Deck 10: Conflict Theory

Question 1

Both labeling and conflict theories emphasize the operation of power and discrimination in the criminal justice system.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Law is differentiated from other types of social control by the fact that it is backed by the legitimate coercive authority of the political state.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The pluralistic conflict model, although accepting that the criminal law embodies common values, proposes that the criminal justice system is controlled by a powerful elite.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Donald Black contends that where informal controls are weak, formal controls are also likely to be weak.

Question 5

Research has shown that there is considerable dissensus and disagreement in society regarding the wrongfulness of offenses such as public drunkenness and prostitution.

Question 6

Surveys of public opinion have found widespread agreement among all segments of society regarding the relative seriousness of criminal behavior.

Question 7

The preponderance of evidence from research on arrest, prosecution, and conviction supports the conclusion that these decisions are influenced to a much greater degree by the race and class of the offender than by legal considerations.

Question 8

Research has found that when factors such as offense seriousness and prior criminal record are controlled, the influence of factors such as race, class, and sex disappears or is reduced to statistically insignificant levels.

Question 9

The conflict approach does well as a general explanation of the enactment of the law and operation of the criminal justice system, but it does not do well as an explanation of criminal behavior.

Question 10

Research evidence supports the hypothesis in conflict theory that most crimes such as murder, theft, rape, and arson result from the clash of group interests.

Question 11

According to conflict theory, the whole process of lawmaking, lawbreaking, and law enforcement is implicated in the conflict among social, economic, and political interest groups.

Question 12

Akers and Sellers report that conflict theory receives support from the fact that most crime is intergroup-committed by members of one group against members of another group-rather than intragroup.

Question 13

According to conflict theory, the state acts as a neutral party, mediating disputes between competing interest groups.

Question 14

Informal social control and formal social control are inversely related.

Question 15

The view that the law furthers the greater public good is a cornerstone of functionalist theory.

Question 16

Conflict theorists contend that, compared with socially advantaged groups, minorities, the poor, and the young are more likely to be arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and incarcerated for violations of law.

Question 17

Turk and Vold are noted for the view that the economic and political elite constitute a monolithic, all-powerful class that perpetually gets its way in the lawmaking process.

Question 18

Unlike the consensus approach to law and criminal justice, conflict theory implies support for fair representation of differing interests and values in the law and nondiscrimination with regard to race, gender, and class in the criminal justice system.

Question 19

Do you think people's behavior is controlled more by informal or formal social control? Discuss how your answer could be used to change the criminal justice system to reduce recidivism.

Question 20

Utilizing conflict theory, what kind of policy changes could be implemented to reduce class inequality? How would doing so affect arrest and incarceration rates?

Question 21

Compare and contrast consensus and functionalist theory. What has research found when studying consensus theory?

Question 22

Discuss social threat. As America becomes more diverse, how will social threat affect law and policy?