland.
An SQA Higher Modern Studies answer on the impact of crime, covering the physical, emotional and financial harm to victims, the effects on offenders and their families, the fear of crime in communities, the cost to the economy and public services, and the strong link between crime and deprivation in Scotland.
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What this dot point is asking
The SQA wants you to explain the impact of crime: how it affects victims, offenders and their families, communities, the economy and public services, and wider society. You should be able to support each impact with Scottish evidence and to show that crime is not spread evenly, concentrating on already disadvantaged groups. This is examined both as a -mark analysis and as a -mark "to what extent" essay.
The answer
Impact on victims
Impact on offenders and their families
Impact on communities
Impact on the economy, public services and wider society
Examples in context
The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey is the key evidence source here: it shows both the long-term fall in victimisation and the sharp deprivation gradient, with the most deprived areas facing a per cent risk against per cent elsewhere. Pairing this with the perception finding (many adults believe national crime is rising even as it falls) lets a Higher answer show the gap between fear and reality. The Victims' Code for Scotland and Victim Support Scotland are useful examples of how the impact on victims shapes government policy, linking impact to responses.
Try this
Q1. Describe two ways crime can affect a victim. [4 marks]
- Cue. Physical injury and lasting emotional harm such as anxiety or PTSD, plus financial loss from stolen property, medical costs or lost earnings.
Q2. Explain why crime has a greater impact on some communities than others. [6 marks]
- Cue. Crime concentrates in deprived areas (a per cent victimisation risk in the most deprived areas against per cent elsewhere), which stigmatises neighbourhoods, deters investment and deepens existing deprivation.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of SQA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
SQA Higher 201912 marksAnalyse the impact of crime on individuals and communities.Show worked answer →
A -mark analysis question, roughly half KU and half analysis. Markers reward developed explanation of how crime harms people and places, not a list of effects.
KU should cover impacts on victims (physical injury, emotional harm such as anxiety and PTSD, financial loss) and on communities (fear of crime, weaker social cohesion, stigmatised areas). Scottish evidence such as the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey finding a higher victimisation risk in the most deprived areas earns credit.
Analysis marks come from explaining the mechanisms, for example how fear of crime isolates vulnerable people and how concentrated crime deepens deprivation. A judgement on which impact is most serious is the discriminator.
SQA Higher 202220 marksTo what extent does crime affect some groups in society more than others?Show worked answer →
A -mark essay: up to marks for knowledge and understanding and up to for analysis, evaluation, structure and a sustained conclusion.
KU marks come from showing who is most affected: people in deprived areas face a higher victimisation risk than those elsewhere, and victims, offenders' families and whole communities are affected differently. Naming the link between deprivation and victimisation from the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey strengthens the answer.
Analysis and evaluation marks come from weighing the uneven impact: crime concentrates harm on already disadvantaged groups, deepening inequality. A sustained conclusion that crime is unequally distributed and worsens existing inequalities lifts the mark into the top band.
Related dot points
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Sources & how we know this
- SQA Higher Modern Studies Course Specification — SQA (2018)
- Scottish Crime and Justice Survey — Scottish Government (2021)